So yeah, long story short:  I've been learning about Graffiti writing lately.  It started with this little project I had to learn more about the other 3 elements of Hip-Hop culture:  b-boying ("breakdancing"), DJing, and Graffiti writing... rapping being the 4th element of Hip-Hop.

So I watched a documentary called "Bomb it!"  Official site.  And in it they had graf from all over the world.  The stuff I liked best was from this guy Banksy who's a great artist from the UK.  He's also a pretty thought-provoking guy.  When I read this, I had to re-post it, because this is a vastly more eloquent way of putting what I've felt for years, and is the whole reason I studied marketing and advertising in the first place:  to change it.

"People are taking the piss out of you everyday. They butt into your life, take a cheap shot at you and then disappear. They leer at you from tall buildings and make you feel small. They make flippant comments from buses that imply you're not sexy enough and that all the fun is happening somewhere else. They are on TV making your girlfriend feel inadequate. They have access to the most sophisticated technology the world has ever seen and they bully you with it. They are The Advertisers and they are laughing at you.

"You, however, are forbidden to touch them. Trademarks, intellectual property rights and copyright law mean advertisers can say what they like wherever they like with total impunity.

"Fuck that. Any advert in a public space that gives you no choice whether you see it or not is yours. It's yours to take, re-arrange and re-use. You can do whatever you like with it. Asking for permission is like asking to keep a rock someone just threw at your head.

"You owe the companies nothing. Less than nothing, you especially don't owe them any courtesy. They owe you. They have re-arranged the world to put themselves in front of you. They never asked for your permission, don't even start asking for theirs."

And my favorite Banksy peice...

They would have ask me a vampire / baseball question.

So the immediate temptation is to pick a guy that is the best, but that's a difficult thing to determine.  A-Rod makes more money than anyone else, but he's a douchebag, so he's out.  Albert Pujols is probably the best hitter in baseball right now, but he's a Cardinal, and my loyalty to the Cubs just wouldn't let that slide.  Besides, one hitter can't carry an entire team... I'd take a pitcher, maybe Tim Lincecum or Dan Haren.  A guy with great stuff who can turn in a quality start every time.

Two Words:  "Credit Score".

Two more words:  "my nieces".

Heath Ledger's Joker meets Big Daddy Kane, win?

GAAAAH!

1. Favorite flower?
Orchids

2. Diamonds or pearls?
Pearls, the diamond trade is a scam.

3. What is your occupation?
Baller.  (meaning I'm functionally unemployed for the moment, though I'm trying to get into advertising)

4. What is your favorite TV show?
All time?  It's a toss up between The Sopranos and Sports Night.

5. What was the last thing you ate?
A 2-piece and fries.

6. What is your middle name?
Paul

7. Favorite smell?
Clean sheets.

8. What foods do you dislike?
75% of vegetables.  There are some that I like, but they're few and far between.

9. How many cities have you lived in/name them?
Geelong, Victoria, Australia
Champaign, IL
Detroit, MI
Dixon, IL
Dekalb, IL
Iowa City, IA
Boston, MA
Chicago, IL

10. What is your favorite CD at the moment?
Nas - Illmatic

11. What is your favorite sandwich?
I call it a "White Sandwich".  Turkey and Provalone with mayo on white.

12. What characteristics do you despise?
I'm with otaku84 on this:  intentional ignorance.  Also, rudeness.

13. What inspires you?
Not much these days.

14. What are you afraid of?
Failure.

15. Favorite brand of clothing?
If money is no object? 

16. Where would you want to retire to?
Surfers Paradise, Australia

17. Favorite time of day?
~2200

18. Where were you born?
Sandringham, Victoria, Australia

19. Favorite sport to watch?
Baseball

20. Coke or Pepsi?
Pepsi - Diet Wild Cherry to be specific.

21. Are you a morning person or night owl?
What is this "mor-ning" you speak of?

22. How old are you?
28

23. Living arrangements?
Currently living alone in a one bedroom condo in Chicago's happening "Andersonville" neighborhood.  Oh, it's for sale as well!

24. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share with everybody?
Sadly, no.

25. What did you want to be when you were little?
Aeronautical Engineer

26. Favorite Candy Bar?
Lately, it's been Twix.

27. What is your best childhood memory?
Let's not get started on this.

28. Nicknames:
Too many to list, among the most popular:  Stevie B, Buckman, Beezy, Stev, Jeb, Buckmantis, or Manticles the Roman God of Buckness... if you're not into the whole brevity thing.

29. Do you wish on stars?
No, in the city we don't have stars.

30. Last person you talked to on the phone?
My dad.

31. Piercings?
Used to have my labret, but I kinda outgrew it.

32. How many tattoos do you have?
0 and I'm pretty happy with it that way.

33. Favorite food?
That is entirely dependent on what I'm in the mood for, though it's hard to go wrong with a good steak.

34. Have you ever loved someone so much it made you cry?
I plead the 5th.

35. Been in a car accident?
Plenty, both riding and driving.

36. Favorite car?
Cadillac Escalade, though a BMW M3 would be a very close second.

37. Favorite day of the week?
Saturday

38. Favorite restaurant?
Smith and Wollensky

39. Favorite song?
That's almost impossible to answer.  Right this moment?  <i>NY State of Mind</i> by Nas, but that will probably change by tomorrow.  I can tell you what I refer to as "my jam": <i>Big Poppa</i> by Notorious B.I.G. but that's not always appropriate, and <i>Everlong</i> by the Foo Fighters is on an awful lot of my mix CD's.  All time I think <i>Wild Horses</i> by The Rolling Stones is a fantastic song.  The point is that I can't answer that question.

40. Favorite fast food restaurant?
What-A-Burger, but you can only get those in like... Texas.  Chik-Fil-A, but you can't get that in Chicago.  Popeye's is about the best we can do here.

41. Favorite drink?
Gin n Tonic (the history of which is fascinating)

42. How many cars have you had & what was your first car?
Lets see...
'86 Mazda B2000
'94 Mazda 626 (loved that car)
'88 Ford Taurus
'92 Chevy Lumina
'96 Chevy Lumina
'98 Pontiac Bonneville

43. In which store would you choose to max out your credit card?
Best Buy.

45. Can you juggle?
Not really, no.

46. What was your favorite toy as a child?
Legos, I had a metrick fuck-ton of them too.  I had all the original pirate sets (including the 2 ships), the monorail space set, a few castles worth of the medieval ones...

47. What was your most memorable birthday?
Probably my 19th, only because most of my 21st is hazy... thus not very 'memorable'.

48. Last person you went to dinner with?
Proper dinner was with my P's on Saturday.  Though Afters might count.

49. Summer or winter?
Winter.

50. What are you listening to right now?
The Deftones, <i>Saturday Night Wrist</i> album.

51. When was the last time you cried?
Couple weeks ago, when I found out my Gramma Jean passed.

52. Who is the friend you've had the longest?
That I hang out with regularly?  C. Frye

53. What did you do on your last birthday?
Bunch of us went to The Long Room and I got hammered, then some of us went to The Uptown Lounge where I got more drunk... then got accused of breaking a toilet and buying drugs, then got searched by the police and told never to come back.  It was epic.

54. Do you think you are a strong person?
What the fuck kind of question is that?  No, of course not, but I know all my weaknesses.

55. What is your least favorite thing about yourself?
I think I'm probably too cynical for my own good.

"Think of 15-30 albums, CDs, LPs that had such a profound effect on you they changed your life. Dug into your soul. Music that brought you to life when you heard it. Royally affected you, kicked you in the wasu, literally socked you in the gut, is what I mean. Then when you finish, tag 15 others, including me. Make sure you copy and paste this part so they know the drill. Get the idea now? Good. Tag, you're it! >:)"

1. Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
2. Counting Crows - August and Everything After
3. Notorious B.I.G. - Ready to Die
4. Sublime - Sublime
5. Rage Against the Machine - Evil Empire
6. Radiohead - Kid A
7. Ben Folds Five - Whatever and Ever Amen
8. Deftones - White Pony
9. Dave Matthews Band - Under the Table and Dreaming
10. Soundgarden - Superunknown
11. Johnny Cash - American IV
12. Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral
13. 2pac - Greatest Hits
14. VNV Nation - Futureperfect
15. Kanye West - College Dropout
16. Dr. Dre - The Chronic
17. John Coltrane - Blue Train
18. Snoop Doggy Dogg - Doggystyle
19. NWA - Straight Outta Compton
20. Justin Timberlake - Justified
21. The Postal Service - Give Up
22. Atmosphere - Lucy Ford
23. Jay-Z - The Black Album
24. The Beatles - Greatest Hits (the red one)
25. Wu-Tang Clan - Wu Tang Forever
26. The Crystal Method - Vegas
27. M.C. Hammer - 2 Legit 2 Quit
28. Boyz II Men - Cooleyhighharmony
29. Ella Fitzgerald - Best of the Song Books
30. Miles Davis - Kind of Blue

My own notes on this list:

First, I think it's significant that these are albums. I'll admit that there's a lot of single songs that have impacted me in significant ways, but the ability to produce an entire album of impactful music is a nigh-lost art. In the past I've said that albums define ones musical taste better than a list of artists, but it's fairly rare that we think in those terms. So in a way this list is more representative of my musical journey and taste than is that long-ass list of artists on my profile.

I noticed, going through this list, that many of the albums which caught my attention were (a) not the groups first album and (b) were not the album that ultimately holds the most significance to me or the rest of the world. I tend to miss that first album and I'm usually a "late adopter" on the subsequent efforts, but in almost every case, I've gone and found that older or better work and now enjoy that more... or at least differently (i.e. Siamese Dream, 40 Oz. to Freedom, 36 Chambers, OK Computer).

Also some of these selections are from the way-back machine, and I know that in many cases they're not "cool" anymore, but at the time they were significant in the way they contributed to my musical tastes. I also sort of hate that there are "greatest hits" albums on this list, but honestly that's how I discovered a lot of music and in every case listed I've gone back and listened to most of, if not all of, the artists' catalog - not just the hits.

Finally, there are some items on this list that I associate with people in my life, people who helped mold me into the listener I am today. Without naming names, I hope you all know how much I appreciate what you did (or tried to do) for me in that regard. Thank you.

Well, that's two different questions.  My personal motto is "Work smarter, not harder."  But favorite quotation... that's too broad, I have many, each applicable to various bits of life.

For those regarded as warriors... When engaged in combat, the vanquishing of thine enemy can be the warrior's only concern. Suppress all human emotion and compassion. Kill whoever stands in thy way, even if that be Lord God, or Buddha himself. This truth lies at the heart of the art of combat.

"The art of the warrior is to balance the terror of being a man with the wonder of being a man."  --Carlos Castenada

"The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly."  --Buddha

"I was half in love with her by the time we sat down. That's the thing about girls. Every time they do something pretty, even if they're not much to look at, or even if they're sort of stupid, you fall half in love with them, and then you never know where the hell you are. Girls. Jesus Christ. They can drive you crazy. They really can." --J.D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye, Chapter 10

There's more, but those come to mind right away.

Dresden Dolls frontwoman Amanda Palmer is releasing a solo album in the near future, the first single and video of which have been released.  Unfortunately most of the music channels refuse to air it, well fuck them; here's the video.  Music fans will be amused to see that the song was produced by Ben Folds... and I think that's him in the video as the boyfriend.


For the rest of the story check out Amanda's blog post on the subject, which was picked up by The Huffington Post.

I would choose a ninja.

I'm posting because I don't know what else to do.

I just found out that my Gramma Jean passed away.  For those of you not intimately familiar with the structure of my family, Jean is was the gramma on my dad's side, which means she was my Australian gramma.  The upshot to this is that in the past 20 years I've only seen Jean 3-4 times, which feels like not nearly enough for someone so special.

I'm glad that the last time I saw her she was healthy and happy and that I got to have a good chin wag with her.  She's been suffering lately, and pretty much everyone agrees that it's for the best, but that doesn't make it any easier to hear my dad hand the phone off to my mom because he's about to crack.

*sigh*

Maybe more later.

My night at poker was, I think, representative of my life lately. My two biggest hands tonight are as follows (This is meaningless if you don't know 5-Card Texas Hold 'Em, if that's the case just look below the cut)
( Read more... )
Twice I was beaten by dumb luck on the last card of the hand for all my chips. If it weren't for bad luck I'd have no luck at all.

I have just discovered a new band that I like.  They're not the next Nirvana or anything, and not everyone will like them, but I get a kick out of them.  They've got a sort of Atmosphere + Bloodhound Gang + My Chemical Romance thing going on.

Fair warning:  The video is work safe, but the lyrics are not terribly PC.

No. 5

I wouldn't even answer this but for the fact that I have held an opinion about it for a long time already.  Of all the celebrities who've died in my lifetime the only one that I've ever felt for was Brad Nowell of Sublime.  There's something about they way he wrote, played, and lived that was very real to me, and so when he finally lost his fight with heroin I felt as though I knew him better than just some guy from California who played music.

Happy Birthday to pinkraver !  May your day be totally sweet.

I live in the midwest, so none of those are real threats outside of zombies; and yes I'm very well prepared for that.  Shotguns and a rooftop.  Done and done.

Lifted from both dire5 and riksowden 

If you saw ME in a police car, what would you think I got arrested for? Answer me, then if you want, post to your own journal and see how many crimes you get accused of.

SUPPOSEDLY if you've seen over 85 [of these] films, you have no life. Mark the ones you've seen. There are 239 films on this list. Copy this list, go to your own facebook [or LJ] account, paste this as a note [or update]. Then, put xes next to the films you've seen, add them up, change the header adding your number, and click post at the bottom. Have fun.

From both dire5 and mesmerix</lj> a meme of movies. ( Read more... )