Hmmm, what's new ... oh yeah, we have a new president. t(O.Ot) !!!!

Just wanted to recount a quick story about that. I showed up for voting at approximately 7am and stood in line for 2 hours in some relatively nice weather. Read Creativity and Boards magazine cover to cover while I waited.

Obviously with everything going on in this election the whole process of voting was even a bit more charged emotionally than usual. I can't really explain what the feeling was but while standing in line getting close to my chance to vote I started getting the feelings of nervousness that I usually get before a presentation or something like that. I had the whole tight chest and elevated heart rate.

After voting it was off to work. I took Moreland that day and while crossing over Memorial I saw a pack of Jim Martin and Obama supporters with signs etc. I gave them a honk of support and they waved back enthusiastically. That's when the stress of the last 6 months hit me. I started crying. Not huge sobs, I just welled up a bit ... and I was like "what the hell?!" It didn't last very long and I didn't have to pull over or anything but it felt like the weight of the world had been lifted momentarily.

Later on that night I definitely got overcome with eotion when Obama gave his victory speech. My favorite line by far:

"Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America."

Holy crap I'm getting all choked up again, when did I get to be such a patriotic sap. :P

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Just found this site Diary of a Creative Director. I think Erik Vervroegen of TBWA Paris pretty much nails it on the head.

“…invest in your portfolio and one day you'll be able to do exactly what you want. You'll have the freedom to choose the agency, freedom to move from one country or another or the freedom to get lots of money…”

The site itself is kinda interesting. It looks to be sponsored by Black Bag, a very nicely designed Canadian job site that is focused on the creative industry.

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perspctv

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I finally got around to launching my buddy David Aitken's site: Hate City Skateboards. Its basically a hobby / good will thing that David does for some of the skater kids he knows. He gives them skateboards and sponsors them and takes them to tournaments and stuff. He sells the boards also to local shops and in the past has had various graffiti artists design boards as well.

It was kinda interesting because as an experiment I decided I would build as much of it as possible without laying it out. It was all up here *taps noggin*. Still has some rough edges. Hopefully this will be the last site I ever do in AS2. I hacked a tutorial for the carousel so it was kinda necessary.

The next site which is already in production is fullblown AS3. Stay tuned.

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I have a baby girl now, and she made me weep already. :)



Beatrice, 9-12-2008, 6 lbs. 14 oz. Beautiful.

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I bought DBT's latest, Brighter Than Creation's Dark, a while ago and I'm sure that I've listened to it a couple of times but today I sat down (while working on a very frustrating web project) and gave it a deliberate listen.

First of all I used to see DBT quite a bit way back in 99-02 at the StarBar when they would play 3 hour shows to a rabid crowd of a couple hundred at best. Over the last two albums they started losing my interest. There were songs that I appreciated here and there but overall I didn't like the direction the band had been taking. Mostly I just didn't but Jason Isbel's redneck cred. Or maybe the band dynamic was just something different than what I was used to.

ANYWAY ... I really really enjoyed the return to the more idiosyncratic songwriting style that was all over the first two albums. In particular I loved the very first song "Two Daughters and a Beautiful Wife". I can be a bit of a sap sometimes and this one just really tore me up. I'm still not really sure what happened in the store but I think it captured for me all of the anxieties, fear and love I've found in becoming a parent.


Two Daughters And A Beautiful Wife

"When he reached the gates of heaven
He didn’t understand
He knew that folks were coming over
Or was it all a dream?
Was it all a crazy dream?

He saw them playing there before him
What were they doing there?
It felt like home, It must be alright
Or is it just a dream?
Is it just a crazy dream?

Memories replay before him
All the tiny moments of his life
Laying round in bed on a Saturday morning
Two daughters and a wife
Two daughters and a beautiful wife

Meanwhile on Earth his friends came over
Shocked and horrified
Dolls and flowers at the storefront
Everybody cried
Everybody cried and cried

Is there vengeance up in heaven?
Are those things left behind?
Maybe everyday is Saturday morning
Two daughters and a wife
Two daughters and a beautiful wife
Two daughters and a beautiful wife"


Vocalist/Guitarist Patterson Hood in Uncut magazine March 2008: "'Two Daughters And A Beautiful Wife' is about a horrible tragedy, a family we knew who were murdered in their home on New Year's Day. That was one of the first I wrote for this record, trying to make sense of something there's no making sense of."

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YES! I've been on the comeback road tennis wise for about 6 full months now. Today while playing a point against my hitting buddy Curt, I chased down a lob and hit that holy grail of tennis shots, The Between the Legs. And I &^%$^ drilled it!

It looked something like this ... srsly! :P

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