bloggin' in a jug

January Mix

2012-01-08T17:59:00.000-07:00

Get it here.

(Mediafire)

Or Here.

(Spotify)

November Mix (Music)

2011-11-29T22:55:00.000-07:00

Get it here.

(Mediafire)

Or here.

(Spotify)

I wrote a ridiculously long email regarding this mix and other topics. If you didn't get that email but love the sound of a "ridiculously long email," let me know. You're just a FWD away.

October Mix (Music)

2011-10-14T07:33:00.002-06:00

Well, I broke my mix-a-month streak, but here it is. A new month. A new mix. This is a collection of some brand new stuff, some stuff I've had for months but just couldn't decide on before and now it's a must (this means it could be on the radio, but I don't listen to the radio so I wouldn't know), and some "other" stuff.

You might not love it all, but you will respect it.

Enjoy by Clicking Here.

(...and then proceeding to download and decompress the file and drop into iTunes...and apply the supplied album art to the tracks. That's it!)

(Well I can't do it for you!)

Bird Peterson

2011-09-26T14:08:00.000-06:00

Here are two mixes by a guy I really enjoy. I listen to the 2nd one almost every other day on my bike ride home. His mixes are lots of fun.

Bird Peterson-Drankenstein 2 by maddecent

Bird P Til' Infinity (The Best of Bird Peterson's Hottest Trunk Poppers) by Bird Peterson

Diplo [Sirus/XM Mixes]

2011-09-26T13:53:00.001-06:00

I guess Diplo and friends have a show on XM Radio. Great dance mixes. All over the place.

Diplo - Sirius/XM "Blow Your Head" 09-17-2011 by diplo

Diplo - Sirius/XM "Blow Your Head" 08-20-2011 by diplo

Diplo - Sirius/XM "Blow Your Head" 07-23-2011 by diplo

Diplo - Sirius/XM "Blow Your Head" 06-18-2011 by diplo

Jamie xx [Essential Mix]

2011-08-30T16:29:00.001-06:00

Great mix by Jamie xx (of The xx). This guy is 22 or 23 and from the UK. Super talented musician. Makes some really interesting minimalist dance/electronic music/remixes. So hit play and enjoy some great beats.

Jamie xx Essential Mix by Young Turks

August Music (Mix)

2011-08-13T20:45:00.001-06:00

DOWNLOAD

It's a little bit country and a little bit rock 'n roll... No. No, it's little bit pop and a little bit indie... and a little bit dance. Please enjoy responsibly.

Rye Rye & DJ Sega "RYEOT POWRR"

2011-08-06T14:51:00.002-06:00

If you're like me and missed this mix... man, this thing is fantastic. Get it. I'm loving DJ Sega right now so this is just a delight. This is like classic Diplo/M.I.A. sounding stuff. I love it.

Get it here.

More DJ Sega

DJ Sega Sixer Series Vol. I by DJSega

Nicki Minaj "Super Bass" (Dino Roc & DJ CJ Remix)

2011-08-03T13:26:00.000-06:00

It's a bit dance-y but hey, maybe you're into that sort of thing.

Nicki Minaj - Super Bass (Dino Roc & DJ CJ Remix) by Dino Roc

Amy Winehouse "Rehab" (Flam Clap Remix)

2011-08-03T13:21:00.001-06:00

This is pretty cool.

Amy Winehouse- Rehab (Flam Clap Remix) by Flam Clap

MISHKA presents TRILLWAVE 2

2011-07-28T11:10:00.001-06:00

A new Hood Internet mashup mix. Always enjoyable.

Grab it over at TheHoodInternet.com

Heartbreak Presents Moombahsoul Vol.II

2011-07-28T11:00:00.001-06:00

Heartbreak Presents Moombahsoul Vol.II

Can't beat free music. Especially when it's good.

Get Volume 1 Here.

M83 "Midnight City"

2011-07-28T10:29:00.000-06:00

Fantastic new song from M83.

Midnight City by M83

Kreayshawn "Gucci Gucci" (Long Jawns x Bobby la Beat Moombahton Remix)

2011-07-19T12:37:00.001-06:00

Kreayshawn - Gucci Gucci (Long Jawns x Bobby la Beat Moombahton Remix) FREE DL IN DESCRIPTION by longjawns

It Can't Be Gone, We're Still Right Here (Mix)

2011-07-13T17:48:00.002-06:00

DOWNLOAD

Beastie Boys x Major Lazer x Santigold Track

2011-06-22T09:46:00.000-06:00

This is awesome.

Beastie Boys - Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win (Feat. Santigold) (Major Lazer Remix) by maddecent

You're So Good To Me (Mix)

2011-06-03T20:42:00.000-06:00

Told you I had a non (well, less) electronic mix on the way. Well guess what. You're lookin' at it. This is a bunch of upbeat, fun, feel-good tunes from recent. It's feeling more summer-y where I live and it's definitely lifted my mood from where I was in the winter months. Two new albums by Foster the People and Hooray for Earth have been on repeat for me. They are stellar. A track from the new Bon Iver album makes me so happy. The whole album is amazing, but this one track has Peter Cetera and Bruce Hornsby all over it. I love it. The rest are just a mix of things that have been running through my headphones. Enjoy.

DOWNLOAD.

(For the mix purists out there, and I know there are a bunch, I did break the 80min mark. It was either, respect this ancient established value for traditional reasons (and whoever still burns CDs) or just give you all the songs I wanted to and spit in the face of tradition. So I spat.)

Hyetal: Phoenix (Fantastic Mr. Fox Remix)

2011-06-03T12:37:00.000-06:00

This is crazy and cool.

Hyetal - Phoenix (Fantastic Mr Fox Remix) by Black Acre Records

Robyn: Call Your Girlfriend

2011-06-02T14:44:00.001-06:00

3.5min of just Robyn dancing. One take. Very entertaining. I can't believe you don't hear her on the radio. Something is seriously wrong with radio.

Old Mixes

2011-06-02T14:20:00.001-06:00

Since I find myself swimming in new music and therefore putting together mixes every time I turn around, I thought I'd organize my older ones into one place. So in order of most recent to not, here they be (they're all on Mediafire, hands down the best and fastest file hosting site).

Possibly my favorite cover art so far. Too bad I completely misspelled "Rhythm."

And that's about it I think. The last one is from before we went to Jamaica so it could be dated, but I'm sure there's still a gem or two on it. Same for the other older ones.

More to come.

Donezo!! (Mix)

2011-05-29T09:25:00.002-06:00

This is part one of the recent music in my ears. Part II will be more band (non-electronic) oriented. So rather than mixing bluegrass between club bangers, I'll just keep them separate. However, to call these club bangers would be... inaccurate. There are a couple mainstream-ish songs, but at least half of them are of kind of wacky and by artists I've never heard of till recently. All of them very cool in their own way. So check 'em out and turn up your bass. (Well, for some of you, turn down your bass. Scott.)

DOWNLOAD

Stay tuned for the next mix. It's going to have some solid tunes on it.

Tom: Meeting in one hour, if you don’t make it you’re on my donezo list.

Ben: Oh, what’s a donezo list?
Tom: It means you and I are donezo. Hangin’ out gettin’ food together, donezo. You wanna come over to my house and play video games? Donezo. Hey Tom, you wanna come play putt-putt with me? No, we’re donezo.

Goob: Flying and Falling

2011-05-14T18:50:00.002-06:00

Looks like a Scottish Fold on the right!

The Only Watch of Its Kind

2011-05-04T15:31:00.000-06:00

Found this in an old magazine the other day. Pretty awesome. Gold AND digital. A rare and valuable combination. Plus the benefit of just one button over the usually pesky four. I know I personally wish I could toggle through all my watch's option with a single button. So much more convenient.

What more could you ask for for $99? How about a free gift box? Done.

8OH!21OH! Appendix

2011-04-27T23:30:00.003-06:00

Because I didn't want to break the 80min mark... I present the Appendix.

Don't Forget to Download it. Here.

8OH!21OH! (Mix)

2011-04-27T23:22:00.002-06:00

I guess I've been on an electronic thing musically lately. It happens to everyone.

Just promise you'll use more than your computer speakers to listen with.

At least once.

Download.It.Here.Now.

My Coolest Living Room Yet

2011-04-26T23:00:00.000-06:00

Spent part of my five day weekend taking everything off the walls, painting the walls twice, and then reinstalling everything plus more shelves. I suppose it really didn't take as long as it sounds. All the shelves from Home Depot. Really easy to install. I think it came out really well. Definitely my coolest living room ever.

RAA & Lord Huron

2011-04-21T13:45:00.002-06:00

Saw both of these guys at Hi-Dive last night. First off, I love the venue size of Hi-Dive. It's a perfect 200+ size. However, it's the worst layout I've ever seen. This is it (the blood looking stuff is people)...

So yeah, you come in and the stage is behind a wall right next to where you come in and there's like 10ft of gap between the wall that runs down the middle. So that gap get's way congested and you can't get anywhere. Other than that it's great.

So the bands... The first we saw was Lord Huron. I never hold my breath for opening acts, in general, but these guys were awesome. It was like Animal Collective meets Vampire Weekend. Really Fantastic stuff. I bought there record 15sec after their set was done. Check em out at bandcamp (which is one of my favorite sites for indie music nowadays).

And of course the main act was Rural Alberta Advantage which I was just ecstatic to see. And they didn't disappoint. At all. It was the perfect size show. Maybe around 100+ people, $12/ticket, nothing fancy, just rocknroll in a small room. Those are my favorites.

Frank, AB by theraa

I don't know what else to say. It was a phenomenal show. (I met the drummer and told him how awesome he is and then bought their first album on vinyl.) It was really the first live music I'd seen since going to Jamaica (not counting the larger Girl Talk show we saw last month). It definitely rekindled my love of seeing music made right in front of me.

(If you want to hear more of RAA, just say the word and I'll put it in your (e)mailbox. Seriously, any word, at all, and it'll be there.)

Tuesday. Music.

2011-04-19T22:58:00.000-06:00

Because some things just won't make a mixtape and because so much music comes out so often, it's time for some links.

I don't exactly know what all this Moombahton stuff is about (sorry, I got lazy there for a sec), but it's interesting. And this short EP reminds me of how crazy, off-the-wall cool Diplo's earlier stuff was (not that he doesn't put out good stuff now, it was just a newer style in the beginning). This is cool stuff.

(Get it at MadDecent.com (or directly here))

Then there's this mixtape by one of the guys who helped on Major Lazer's album GDKPLD. I browsed it and it seems pretty fun.

(More at MadDecent.com)

Bouncin' Bush Stew ft. Prince Zimboo by blondtron

Then somehow I missed this Blaqstarr Mixtape whenever it came out. Good stuff.

Another one I think I'm going to enjoy is Com Truise: Free Here. It's 80s-synth-Baths type music. Pretty cool.

Oh man. And just when I thought the night couldn't get better I come across a Star Slinger Mix with an intro by Donald Glover. I'm loving everything this guy puts out. (Warning: Troy cusses!)

STAR SLINGER - FABRIC MIX - APRIL 2011 by Star Slinger

Good luck with the rest of your week.

Vinyl

2011-04-13T21:18:00.001-06:00

Jesse got me a record player for my birthday last month. I've been meaning to write about because it's incredibly cool, but I've been busy being depressed.

Here's why I love it so far...

Records don't sound "better" than CDs. They sound warmer and more unique (nothing compares to the clarity of digital). Records, in contrast, have a very physical, imperfect sound. There are variations in record flatness and turntable rpms that change the way the music sounds every revolution. Things just sound amazing on it. The Beatles? Van Morrison? It's like a time machine. It completely transforms the way the music sounds.

I love that records aren't convenient. It places so much emphasis on just listening to music. You can't listen to records in the car or during a workout. You put on one album at a time. No shuffle. No impulsive changes. It's for start-to-finish album listening. And you have to flip it at least once during the record! (GT's Night Ripper is two records meaning TWO flips!)

I love that I'm buying a physical copy of the music. I don't like buying mp3s. Records typically cost what CDs used to cost ($15-20) so they aren't cheap, but you get everything with it. You get the biggest copy of the album artwork (which is all but lost on mp3s) possible. You get a code to download the digital copy free with the record. And the best thing to me is that I have a physical (and probably limited number of) copy of this music; a physical copy that I can pass on to my kids. I can't wait to pass Bon Iver and Neutral Milk Hotel on to my kids. I love that.

(Look what Jess just got us! AMAZING album.)

And finally, I think records are going to be around forever. They've made it this far whereas several other mediums haven't. In fact, it's the only one still around that's been surpassed by something else, isn't it? So unlike a collection of 8-tracks (which I've had) vinyl will be useable forever. That's pretty freakin' sweet.

So it's definitely given a new form to my passion. I'm not interested in collector's editions this or that, just great albums. And there are lots of great ones out there.

(My first flat TV and wall mounted speakers! Record player sits atop the shelves Sam and I installed.)

Don't Stop Now Mix

2011-04-09T23:36:00.003-06:00

This is the result of songs I didn't get to use last time and new songs that needed to be shared asap. There's some dance, remixes, indie and soundtrack. I tried to arrange it in the least jarring way possible.

Just remember, even if there's just one song you don't hate, I've done my job. Well.

Get it.

I Wonder

2011-03-16T22:10:00.000-06:00

I love The Crystals. It's such upbeat, hopeful, romantic music. Naive, but not. It's just... amazing oldies. Driving melodies and towering vocals.

This is a song I'd never heard before. Came across it on their Best of album. It reminds me of other songs by them but/so I dig it.

In other news...

2011-03-16T21:48:00.000-06:00

I helped an old Peace Corps friend out with some campaign posters this week. She gave me the ideas. I just produced them. TV themes.

A Bad Note On an Otherwise Good Day

2011-03-16T21:36:00.001-06:00

I was out taking pictures at a job site today when I came across this guy. It was shocking and depressing. I don't know where he came from because there weren't any houses around. But the fact that he had a shirt on told me he was someone's very good friend. And if I had taken the time to put a shirt on my very good friend... this would break my heart. Into way too many pieces. I wish I could've told whoever that there dog wasn't alive anymore. I would always want to know what happened to my animals whatever the case may be. I saw this right as I started walking the site. It was hard to get back on track.

Bad things happening to animals upsets me very much. It makes me want express my feeling with the 'f' word. You don't even know how much I want to write this using the 'f' word.

:| fuck.

Silent Alarm

2011-02-14T21:09:00.000-07:00

When's the last time you listened to Bloc Party's Silent Alarm? I think 2005 was an amazing year for indie music. That's when I really got into it and met Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Regina Spektor, MIA, Sufjan Stevens, Mike Doughty, Okkervil River... seriously massive year of music. And Bloc Party is right at the top of that list. Silent Alarm is a phenomenal album. The energy and pace and drums and vocals are just... they're all there from start to finish. It's one you just start at the beginning and let run. It's up tempo British indie rock at it's absolute best. I mean, talk about incredible driving music! It's so energetic and persistent.

Anyway, it's one of those you listen to from time to time and it never ceases to amaze you. I randomly decided to put it on this afternoon for my drive home and it changed my life. Again. For like, the 6th time.

And if you haven't heard it, well, don't tell me.

A Mix of What's Inside

2011-02-12T16:12:00.001-07:00

I guess if you know more than three things about me you know that I have a huge passion for music. And while I post a lot of hip hop and pop and dancehall, I listen to far more than just that. I listen to pop and dance when I'm happy, but when I've got a lot on my mind it just doesn't fit (Well, dance always seem to fit. I love a good beat!). I've also never thought of myself as "good with words" or "able to properly express my feelings" so music and art really helps me there. A lot of times the best thing I feel I can do is hand someone a CD and say, "Here I am. Please listen with headphones."

Something I find interesting about music is the timing of it and how we receive it. Ten years ago I wouldn't have been ready for most of the music on this mix. It's amazing music, but I had to grow to where I am to receive it with open ears. It just wouldn't have happened before now. I think when an album hits you at the right time or you come back to something you weren't ready for at the time, it sticks with you forever. This James Blake album is what Bon Iver's For Emma was for me. It just couldn't be more appropriate for me... for right now. Bon Iver rocked me emotionally when I heard it. I don't even know how many times I listened to Neutral Milk Hotel's Aeroplane when I was finally ready for it. This is why when I think something has potential but I don't love it right away I always keep it for later. You just never know when that time will come.

As for the songs on here... Don't you always wish you could explain why you picked every song on a mix? Like why it's important to you? Suffice it to say all of these are big to me. It's what I've been listening to lately. A lot. Many of these are electronic... based. Regardless of the beat, I love tension and intensity in music. That's why there's a Mumford & Sons song and a Deadmau5 song on the same album. They both have wonderful intensity. Hearing that loudly helps me release tension (which is one of the reasons why the neighbor thing was such a bummer; it wasn't just an inconvenience, it was stifling.)

I've also really been enjoying this guy, Starslinger. His mixes are hazy and nostalgic with fantastic, laid-back beats. Which brings me to another type of music I've been loving that I wouldn't have before. I know when most people hear "electronic music" they think of Fatboy Slim or Tiesto or something. Most wouldn't think of Caribou or Baths. So much is done "electronically" nowadays. It's expanded to so much more and I've been loving the influx of this style of hazy, lo-fi, warm musicians.

Some randomness on there... The Punch Brothers song is phenomenally beautiful. The chords are dark and warm and Chris Thile's voice just floats right over them. It's flashbacks of the darker side of Nickel Creek. A couple of great Iron & Wine songs. If you like Bob Dylan you'll love the Tallest Man on Earth. The Ceo album is terrific. I love the joy in that song. I bought the Teen Daze album on a whim and loved it. It's like the soundtrack for the greatest kid's party ever. Jónsi's album, Go is also one that's just so quirky and full of joy. Listening to it, it just sounds like love translated to music.

I don't want to say this is the greatest mix I've ever put together. I won't say that. I would, however, disagree strongly with me not saying that because it's true. It is the greatest mix ever. I don't know if it will translate what's going on in my heart, but it's a good effort.

So here I am. Please listen with headphones. Download Here

(ps. There is no hiphop or dancehall of any sort on this. It is 100% safe for women and children of all ages.)

I Feel Like...

2011-02-10T22:44:00.000-07:00

Like there's something really great ahead of me, but all I can see is the mud blocking my view. I know good is out there, but stuff just kind of sucks right now. It's been cold as balls here this past week. We've had several pipes freeze and bust. We spent a few days without heat and now a pipe on the other side of the bedroom busted leaking water down our wall and into the carpet. So we're currently sleeping in the living room. There's not enough room to sneeze without bumping into something. It's enough to drive me out into the snow to freeze to death. Not that I don't love sleeping in the cat's nightly playroom, but the place is barely big enough as it is and this is just beyond... You can't carry out a normal life living in 10sqft. It's maddening.

So we're looking at other places. Things out here cost a lot. Food, living, everything. So we need more space but it costs more. However, if I had an engineering job (that paid me the appropriate amount) we could move out tomorrow. We'd have plenty to get a 2br place maybe with a garage. And we found one and it's awesome, but we have to decide whether or not it's worth stepping out and holding it or to wait till I find a fulltime job and keep looking. It's frustrating and everything would settle down and we'd get to living life here rather than just scrimping and waiting to run out of money if something would just pan out soon.

I'm sure it will. I know it will. But until it does, it's like wandering the desert. Then boom, someone calls you with a glass of water.

Sorry. Just a bad week.

Unnecessary Information, Vol.1

2011-01-26T22:24:00.005-07:00

I wonder how many people love driving. I mean, really get a kick out of steering and accelerating and shifting. I do. I love driving. I also love not having to drive, but that's a different story. Driving is so fun me. I've been particularly enjoying driving around Denver. There are lots of stop signs and lights, but there are tons of corners and curves and cool over/underpasses. While I don't like driving in stop and go traffic with the manual transmission, I absolutely love shifting through the gears throughout town. On top of that the street lanes in Denver are much skinnier than TN's which you'd think would make it worse but I think it makes you have to pay attention more and therefore focus more on just driving. I'm sure if I wasn't scooting around in a little Civic I'd be singing a different tune, but I am, so whatever. I don't get as good of gas mileage out here. Probably a combo of the cold and city driving. So what if driving it like a rally car yields me 30mpg instead of the usual 33mpg. Seriously.

I just started a temporary job doing some stormwater plans and general CAD work for an environmental company. There are so many routes to get there! Commuting is an odd thing. It can be a daily drain on you or it can be a fun few minutes you get to enjoy being alone and listen to music as loudly as you want. I know anything get's old after a while, but there are so many ways to travel through Denver. I find that on the way to work I want to take the fastest way possible regardless of how many cars will be on the road with me. However, on the way home I'm up for taking any which way as long as it avoids me sitting in traffic.

And another thing! Since I'm trying to avoid anymore interactions with my funbag of a neighbor, I don't listen to music very loudly at home. It get's old but I'd prefer never to speak with funbag again. (Although I did pass him the other day coming in the entrance. I said, "What's up, Mike?" in the friendliest tone possible and he responded with a very cheery (seriously) "Hey! How's it going, pal?" I don't know if he actually knows what I look like. Maybe he just gets angry and blacks out and comes and yells at me. Either way, it was odd.) So anyway, because of all that, the car has been my stereo for jams. And I must say, it's a good one. A sub is about the best investment I can think of for a car stereo. My 12" is like an instant pick-me-up for me. I get in the car, away from everyone who can complain, and start shaking the mirrors. So combine that with the joy of driving and I feel like I'm in Need for Speed every time I commute. It's like a club on wheels but I don't have people all up in my mix everywhichway. It makes me so happy. There aren't a lot of things doing that lately. I'm really getting tired of not having a "direction," so to speak, in life. Temp job is working out fine, but it's only for a month and everyone else I call, it's just, no one is hiring in the Civil Engineering field right now. I know something will work out. It has to eventually. I know. But it's still stressful and disheartening.

I think Radiohead, Chemical Bros, Baths, and The Field are good morning commute soundtracks. In the evenings it's Dancehall or Swedish House Mafia or something of that nature. Those dancehall mixes by Kalibandulu are absolutely mad. If you check out one Dancehall mix your whole life, get Jugglin' from Mars, Vol 3. This guy makes killer mixes.

That's all for now I guess. I got a new lens for $192. Quite possibly the best deal for an amazing lens ever. The 35mm f/1.8. Big thumbs up. Also got a printer because it's really annoying to go to Office Max to print everything. I've also cut white carbs out of my diet and started doing kettlebell swings everyday. I guess that's pretty fun. With that diet I've been cooking a lot and have discovered my two favorite additions to any meal: lemon or lime juice. Either one literally transforms anything into pure tastiness. Lemon Juice: The New Salt.

Oh. And I've been kind of sick. I've been doing this every morning and it's awesome. (huh. more.)

It's all down hill from here... till Monday. Then it's back uphill.

Fun With Channels

2011-01-19T21:18:00.003-07:00

Saw this on Photojojo the other day: Make a Color Mashup. Pretty cool looking and not that hard in Photoshop. The bowling example is pretty fun. Any three shots will work (preferably with all with the same framing).

New From Iron & Wine

2011-01-18T18:46:00.001-07:00

Not sure if you've heard this new song Walking Far From Home by Iron & Wine on his upcoming album. It's really fantastic. Kind of chorale-like with nice variations every verse/chorus. It sounds beautiful. What a great evolution of his sound.

Walking Far From Home by Iron & Wine

Everybody (Always) Thinks They Are Right

2011-01-09T00:18:00.002-07:00

I'm reading this "book" right now called Things I Have Learned in My Life So Far by a guy named Stefan Sagmeister. Jesse got it for me for Christmas (she's so creative). It's basically a collection of twenty "ideologies" he has learned and used throughout his career as a designer. The title above is one that currently stands out to me: Everybody (always) thinks they are right. It makes so many things make so much sense and still opens up more questions. Hitler, Obama, my neighbor, and me. We all do what we do because we think we are right. He writes...

"Every human conflict throughout history, every war and every dispute, traces back to this one sentence. I think I am right when I cross the street as the light is changing... The bus driver blaring his horn thinks he is right to blow me out of his way..."

The presentation of the book (it's actually ten or so little books) is really interesting. There are a bunch of openings on his face that let all the different color inserts show through.

Which brings us to... this thing with my neighbor. It's really bothering me. If you don't know, the past two friday nights (both around 7pm) my neighbor who I've never even formally met has come over (after banging on the wall between us) and told me (in an aggressive manner) that he's going to call the cops if I don't turn down the bass. He won't stop to talk with me about it, only at me. It looked a lot like this...

(and he wasn't discussing his passion for !!! with me)

I've spoken with and talked down so many angry/crazy/drunk/etc Jamaicans in the last two years. Even the maddest of them was my best friend after 3min of talking. Now I realize there are some cultural differences with JA and CO, but this guy won't stop for 20sec to talk to me, so he's perpetually angry about the situation. He will not calm down. We could work out hours of listening. He could explain how I'm really interrupting his unusual schedule by playing music at 7pm on a Friday night. Maybe his kids can't sleep. But I can't make any accommodations for him other than complying with his banging on the wall because he won't talk to me. I can't tell you how angry he is. When's the last time someone was so pissed that no matter how calmly and plainly you responded and asked questions they still ended every (declaratory) sentence with a huge exclamation point? It's so bizarre to me.

So do I reward his bad behavior by turning it down? Or do I just go on doing what I think is appropriate for the hour of the day and potentially talk to the cop who responds to the noise complaint? Quiet hours start at 10pm in our building. Would a cop even respond to a noise complaint at 6:30pm on a Friday?

I left him a note requesting an grown-up conversation because the reality is, this is going to happen again. I guess he thinks if he's mad enough it won't? INSANE. I think I was cordial in the note. I realize that no one wants to hear bass from a neighbor all the time, however, is it fair to completely restrict the volume of said neighbor's bass or is a compromise in order? Isn't that what 'quiet hours' are for? Because at a certain point what's more imposing on the other person: his hearing my bass or me not being able to ever listen to music (mildly) loudly during appropriate hours of the day? I would say it's equal any given day.

Jesse thinks that even if he'd come to me politely and maturely (I can't stress enough what an infant this guy comes off as) and asked me to turn it down I still would've had issues with it. I strongly disagree. While I'm certainly more used to constant noise than the average American (see Jamaica) I also realize how frustrating it is hearing a neighbor's music till 8am. I don't want any neighbor of mine to be unhappy because of something I'm doing. I'm thoroughly happy to accomodate someone who shows me even an average level of respect. But the way this guy comes across? It really brings out the Todd Burka in me. It makes me want to learn him a lesson that I feel is necessary for his personal growth. Hard. At all hours of the day.

So anyway, this whole issue has been stressing me out since last night. I mean, it's not like I'm arguing with someone on the internet. The guy lives next door. I guess I don't have to worry about him coming out and talking to me when I'm not in the mood. All I have to do is turn my music up and it's like an invitation to him. So next friday when he bangs on the wall what do I do? I could... (a) also bang on the wall and not turn the music down (b) not turn the music down and then when he comes over be extremely polite and tell him "No problem. Sorry about that. Won't happen again." and proceed to not turn music down or (c) comply and turn it down whenever he bangs on the wall (encouraging his behavior).

I don't know if I made the connection with the book very clear. The connection was that my neighbor thinks he's right (he's not, of course). We all do. I do.

What do you think? Stressin' me out.

DJ Nate (Da Trak Genious)

2011-01-07T12:53:00.003-07:00

I quite randomly came across this album several months ago. His name is DJ Nate and the album is Da Trak Genious. It's... really different. It's like this minimalist cut up hiphop/dance. I don't know how to describe it. But I really dug the album, but I had no idea if this guy was some 15yr kid or a legit DJ out there. Well, I came across his name in some Top 5 Artists You May Have Missed thing from SPIN magazine and he was right at the top. So I figured I should share it. It just such weird, cool, completely cut to pieces dance/r&b. I posted one of my favorites below. The horns in it are so cool.

DJ Nate - Footwurk Homicide

Another example of the weird awesomeness...
DJ Nate - A+ (MAYHEM)

Two Thousand Ten (Mix) (Again)

2011-01-04T12:19:00.005-07:00

04 JAN 2011: So my original post actually got taken down. Apparently just LINKING to files get's you a big copyright take down. However, Blogger was really nice. They just took the post back to draft stage. I thought that was pleasant of them. So anyway, I've left all the albums on there, just no links to them. Would you like to know more about the DMCA? Click here (digital copyright laws is actually pretty interesting stuff).

Man, a year is an insane amount of time. This year in particular seems long; like a day you woke up super early and it just seems to last forever (in a cool way). What a year. I can remember sitting on the beach or riding in a cramped taxi listening to so much of this. And some I just heard last month cementing it's place in my 'Denver time.' Music is a great way of marking time in my life. Music makes my heart and brain turn when sometimes nothing else can. It works like smells for me (like I remember where I was when I burned "that" album into my brain). It's just really fascinating stuff.

So I put together a weird mixtape. The weirdest? No, but all of the songs won't be for everyone. Some rap, dance, electronic, R&B, and Hip Hop. Some you may have heard on the radio a bunch and some you'd never hear anywhere else. Most of it from the latter part of the year since I've put earlier stuff on previous mixes. The only songs I left off (in this genre) were songs from these I've put links to below. The Robyn, Kanye West and Girl Talk albums were all too dense with awesomeness to single out one for a mix. I highly (highly) recommend listening to a sample below and getting the whole thing (one way or another*).

DOWNLOAD

Please enjoy.

*All of the albums below I simply found by Googling "artist album mediafire." Please don't shoot the messenger. I just want to share. Obviously, I would encourage supporting any artist that adds enjoyment to your life. But if it means the difference in hearing it or not... well, I just really want you to hear it.

UPDATE: Well, Blogger didn't shoot me, but it did slap me on the wrist so I've removed all the links.

Girl Talk [All Day]

Girl Talk - Let It Out

Robyn [Body Talk]

Dancing On My Own by robyn

Kanye West [My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy]

Dark Fantasy

All of the Lights

Power [Remix] (Ft. Jay-Z & Swizz Beatz)

Flying Lotus [Cosmogramma]

Flying Lotus - Do the Astral Plane

Four Tet [There is Love in You]

Four Tet - Angel Echoes

Star Slinger [Volume 1]

Star Slinger - Dutchie Courage

Star Slinger - Mornin'

Health [Disco2]

HEALTH - In Heat (Javelin Remix)

And there are just so many more...

Sleigh Bells [Treats]
Spoon [Transference]
Sufjan Stevens [Age of Adz] (is crazy but amazing)
Vampire [Weekend Contra]
Yeasayer [Odd Blood]
Pantha du [Prince Black Noise]
Delorean [Subiza]
Bonobo [Black Sands]

Man, can't even begin to list it all. What an amazing year of music.

(Also, don't miss some great Jamaican Dancehall Christmas music over on the PCBlog.)

What did I miss? What album changed your year?

TV Character of the Year: Walter White

2010-12-26T23:21:00.005-07:00

I’ve watched a lot of great TV shows this past year. I think maybe TV has gotten better over the last few years. Maybe enough time has passed since the writer’s strike or maybe with the advent of DVRs there’s a justification to produce better shows with more rewatchability. Either way, there have been some great one I’ve seen this year. (All of these I’ve watched from beginning to current.)

Battlestar Galactica is really enjoyable. It’s nothing like the connotation that the name implies. It tackles some really interesting human struggles and ethical dilemmas through the near extinction of the human race. I love the way officers always paint people in the most optimistic light regardless of their errors. Plus it’s in space which is awesome. It get's a little weird in the latter part of the series but I think it's a really quality addition to the world of sci-fi.

Mad Men. “It’s like watching poetry” I read once. It is just a dynamic, beautifully fluid show. All the characters have such high and low points. So many grey-area issues.

Glee. I think the pilot for Glee is possibly one of the greatest pilots ever made. The series is funny and touching (sometimes overly dramatic (I guess typical of high school?)), but the pilot is an amazing work of high school drama, finding one’s place in that time of life, the confusing peer pressure and being who you are. The whole thing ending in the greatest cover of Don’t Stop Believin’ ever made. I think the show does an awesome job recontexualizing pop songs into everyday struggles and celebrations. They don’t always line up perfectly, but they definitely tend to link emotions with songs in an interesting way.

Glee - Any Way You Want It (Journey)

Here are some of my favorite examples. Teenage Dream and Hey Soul Sister are by another school and their songs are more in the style I’d like hear on a show called ‘glee.’ Just because I think a lot of the songs have too much back up instrumentation and not enough vocal support. Which is a shame because everyone does sing really well. I think several of the people are off broadway. They have amazing voices.

(I love the enthusiasm in this one. In the episode they're on a cold medicine that's clearly an 'upper.')

Glee - Teenage Dream

Just realized this was a Florence + the Machine cover. Rad.

Glee - Dog Days are Over

Breaking Bad. Amazing drama. Really intense show. (If you don't know, the premise is he's a high school chemistry teacher who finds out he has cancer and wants to provide for his family in case he dies.) It starts off good in season one, but really hits it’s stride in season three. It was great season. Although it’s weird when a character displays a trait or characteristic(s) you have but never really realized you had. Other than cooking Meth, I see a lot more of myself than I’d like to in Walter White. Most characteristics are more exaggerated (I hope) but they’re there. Pride, poor communication, stubbornness, and the last one, the one that’s new to me is his need to work on anything and everything except for the real issue. In one episode he starts doing house repairs because it’s basically the only thing he can successfully repair at the moment (as opposed to his marriage or job or cancer). He just goes all out repairing a water heater. As soon as he finishes he realizes that the floor underneath the old water heater is rotted from leaking water. Repairing the floor leads him to the mold problem underneath the house. What starts off as one minor hill ends up being this mountain range. He finishes, but it’s takes a toll on other things that need his attention (family).

I don’t know what causes that, but I’ve got it. Sometimes I feel like I can’t control anything and so I pick something I can control and just hit it full steam. It makes me feel better but it doesn’t help with the issue that pushed me there in the first place. And it generally involves a physical project whether it be cleaning or constructing. Sometimes it’s a project I started out working on but in the process I lose all perspective. The other day i got a new bike (well, and old bike, but new for me). It was really really dirty and had a flat tire. So I thought, “I’ll just look up ‘How to repair a flat’ and go get the parts and do it!” So I went out and got the stuff and came home to fix it up. After starting I realized I had to take the wheel off. It was the back wheel so it involves the chain and gear changing mechanism and everything. In taking that off I realize every part is getting dirty black grease on everything, so I figure I’ll just pull the bike in the shower, spray it down with Mean Green and brush off the grease. Well I did that. I put my bathing suit on, drug the bike into the shower and started washing. An hour or so, a full bottle of cleaner, two bathtub brushes, and shower walls and floor covered in grease washoff later I was done. I would’ve taken a picture or shown jesse, but I was scared I wouldn’t be able to clean up what I’d produced. A half hour scrubbing the shower and things were good as new. I got out, dried off and finished repairing the tire. Amazingly, I was able to reassemble the bike without too much trouble (and an extra set of hands from Jess). The only thing I didn’t put enough time into was tightening the nuts back on sufficiently because on my ride the next day the back wheel came undone and I bent the wheel. Oh well. Another project awaits.

But I do that stuff all the time. We’d be cleaning for company in Jamaica and I’d get sidetracked defrosting and chipping ice out of the freezer or disassembling the fan to clean off the dust. What causes that? Should I see someone?

I was disappointed when Cranston and Paul won Emmys for their performance in season 3 because I was watching Mad Men at the time and thought they should’ve been rewarded. However, after just finishing BB season 3... rightly so. Their performances were phenomenal.

Anyway, I’m not sure what the point of this post is. I have other things I could be doing but instead I’m writing about TV shows that have had an impact on me this past year. Regardless, I highly recommend all of these shows. AND I think that the character of Walt White is interesting. He's so motivated and driven to power through and succeed. He makes so many mistakes, especially regarding friends and family. And he always ends up in a really bad situation and just when you think he's truly done it this time, he reminds you that he's really quite ingenious. And while he's a pathological liar (he's working on it) you always feel that he's trying to be honorable. He's messed up, but I like him.

Kanye West - Runaway

2010-11-25T00:00:00.003-07:00

I'm sure you've all heard this song or part of it by now, but if you haven't listened to the 9min album version you're missing out. Basically, the second half of the song is Kanye singing along with the melody but with a distorted, autotuned voice. That may sound stupid, but it sounds like someone jamming out on an electric guitar (with massive overdrive distortion) over strings and piano. It's mesmerizing. It's awesome.

Kanye West - Runaway (ft. Pusha T) by theearlynerd

On top of that, the album really is something spectacular. There are a few songs I don't care for simply because I'm more of a music than words guy and those one or two songs aren't my cup of tea. But overall... he's really outdone any previous effort.

Commenting back and forth with a friend on Facebook about how it sucks that West always has to come across as such a d-bag. And another friend won't even listen to the album because of how much he personally dislikes Kanye. I understand that, but to me it's like people complaining that a particular athlete is a bad role model for kids... well, that may be true, but no part of what that athlete does outside of his sport adds to or takes away from what he does on the field/court. Who says he has to be a good role model? What does that have to do with how great of an athlete he is or isn't? Now, that athlete won't have my utmost respect in life in general, but how can I not appreciate his abilities and skills? Wouldn't that just be being selectively ignorant? I guess I see Kanye West the same way. I don't respect most things he does in his personal/public life, but that can't take away from his talent as a artist. I see his album as a work of art independent of the person, Kanye West. I think that's the only way to judge a work.

One reviewer wrote, "West may be obnoxious, but at least he's interested in confronting those aspects of his identity through his music." I think that really says it. Give the album a listen (below) on headphones and see what you think. If you can stop thinking about the person Kanye West for 68min I think you'll really dig it. Pitchfork did.

Album V (MBDTF)

Daft Punk - Oh Yeah

2010-11-23T11:02:00.003-07:00

One of my favorite Daft Punk tracks. I love the simplicity and fat, distorted bass. I love how the songs just takes it's time with an awesome beat.

Daft Punk - Oh Yeah by zimbodeux

Radiohead - Let Down (String Quartet)

2010-11-12T10:24:00.003-07:00

I wanted to try out sharing tracks via Soundcloud. I've gotten to really like their system and whatnot. So I thought I'd try it on this amazing string cover of Let Down. I like that it's not really built up. It just sounds like chamber music. Just playing Radiohead.

Radiohead - Let Down (String Quartet) by zimbodeux

My Man Goob

2010-10-12T13:57:00.005-06:00

Last night Jordan accidentally hit Goob with his car as he was coming up the road. He said Goob just darted out as he came by. He thought it was a raccoon. He swerved which I don’t think he normally does. That swerve probably saved Goob's life.

...my dad came running in and said he need us to come down. It was midnight. When he said Goob got hit I ran and got my shoes and bolted outside. As we got in the bulldog to ride down there and I had to talk myself out of a frenzy. i was freakin out. There was a blood stain in the road and Goob’s collar. The woods down there were thick so i called for him with the flashlight for a minute or two and then just took off into the woods. I was terrified at what I could find. Was he dead? In horrific pain? Was he even still in one piece? If my brain could’ve thrown up from the shock it would’ve.

My first cat, Nacho, back in 9th grade got attacked by an owl when he was a kitten and then a year later died from a kidney infection. He pretty much died in my arms. To see your pet dying right in front of you and not be able to help it is beyond heart breaking. it’s like a knife in there twisting back and forth.

Our next little kitten got grabbed by a big dog in it’s mouth. It was only for a second or so before we hit the dog to let it go, but it broke the little cat’s back. When we got him inside the little kitten acted totally fine accept he wasn’t moving his back legs. I didn’t understand. My dad took him out back to put him down. I still don’t have any idea where my dad found the strength to do that. I couldn’t have. We’d only had the kitten for days. I cried a lot that night.

Felix was a great big black cat who kept us company for several years. Up through 1 or 2 years in college. He liked to sleep on top of the garage door (when it was up). My dad called me at school one day and said he’d somehow gotten crushed when the garage door got put down. I think he said the neighbors found him there, still alive. The thought of him being stuck there suffering makes me so angry that I wasn’t there to help. Furious. And sick.

I was saturated with that feeling of sickness and rage that Goob’s safety and condition weren’t in my control last night as I ran through the woods looking for anything and calling out for Goob trying to make my voice sound normal and not terrified. But I was. I was terrified at what I would find, but even more terrified that I might not find him and that he’d die out in the woods alone.

I think maybe we must’ve scared him back up to the house going through the woods. Whatever it was, when Jesse yelled she found him I bolted up to the house. When I went to pick him up he was obviously in shock but when he saw it was me he calmed down and let me pick him up. His face was swollen and bloody, but everything else seemed okay. We took him to the garage and I held him until my dad found a vet that could meet us. I was holding him in a sheet because his blood was getting all over. He was meowing for a while, but actually calmed down; like he felt comfortable enough to relax and rest. I just thanked God that I was able to hold him no matter what happened. Just so thankful that we’d found him.

The vet took him and said he’d take care of him and we went home and washed the blood off our hands. We sat there thinking how lucky we were that it had been Jordan that hit him and not a stranger who would’ve just driven off. The fact is, we all fly up and down Tate Lane and it could’ve easily been any of us. And the fact that he was still in one piece with seemingly no internal damage is miraculous. How many animals just get hit and left? How many people's pets just disappear and are never heard from again? Makes me sick.

Love is such an bizarre thing, you know? We present it as this all around great thing. It makes everyone feel good and happy. And truly, my greatest joys in this world stem from my love for others and their love for me. But at the same time nothing in this world hurts more than love. To lose or have hurt that something or someone you love is mind bogglingly painful. Last night I just laid there writhing in bed. I could barely keep still. My very being was just so uncomfortable and in pain at the thought of not being there for Goob if something went wrong in the night. It’s just staggering how painful the other end of love can be.

I think anyone who’s communicated with us in the last 2yrs has a pretty good idea how much we love Goob. He was literally one of our greatest sources of joy through our years in Jamaica. The thought of losing our little peace corps cat is simply devastating. I know he’s a cat. But if any cat on this planet could possibly understand one iota of how loved and adored he is, it’s Goob. If any cat has any grasp whatsoever of this concept of being loved, it’s him.

We went and saw him at the animal hospital a few minutes ago. He was fairly sedated. He looked tired and swollen. They had an IV in him. The vet said his jaw had broken in the middle which was fairly common, but also that the palette at the top of his mouth had split and could cause sinus problems later on if not fixed. Also maybe some small fractures in his nose. Going to do some surgery tomorrow and should be okay to come home Thursday. I think he's going to be fine, but I don't want to get my hopes up until Thursday.

Thank you for your prayers.

I Guess I'm Back

2010-09-01T18:34:00.002-06:00

for bobber

2009-08-15T12:09:00.001-06:00

Wordpress Problems

2009-08-11T10:25:00.006-06:00

I'm not sure what's happened to our wordpress blog. I posted an entry this morning and after I was done it said my blog was violation of the Terms of Service. And wordpress seems really not nice about that. I'm not even sure if i can get the content back. This is really bumming me out.

if anyone has our blog in their "reader" or something please save it as it might be the only copy we have now.

This is lovely...

Suspended Blogs

When you sign up for a blog here at wordpress.com, you are agreeing to comply with the Terms of Service (TOS). In fact, the page has a check box next to this:

I have read and agree to the fascinating terms of service.

As such, there is really no excuse for not knowing what is and is not allowed.

Blogs are suspended if they are found to be in breach of the TOS.

We do not contact you first to ask that content be modified or removed.

You may NOT have that blog name back.

You may NOT have the blog content back.

We take our Terms of Service very seriously and act on each and every feedback we get in order to investigate potential breaches. Our terms are enforced on a daily basis.

We want WordPress.com to be a pleasant and safe environment for all of our valued users.

So yeah. Wordpress is kind of an *******.

UPDATE: Glad I didn't elaborate anymore on my anger towards wordpress because they got back to us the next day saying they didn't know what happened and the blog was back up and it wouldn't happen again. SO my apologies about the whole ******* thing. That's why you don't blog angry.

A Photoblog

2009-04-13T12:39:00.006-06:00

Hey everyone. I decided to start a different blog strictly dedicated to my photos. This blog and the peace corps blog will stay in effect. This new blog will simply give me a place to share my photos with you on a site that looks how I'd like it to look for showcasing photos (i.e. one at a time and larger). Anywho, let me know what you think (if it looks crappy, has an annoying interface, whatever).

gaining exposure

(I tried to go with a more unique Wordpress theme, but after all the researching about WP.org vs WP.com and trying to figure out how to set up a WP.org site I just decided to stick with Blogger. I know how to manipulate the HTML, it's free, and as simple as you get.)

2009-04-02T12:19:00.001-06:00

Project Projector

2009-03-15T10:33:00.005-06:00

Dear valued friends and family,

It has been an interesting year! As many of you are aware, we made the decision in July 2008 to serve with the U.S. Peace Corps, and have since been living in rural Jamaica. Peace Corps operates with one major goal in mind – building capacity in order for those being helped to begin helping themselves. We, as volunteers, adhere to an adage you know well: Give a man a fish and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and feed his family for a lifetime. After eight months living/working here, we are becoming more realistic (and creative) in our ideas of teaching men to fish.

We would like to purchase a digital projector for use in educational settings, such as school health lessons, community training events and organizational strengthening within our agency. Rather than pursuing a traditional grant, which could take up to a year, we are first reaching out to those people we know and respect from home.

With that, we ask you to consider donating toward this venture of ours. We hope you will see this as a way of investing in all the good that can be accomplished here in Jamaica—and are excited at the thought of sharing our experiences and successes with you. Here’s an overview of the project:

Dell digital projector......740.00
Surge protector................25.00
Extension cord.................25.00
White flat sheet................10.00
total cost...............$800.00

You should also know that we intend to donate the digital projector, extension cord, surge protector and large white flat sheet (screen) to a worthy organization upon our completion of work with Peace Corps. I repeat—we do NOT intend to keep it for personal use. We believe strongly in capacity building within our local community, which means training people in use of technologies that will allow them to improve their own situation. We will either train a staff member at our Primary School or a leader in our Farmers’ agency to operate and maintain the projector after our close of service.

We know that this year has been financially challenging for many folks and we completely understand if you choose not to contribute, at this time. We chose to send you one of these requests not because of your financial status, but because you have been a great sense of support and encouragement to one or both of us in the past. We appreciate your thoughts and prayers as we stay the course here in Jamaica. Peace Corps service has not been what we necessarily expected, but it is proving to be a challenge worth taking. We wish you all the best in the coming months and thank you for being who you are!

If you DO wish to contribute to this project, please respond in any of these ways:
• Go to www.Paypal.com and “Send Money” to us at Josh.Hunter@gmail.com.
• Send a check to this address: Josh Hunter, 4099 N Mt Juliet Rd, Mt. Juliet, TN 37122.
• If you’d like to help, but have additional questions for us, please call or email (contact information above).

Sincerely,

Josh & Jesse Hunter

I Started a New Blog Just for Our Road

2009-02-23T10:27:00.001-07:00

The Worst Road in Jamaica

Wanda (1927-2009)

2009-02-20T14:03:00.012-07:00

You know those times when you look back and see how awesome and perfect God's power and timing is? Well, that was today for me.

My grandmother had been sick for, well, basically since we left for Jamaica. She was healthy as a horse forever and then, bam, she's not. So she'd been in and out of the hospital and chemo for about the last 10mo fighting biliary cancer (a large tumor in her bile duct). The tumor kept closing up her bile duct and giving her a lot of problems.

So it's been hard just not being around. Not that there was anything we could've done, but I hated not being there. My parents came to visit a few weeks back and during that we decided to come home at the end of February because things with Nannaw were looking rather... terminal. So we set our flights. Then things with her start going downhill even faster so we moved our flight up to the next day. We'd miss some community meetings and get-to-gethers, but frankly those didn't matter at all.

It was a bitter sweet trip from the get go. We were thrilled at coming home and getting to visit with Nannaw and everyone, but we hated why we were coming come. I was coming home to see my grandmother for the last time and I knew it.

We visited her as soon as we got there. She was drousy from meds but quite lucid. The tumor was causing bile to back up in her and this turned her skin yellow. I hadn't seen her since we left; she looked terrible. Rather frail and yellow as a Simspons character. I was stunned at first. We hung out in her room with the rest of family for a bit and went home. I think we visited her every other day we were there and each day she seemed to draw further and further away. On Saturday she was fixing her hair because I had my camera. But by Monday, it seemed like her body just wasn't cooperating. She knew who we were and what we were saying but she was difficult to understand; again, like her body just wouldn't let her communicate. Wednesday she was even more removed. She would be there for a minute and then she'd almost fall asleep. Her eyes never closed but it seemed like she would go off to some other place and then come back. All I could do was hold her hand and pray that she was alright. Thursday morning we left. And today my dad called me and said she was gone.

One week. Just like that.

I can't tell you how painful it is to sit there and watch someone you love deteriorate like that. It tears your heart to pieces. When you can see the end in sight, you just want them to be okay and comfortable till that time comes. So that's what my family did. They did everything in their power to make her as comfortable as possible. And I think she was.

It's hard to leave loved ones. Period. But leaving your grandmother knowing it was the last time you'd see her in this life... I didn't know if I could do it. I could barely let go. I think I said "bye" to her about five times on Wednesday before I actually left. It was one of the worst feelings I can remember.

So when my dad called me this morning and told me, everything just hit me. The fact that:

God let my Nannaw stick around till today
We'd so easily been able to move our flight plans up 2 weeks to the next day
Our Peace Corps APCD walked the "30 day" paper work to leave through in one morning
Nannaw was still lucid enough to talk to and visit with
She didn't pass away while I was there (if she had I would've felt compelled to stay an extra week till all the arrangements and funeral were over)
When she did go, my mom and her brother and Nannaw's pastor were all there with her
She's no longer in pain. She's home. She's with her husband again. And she will be forever.

...All these things came rushing to me after I got the news. I don't know if I've ever been filled with such sadness and joy at the same time. I'd lost my last grandparent. It's not permanent, but it sure feels like it. She is gone and so is everything she knows about everyone and everything. All her stories and memories and experiences are gone forever. But my grandmother was ready. She had nothing left undone; no loose ends, no debts, nothing left unsaid. She knew how much we loved her and we knew how much she loved us. We all knew her soul was taken care of, so it was just a matter of keeping her company till it was time.

This morning was her time.

God is great. Wanda is home. And I miss her already.

When something like this comes up in life, it's interesting to see what happens to everything you've made "important." I'll tell you what happens to all my "important" things... they vanish. They're reduced to nothing and for a short time it appears my perspective on things is finally back on track. I do things everyday to change it and get off track, but when it comes down to it it all goes away and I've got new eyes. And I remember something that I should never have forgotten: After God and your salvation, the only other thing that matters in this life are people and how you love them. That's it. Everything else will end up in a junkyard someday.

Rule No.2: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

(I saw this at the Miami Airport and liked it. It's bigger than me.)

Huh. Remember this??

2008-12-17T14:14:00.002-07:00

It's back in postcard form!

(the story)

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-27T10:43:00.001-07:00

We do miss you guys. I hope all is well with everyone.

Old Stuff

2008-11-25T11:29:00.003-07:00

I put a bunch of old pictures from high school and college on facebook. I find it comforting to know they're in one place. I always worry about losing photos (particularly those already printed from film). Anywho...

Happy Days

Finally...

2008-11-12T14:11:00.003-07:00

Arrested Development Movie 'A Go'

Also, if you care about me at all, go see Mates of State at the Exit/In on Nov 17. Please.

More RAC

2008-10-21T14:44:00.003-06:00

I don't know how many of you are familiar with the Remix Artist Collective (RAC), but they give away so much music it's not even funny. They remix all sorts of stuff and have good taste when it comes to remixing songs. Just head over to their blog and check out all the free songs. They literally just give their work away. I love it.

The Remix Company

From Moore Town

2008-10-21T13:52:00.002-06:00

2008-10-10T17:32:00.003-06:00

I added a couple shots from bonnaroo on Flickr.

Anybody...

2008-09-26T13:17:00.003-06:00

...that doesn't go see Girl Talk in November is a stupid idiot.

The Basement
10/13-The Walkmen w/ the Little Ones & The Privates $14

Cannery Ballroom
10/1-Clutch w/ the Sword $21
10/15-Donavon Frankenreiter $19
10/20-The Faint $21
11/06-Girl Talk w/ Death Set $17
11/12-Five Finger Death Punch $14
11/15-Umphrey's McGee $22
11/18-Broken Social Scene $23
11/21-Ghostland Observatory $18

Exit In
09/24-The Fratellis $17
10/10-The Toadies $17
10/12-Silver Jews w/ Monotonix $16
10/16-Heartless Bastards w/ Dead Confederate $17
10/17-Justin Townes Earle w/ Chris Scruggs & Caitlin Rose $12
10/18-Matt Nathanson $17
10/19-Grace Potter & the Nocturnals w/ The Wood Brothers $17
10/21-Hotel Café Tour feat. Ingrid Michaelson, Meiko, Priscilla Ahn, Erin McCarley, Brooke Fraser, & Katie Herzig $17
10/26-Alejandro Escovedo $22
10/31-Legendary Shack Shakers $17
11/20-The King Khan & the BBQ Show $12

Limelight
10/24-Monster Boo $22

The Mercy Lounge
09/23-Eli "Paperboy" Reed $10
09/24-Dandy Warhols w/ Darker My Love & the Upside Downs $20
09/25-Dubconscious $12
09/26-The Expendables $14
10/01-Southern Culture on the Skids $17
10/03-Rival Tour feat. Chuck Ragan, Ben Nichols (Lucero) & Tim Barry $12
10/18-Robert Pollard's Boston Spaceships w/ The High Strung $17
10/21-Cold War Kids $17
10/22-Man Man $12
10/23-Ben Kweller w/ Whitely $22
10/24-The Features CD Release Show $12
10/25-Outformation $12
10/28-Locksley $12
10/30-Deerhoof w/ Experimental Dentist School & Flying $14
11/07-MURS $12
11/11-Spinto Band $12
11/12-Amanda Palmer $17
11/21-Calexico w/ Bowerbirds $17
12/03-Rev. Horton Heat $22

And will someone send me some music??

Cold War Kids
Metallica
TV on the Radio
Kings of Leon
etc...

Any of these worthwhile?

And I KNOW there are new movies coming out like crazy. Ghost Town? Has anyone seen that? If you see a movie and you liked it, send it to me! (metacritic list) It doesn't have to be anything fancy or many discs. Just throw a disc in an envelope and send it to Comfort Castle. That's it. It can be 5 AVI files on a DVD. It doesn't matter. Oh man look at this torrent: All Disney. Somebody with a rockin internet connection get on that. Please? :)

Also, I was listening to the commentary on the Simpsons movie and, Cara Donahue, you sound exactly like Yeardley Smith (the voice of Lisa). I swear I thought I was listening to you do commentary.

That's all. It's hot as nuts here today.

UPDATE!: I got a bittorrent to work. Actually, the one I found is called Transmission and it works really well. I like it a lot more than Bittorrent. And our internet here at the marina is pretty good. So if you dont want to mail a disc, you could upload something to MegaUpload.com or 4Shared.com and just send the link to me. Todd did that before and it worked well (our internet just sucked at the time). Anywho, that's all. I was just getting really tired of not being able to get anything. So I'm a bit better off now. Sorry about the begging.

My First 5sec Film

2008-09-17T11:51:00.001-06:00

This is made up of a 140, 30sec shots. I even got some lightning!

I Won't Lie...

2008-09-10T11:30:00.001-06:00

...There are a lot of beautiful beaches here.

I Made the Cover!!

2008-09-05T10:23:00.003-06:00

Hey everybody! My shot of Union Station made the cover of the Capture Music City contest! How awesome is that??

Thank you so much for all your votes and compliments and congrats. They just mean so much to me. And I couldn't be more excited and honored to have my shot on the cover.

(Sadly enough, I won't even get to SEE the book for two years so someone will have to take a picture of it and send it to me!)

(Mom and Dad, there's at least one copy being sent to you. Don't lose it!)

My Speck SeeThru Case

2008-08-24T09:47:00.005-06:00

I don't know if I ever showed you guys how I keep my Mac looking not so pretty. I bought a Speck Hard Case before I left. But before I attached it I spray painted it camo-brown. So now it has a very unassuming look about it. (And it seems protective too.) I think it's worked out well.

Fi Wi Ous

2008-08-24T01:12:00.002-06:00

More over on the Peace Corps blog.

Last Chance

2008-08-06T14:11:00.002-06:00

Hey Everyone

The Capture Music City contest is about to end so if you have a chance and still haven't voted on any of my shots, I'd really appreciate your votes.

Go Here and Vote!

Thanks a lot.

Josh & Jesse Central

2008-08-05T15:40:00.003-06:00

Okay everyone. I've spent a little time playing around with Wordpress and feel comfortable enough to make the change. SO... starting now Jess and I will both be posting mainly to our Wordpress blog:

Jamaica Me Better

I'll still put things here from time to time, but I think we're going to try and keep all our Jamaica doings in one place. So, please feel free to join us there.

Our neighbor, Gabrielle...

Nezzi owns a store at the end of our driveway...

Quickly

2008-07-28T10:15:00.005-06:00

We're an hour away from anything: internet, grocery store, hardware store, etc. You name it and we don't have it. BUT, I believe we're in the most beautiful part of Jamaica. Here are a few shots. I've been writing, but I'll post those later. Suffice to say, you won't see us on the internet much. However we just found a Marina in town that has wi-fi that it's going to give us for free so that rocks.

We'll be back in Kingston next week for the week and then back here for 2 weeks (and then back to Kingston for a week and back here for good).

Anywho, later. (These are all in our front yard, except for the waterfall. That's down the road and my first project is to build steps to it.)

(that's junior. he's the 4yr old we live with. what a pill.) (jess is making a funny face. i'm not sure.)

(that's our "dad," Donovan)

(those are the Blue Mountains)

It's so dark out where we are. The stars shine like I haven't seen in a long time. This is a 5min & 15min shot I took outside the house while we hung up laundry.

Also, we need movies! We live with a four year old and all he watches is Dora the Explorer, so we need something else for him (meaning something that WE like to watch too) (I'm thinking Pixar stuff and whatnot). AVI files on a DVD (that's what their player reads). Send them freely. Blockbusters/Action and kids stuff. That and music. I'll put the address up later.

We Are Here

2008-07-17T16:13:00.005-06:00

View Larger Map

So this is where Jess and I will be for a while (I have the actual address but not on me). We're in the mountains. More specifically I believe we're in a valley. Needless to say, we're going to be rural. Big time. I think we're excited about it. It will be cooler up there, but I'm anticipating not having internet for... well, I can't imagine there's internet up there. Not sure about there. So go ahead and expect to not see us online for two weeks. We'll be up there for the next two weeks and then we come back here to our current dorms. I'm nervous and super excited.

The bottom line is that there's no reason to doubt this any more than we've doubted anything else. God's got it under control. So maybe we won't have internet, things could be worse. We've got electricity and water (possibly running?). I'm no more excited or nervous than I would be if they told me I was going to the beach. (Well, maybe a touch more :) )

So anyway, you might not see us on here much for a couple weeks. But we'll be back... for a week. Our phones should work though. You can dial it just like a long distance number (i.e. there's no country code).

Josh: 1 (876) 368-6685
Jesse: 1 (876) 368-6579

Inside the Actor's Studio: Hellboy

2008-07-17T16:01:00.002-06:00

Billy sent me this the other day. Hilarious...

How a Jellyfish Sting Feels

2008-07-12T23:26:00.005-06:00

We went to the beach today. It was fun. The sand was nice and we threw a lot of frisbee.

However, during my stay in the water, I was struck by a sting. I was standing in the water and all of the sudden I felt an intense shock to my ankle. I believe this sting to have been delivered via jellyfish. Now, I don't want to understate how this sting felt, so I'm going to lay it out like it was. Two words best describe it:

holy shit.

Aside from some internal rupture or breakage, this was the most intense pain I've ever felt. For about 5min, it absolutely burned like hell. Like something was continually stabbing me with needles. Thankfully it got better after 5 or 10min. And it's okay now. But seriously. It was the most intense non-lethal pain I've ever felt. Unbelievable.

(HINT: It's the red mark that looks like a Wu-Tang symbol.)

My Day in the Jamaican Environment

2008-07-11T20:05:00.015-06:00

I wake up and get in the shower. The shower isn’t hot or luke warm. It’s cold. It’s very similar to a garden hose coming out of the wall. I’ve grown accustomed to it, but it still takes my breath away some mornings. It’s really an exercise in controlling your breathing; like running or something, if you let it get away from you you’ll struggle through it. (It helps if you try and think about your day and not the cold water.) I get out and dry off (although I don’t stay dry for long). Then I get dressed and head out to breakfast. Breakfast generally consists of some combination of rice and peas (beans), some sort of saltfish, toast, maybe a fruit, some cornbeef medley, and callaloo (some sort of spinach-type greenery). The food is obviously different than what I’m used to but it’s actually pretty good. I mean, rice and beans and fish? And fruit? Yes please. So I feel like we’re eating well.

(This is our dorm. Kind of looks like shipping crates.)

After breakfast we either go to a training seminar, language class, or a health sector class (because Jess and I are in Environmental Health Sanitation). So from 9 to 12 (with a 15min break in there somewhere) we sit in a class and learn as much as possible. Then we eat some lunch. This is either a patty (essentially a better version of a hot pocket) or a peanut butter & guava jelly sandwich (from supplies we purchased). After then it’s back to class for 4-5 hrs and then dinner (which is remarkably similar to breakfast). For some reason, the sun goes down here around 6:30. 6:30! We’re at sea level. How can that be?? Anyway, it’s totally dark by 7:30. I didn’t expect this.

The real kick in the pants with this whole thing is that it’s all outdoors. Imagine getting ready for a church-like situation and then going to 8hrs of class, but the whole thing is carried out in open-air buildings in the middle of summer. It’s tough. It’s tough physically and mentally. I wear khakis, a button-up shirt, and leather shoes from 7am to 7pm. Then I take another cold shower before I go to bed. I can’t wait any later than 7:30 to shower because the water in our building shuts off around 8pm and stays off till 5:30am. Not to sure about why that is. Then, every other night we get the fan in our room. The oscillating fan makes a HUGE difference. It makes noise and it keeps the warm air moving. It’s awesome. Unfortunately, tonight is not our night for the fan. We share it with Dave and Molly (the married couple from Denver) (they’re good roommates).

(This was our sweet hotel room at the Westin in Maimi.)

On top of all this, we have a TON to read and learn. Like, ridiculous amounts of info to absorb. Virtually everyone in Jamaica speaks English fairly well, however, they also speak Jamaican Creole (commonly referred to as Patwa). At first the language seems like broken English; like the person who documented it had no idea how to write English but only speak parts of it. However, as you learn more and more about it it starts to take on serious complexities and can be as confusing as English at times. The language is starting to grow on me (unfortunately, I generally feel like a doofus speaking it because I don't understand it and end up just talking in a Jamaican accent). These days are very busy and rather exhausting. But they make me super excited to get out into our community.

(Flying from Maimi to Kingston I got the window seat!)

It should also be said they we’re sharing this time with an amazing group of trainees. Everyone is so motivated and determined to do their best. They’re intelligent and fun and all together make up quite a resume of travel and experience. I’m honored to be a part of group 79.

The Day I Couldn’t Photograph

2008-07-10T22:03:00.002-06:00

Saturday we finally went into Kingston. For the last week, all we’ve talked about is how dangerous Jamaica is and how careful you have to be and what to do if something awful happens. Not that none of this is warranted, mind you. Last year Jamaica had the 2nd highest murder rate in the world. However, the majority of this is due to drug and gang violence. So in a sense, it is a very dangerous place, but in another, it’s not so bad if you’re careful.

So after days and days of scaring the crap out of us, we get to go downtown. I was nervous. Really nervous. I didn’t bring wallet or bag or even a camera; just some cash and my cell phone. The funny thing was, as we got closer to downtown, I started feeling more at ease. (We’ve been living at a school and the only people we’ve seen so far have essentially been us (and the Jamaican staff). ) When we finally got out of the taxi and started walking around I just felt this huge sense of relief. “Wait a sec, not everyone on the street here seems to have a gun pointed at me. How bizarre!” In fact, most people didn’t seem to care at all that I was there on the sidewalk. It was lovely. Now I know lots of people DID notice us, but the majority did not care one bit.

We spent the next 2hrs walking and bussing around Kingston. We stopped for some Jamaican patties (which are kind of like hot pockets with fresher ingredients). Then we went through this giant market that would’ve looked incredible from a plane, I think. It was made up of huge dilapidated warehouse structures and little shacks with tarps covering every walkway. They had fruit, clothes, pirated DVDs, etc. You name it; they had it. It was quite a sight. Thousands and thousands of people filled the streets and shops. Just going every-which-way. You just made a path and went for it and somehow it all worked. There were cops is riot gear at every intersection. It was like something out of a movie. We finally got out of the market and took a bus and taxi home. It was fun.

All in all, the day really put some fears to rest. Again, I know this place isn’t the safest, but not every Jamaican is out to get us. In fact, they’re an extremely warm group of people. They’re very outgoing and very anxious to help you. Very cool.

Keeping Up with Me/Us

2008-07-09T22:22:00.004-06:00

Hey guys

Okay, so Jess and I both have our own blogs, but we also have a Peace Corps blog. I'm afraid if I don't make a disclaimer I may lose 3 or 4 of my 15 readers and I just can't afford that. SO... Let's do this...

I'm going to start posting most of my Peace Corps related things over on our "Welcome to Jamerica" blog. However, most everything right now is related to our Peace Corps service so for a little bit I'm probably going to be posting more on the Jamerica blog than on this one. I'm going to give that a whirl and see how it goes. I might change back.

BUT I don't want to lose any readers by my lack of posting here, so if you would (and haven't already), just add this/both blogs RSS feeds to whatever reader you have. Then you don't have to check back and get disappointed everytime there's no new posts (and you'll instantly know when I post to either).

The RSS feed is the little "wi-fi" looking button up in the address bar (or you can find it in the column to the left). If you can't find it, just ask someone younger than you where it is and what the crap I'm talking about.

Okay... Thanks a lot. Posts and pictures to come. I promise.

UPDATE: Wordpress's picture-posting-thing has frustrated me for the last two days so I'm not going to bother with it. It's taking me too long to try and switch over and I'm wasting what little time I have on the internet trying to learn. So yeah, I'm gonna stay here for now. I'd still add our RSS feeds, but here's where you find me. The Worpress blog is still going to run at full speed but Jess will be handling the majority of it as she has thus far. Thanks.

We're Here

2008-07-03T21:02:00.001-06:00

...And I'm more than slightly overwhelmed. we got up at 4 this morning and headed out to the airport. Honestly, it's like going to college again and I'm the noob. (I HATE being the noob!)

But seriously, it's very pretty here. We don't have AC, hot water, or running water from 8pm to 5am, but we have wi-fi outside our dorm. So I'm sitting out in the grass checking my email. Go figure.

And I haven't stopped sweating yet. I hope my body adjusts. Otherwise, I'm in for a long 2yrs.

Happy 4th.

We’re Off

2008-06-30T13:48:00.007-06:00

I’m writing this from the airport so it probably will be posted later. We just sat down to wait for our flight. I haven’t sat down with no intention of doing anything in a good week or two. It’s lovely.

This week has been rough. So rough, in fact, cursing seems appropriate in it’s description… but I’ll save that for a later date. Essentially, I made a sizeable mistake working that last week and thinking one week would be enough to sort out all our stuff and pack in a leisurely fashion. We’ve been burning the candle at every end possible trying get our crap together, over to our parents, over to storage, out to sell, out to give away and into our suitcases. And if you know anything about us Hunters, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to hear that we were up till 4:30am last night packing/arranging. Last minute: It’s what we do. (In fairness to Jess, she’s still sort of stuck in her “trying to pack early” Taylor ways.) And then back up at 8:30am. It’s been a lot like that all week. We’re exhausted… and relieved to know we’re just going to Florida today (we need the decompression time).

Saturday started off the worst, I think. I was already tired and grumpy and the first thing I have to do when I woke up was get in the car and take Dudley (our first born… cat) to his new home. It tore me up. I was basically getting dressed and brushing my teeth and crying all at the same time. That was when the first realization that we’re leaving everyone kicked in and it sucked. I know Dudley will be great where he is, but it killed me to drop him off. It was a bit easier leaving Maeby since we just left her in my room at my parent’s house. (she’ll be moving to Scott’s sometime this week).

We’re on the plane now. I feel good. I’ve got Girl Talk blasting on the 80gig and all my toys in Timbuk2 messenger bag. I may retract this later, but at the moment, I really feel as prepared for this as possible. There are a million unknowns, but God’s got those, so all I chose to worry about were the little things (computer, camera, bags, shoes, etc.) I wear myself out worrying about those dumb things, but at least I can get somewhere thinking about them. I can’t get anywhere thinking about the big things. Anyway, I really do feel prepared. We basically started planning for this 9mo ago(?) and just gradually made our way through the “to get” list. Then when it came to packing, we basically just went through our big box of supplies and divvied them up.

I’m watching Teen Wolf Too now. If you want a nice slice of the 80s, I recommend you give it a viewing. The plot is simple and straightforward and there are countless montages. And it stars Jason Bateman.

That's the Orlando Airport at left. Okay I really shouldn’t drag blog entries out over more than 24hrs. I appear to lose my “focus.” Anywho… more soon.

3 yrs & 3 days

2008-06-20T14:20:00.002-06:00

That's how long I've worked at Civil Site Design Group. And today's my last day. I don't know how often you have a job that you're genuinely going to miss, but such is the case for me. I don't know if the line of work is perfect for me, but I love the people. They're smart, fun, respectful, supportive, and challenging. I'm going to miss them a lot.

This is a quote from My Utmost. I've been saving lines from it over the years. This was the first and one of my all-time favorites. It fills my heart to the brim when I read it.

“Have nothing…” – Never reserve anything.
Pour out the best you have, and always be poor.
Never be diplomatic and careful about the treasures God gives.
This is poverty triumphant.

-Oswald Chambers

This is one of many songs you should listen to: Frightened Rabbit - The Modern Leper (mp3)

The New GIRL TALK Album is Out!

2008-06-19T07:46:00.007-06:00

Feed the Animals

Technically, it's a free download! It's just like Radiohead's In Rainbows was; you pay what you want.

- $5 or more gets you the album in MP3 or FLAC + a seamless mix of the whole thing.
- $10 or more gets you that plus the physical CD when it comes out.

I started to buy the CD but I realized I wouldn't get it for 2yrs (cause of the whole "going to Jamaica" thing) so I gave $7.

Get on it! (Listen to it on his Myspace page.)

(Click here for the song listings and breakdown of each.)

UPDATE 1: Just started the first listen through and I'm immediately smiling.

UPDATE 2: Just finished the first listen. What an album. It does not disappoint. This is definitely the most refined album of his to date. As smooth as Night Ripper was Feed the Animals probably blends songs and lyrics even better. It seems to be more of a middle ground between Night Ripper's changing every 5-10sec and Unstoppable's sticking with several riffs for the entire song. As a whole, it feels like it takes its time more than Night Ripper did. He hangs on to tunes a bit longer in Feed the Animals letting you really get the most of the combination but at the same time changing before you even think about getting bored with it. The lyric/song combinations are as seamless as ever.

Once again, no music puts as big a smile on my face as a Girl Talk album. Well done, Gregg.

A Few from Roo '08

2008-06-18T08:40:00.003-06:00

(He's wearing Julbo's. What a guy.)

Again, more to come. It's just going to be a slow. Besides the usual busyness, I actually have a paying "client" at the moment.

We're Alive

2008-06-17T11:11:00.002-06:00

I think a good time was had by all (even the noobs had fun). So thanks to all my campmates for making it enjoyable (and having patience with my constant photographing) (and for lending us water and tp after we forgot ours).

(More photos to come.)

Remix Artist Collective (RAC)

2008-06-10T15:18:00.006-06:00

I apologize to any regular reader for the lack of posting lately. Everything seems to have taken a backseat during these last few weeks before we head out. I've barely even thought about Bonnaroo. My mind is all over the place.

However, I've been on a music kick lately (as you can see in previous posts) and today's is the RAC (Remix Artist Collective). You've probably seen "(RAC mix)" on a lot of remixed songs over the last few years. Well, this is them. It's a couple guys from different parts of the world. I'm not sure how it works, but I really like their stuff. Check out these remixes:

The Shins - Sleeping Lessons (RAC mix) (mp3)

Bloc Party - Song for Clay (RAC mix) (mp3)

Tokyo Police Club - Be Good (RAC mix) (mp3)

Then, just a few weeks ago they did a session of Xtrabeats on WOXY. It was awesome. I'm still listening to it. You've gotta give this a whirl...

RAC woxy.com 60min Mix (mp3)

Tracklisting:
01 - 5,6,7,8’s - The Barracuda
02 - Capsule - Flashback
03 - Boyz Noize - Lava Lava (RAC Edit)
04 - Tepr - Minuit Jacuzzi (datA Remix)
05 - Siruismo - Wow
06 - Riot In Belgium - La Musique
07 - MSTRKRFT - Street Justice
08 - Daft Punk - Around The World
09 - Danger - 14h54
10 - Shinichi Osawa - Star Guitar
11 - Simian Mobile Disco - Hustler
12 - Midnight Juggernaults - Ending of an Era
13 - datA - J’aim pas l’Art
14 - Yelle - Je Veux te Voir
15 - Calvin Harris - Colours
16 - MGMT - Electric Feel (RAC Edit)
17 - Shinichi Osawa - Electro411
18 - N.E.R.D. - Everyone Nose (RAC Edit)
19 - Justice - DVNO
20 - The Who - Baba O Riley (RAC Edit)
21 - Futurecop - Transformers
22 - Kylie Minogue - Heart Beat Rock (RAC Edit)
23 - Radiohead - Planet Telex (RAC Edit)
24 - Cornelius - Fit Song (The Books Remix)
26 - The Teenagers - Starlett Johansson
27 - Chromeo - Waiting 4 U
28 - Coconut Records - Nighttiming (RAC Mix)
29 - The Beatles - You Never Give Me Your Money (RAC Edit)
30 - Hot Chip - Shake A Fist
31 - M.I.A. - Hombre
32 - Danger - 11h30
33 - Vangelis - Love Theme (Blade Runner)

ps. I'm also a sucker for creative ad campaigns. click here for creative ad campaigns.

Photography 101.4

2008-06-05T07:59:00.003-06:00

There is a continuation on photography basics over on the Digital Photography School blog. If you don't understand "exposure" or "stops" or just want a better understanding of what elements go into what is referred to as an "exposure" (a picture), jump over there and check it out. That blog has endless tips and how-to articles. I've learned many a thing from it.

The triangle to the left (courtesy of DPS) is the essential "what makes a photograph look like it does" diagram. Each of the 3 components has a direct effect on the other. The whole thing is quite mathematical actually! (I enjoy it.)

Look for Us in Germany!

2008-06-04T11:49:00.006-06:00

This is a bit random, but such is life sometimes. I've been meaning to write about this for a while, but things have been... well, I've had to be much more selective with my time lately. Anywho, a few weeks ago this guy from Germany (Andreas) sent me a Flickr mail saying he had a postcard company and was interested in my Christmas card photo of us flying through the air. Not just interested, he wanted to purchase the right to use it on some of his postcards! I still keep the rights to the photo, but this granted him commercial use of the image. Yada yada yada, he said he wanted to pay me 70€, I said "booYAH!," he sent me a form to fill out, and I sent him the photo. Next day, $100 in my Paypal account. Done.

Obviously, this doesn't happen very often. However, this is really the ideal sale: you put your photos out there and someone finds them and says "i would like to buy..." I mean, that's really the best you can hope for. It didn't take any entrepreneurial efforts on my end and since the transaction was digital, I'd already done all the work.

Pretty neat.

(Also, I totally added that text in the photo for this entry. That's a goof. I mean, I didn't goof. It's a goof.)

(ALSO, I got my über Nalgene bottle in yesterday. 48oz of liquid-holding awesomeness. Not to mention loaded with BPA!)

Can't Sleep

2008-06-02T23:38:00.002-06:00

This is an HDR blend of 3exp(osures) and a colored gradient on the sky. Jess stands still very well :)

I haven't done much Photoshopping lately. I've taken a lot of pictures (Scott's graduation, our trip to Chattanooga, etc), but I just haven't found the time to play around. I just feel like there are so many other things I should be doing. I wonder if when we get there I'll all of the sudden have time to get back into it. I miss it. I've got a couple shot ideas pertaining to Nashville and I just can't get out to get 'em.

My Current Life Has Become Detrimental to My Health

2008-05-28T10:33:00.008-06:00

The above fact has been increasingly obvious to me over the 2 years.

For the past 3 years I've sat at a desk and worked on a computer anywhere from 7 to 14 hrs every weekday. Don't get me wrong, it's nice. It's air-conditioned, I don't have to stand around on my feet, I get paid well, and I basically get to listen to as much music as I want while I work. It's really not a bad gig at. However, I'm heavier and in worse shape than I've ever been in my life... and I can't take it any more. I don't eat horrible foods all the time, but I don't really care what I eat as long as I'm not hungry afterwards. The combination of my complete lack of will power with regard to food and my sitting all day is just killing me. I've tried nutrisystem and it worked. I was only on it seriously for a month and I lost 15lbs. But I was spending every non-working hour keeping track of, planning for, and preparing the next meal. How do you not get burnt-out on that? And as far as excercising goes, I just feel like it's impossible to make up for 9 hrs of sitting every evening. I simply can't make the time to workout in the 4hrs after work every single day.

Basically, I come away from this thinking the only solution left is a change of life.

Jesse put a quote by Thoreau up on her blog yesterday and this really stood out to me...

"I went to the woods... to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms..."

I don't know about you, but that's damn intense to me. That moves me.

Which brings me to my point. In the last couple months I've been so caught up in and stressed out by packing and preparing for our 2 years in Jamaica that I've forgotten why I wanted to go in the first place. I've been so worried about having enough quick-drying clothes and camera stuff and computer stuff and concerned about our safety (the list goes on). But in the last few days I remembered that it wasn't about a job change or moving to a new city or going on a really long camping trip. It was about changing my (our) life for the better. It was about trusting God and taking a huge leap of faith to follow some calling in our hearts. But one of the biggest things for me personally was... it was about getting me the hell out of this downward spiral towards obesity, diabetes, or worse. I feel like I've been watching from the sideline as this sedintary lifestyle drug me down over the past few years and I'm done with it. And if getting my fat ass on a plane to Jamaica is the only way to get me out of it, well, you just tell me what time the plane leaves.

This is an interesting concept to me, changing your entire "place" because you can't find the power to make the small changes yourself. I'm usually not the first to be in favor of this. Seriously. Going to a bible college to keep yourself out of trouble seems silly to me; you can't stay in bible college for the rest of your life just as I can't stay in Jamaica the rest of mine. Eventually, you have to face the "real world." But recently I've started thinking that really it comes down to this: you do whatever it takes. Whatever it takes to make/change your life to the life you want or think you should be living, that's what you do. Maybe that change won't last forever. I mean, we all adapt to our surroundings and eventually find ways around things that "challenge" us, but you've got to start somewhere, right? You have to find a way to break out of whatever spiral you find yourself in.

And that's where I find myself on the brink of now. I'm 4 1/2 weeks from that change. I'm 4 1/2 weeks from getting away from a desk, fast food, and walking NO where. I'm still having trouble focusing on why we started this whole process in the first place, but it's starting to become clear again. And that makes me happy.

Rock Band Weekend at the Nash's

2008-05-27T08:32:00.004-06:00

(Jody Southards on drums. Jesse Hunter and HG Woods not pictured.)

A good time was had by all.

Baby Sloths (these are kind of weird)...

Pork and Beans (feat. The Internet)

2008-05-23T12:55:00.003-06:00

This is the video for Weezer's new song Pork and Beans. It stars all the internet wonders. Really funny.

Weezer is really impressing me lately.

Also, 5 Awesome Movies Ruined by Last Minute Changes. So I Am Legend actually ended so much better than the theatrical version we saw.

Wow. I mean, that version actually conveys the message of the book. Audiences are so stupid.

The 2008 Bonnaroo Schedule

2008-05-22T10:22:00.000-06:00

It's up! Go here.

Mates of State: Re-arrange Us

2008-05-21T05:59:00.014-06:00

The new Mates of State album came out yesterday. I've only been through it a couple times, but I'll be honest, these guys just get better and better every time. The album is beautiful and intricate and melodic and just a delight to listen to. It still has all the same qualities you love about their previous music: fun, light-hearted melodies, tight dueling/synchronized vocals, and touching lyrics. Only on this album they've evolved into something much bigger and brighter than previously done. As refined and full as Bring It Back was compared to Team Boo, Re-arrange Us is easily that much more refined with better production than Bring It Back. Generally, I'm against that. Generally, I hate subsequent albums where the artist's raw sound and emotion has been watered down through post production and too many frills. However, somehow Jason and Kori manage to avoid this every time. Like good musicians should, they actually improve over time and it really shows on their albums. And much like The Shins' Wincing the Night Away and Arcade Fire's Neon Bible, Re-arrange Us is an album from great musicians that you expect to be good, but ends up exceeding those expectations like you couldn't have imagined.

This track makes the album for me.

Mates of State [The Re-arranger]

(I got it off Amazon MP3 for $8. How can you beat that? I'm almost positive you can't.)

MoS blog (that they actually blog in) (a lot!)

Jerry Goldsmith and Hans Zimmer: Part II

2008-05-21T05:47:00.003-06:00

I don't know if or when the last time you listened to the main theme from Air Force One, but you have to hear this version. It's by the Prague Philharmonic and it's brassy as all get out! I love it. I mean, the song sounds like Fanfare for the Common Man meets Star Trek: First Contact. It's got "overcoming adversity" written all over it! I can totally picture myself throwing some lousy Russian out of an airplane and then in my coolest voice saying something like, "Oh no you did'nt! Signed: America." Or something like that. What's really neat about this version is that it's not the one off the original soundtrack. Generally, I'm not a fan of soundtrack covers, but this one cuts about 6min or so of extra out of the original "Parachutes" track and leaves you with just the main theme. It's awesome.

Jerry Goldsmith [Air Force One (Main Title)]

This second piece is the main theme from the movie Crimson Tide. Hans Zimmer has easily made himself one of my favorite composers over my lifetime. I just love his style. It's usually a bit different though. He likes to incorporate a lot of rhythm into his pieces. However, this one is extremely brassy in the loud parts. And not like, just brass, but like blasting brass. It's awesome. I also love how for the first few minutes the song keeps changing keys... down. Maybe that's on purpose... down... submarines... either way, it's awesome. Then he ends the song with 'Eternal Father Strong to Save' which really just seals the deal for me. Lovely.

Hans Zimmer [Roll Tide (from Crimson Tide)]

The VerteX

2008-05-20T08:04:00.003-06:00

This looks pretty cool. Granted, most of you won't be interested in this because it's for external flash units. However, depending on how sturdy it is, it looks to be a really useful tool in terms of redirecting light in every way imaginable. Plus the 3D gallery deal is really fun to play with. It's not available yet, so the price is still unknown.

Presslite's VerteX (click on one of the configurations)

Weezer - Amazon MP3 - SNL

2008-05-19T07:35:00.010-06:00

I like these multi-subject posts. Makes me feel like I'm getting more done.

A: Has everyone heard the new Weezer single The Greatest Man That Ever Lived (Variations on a Shaker Hymn)? (Jess and I think Kanye West might have come up with the title.) If you haven't, I recommend checking it out. Billy recommended it to me saying how awesome it was. Well, I started listening to it and thought it was pretty terrible at first. However, after about 30sec or so it started getting really good. After it was over I was like, "Not so bad." Then I just kept listening to it over and over again. It's a "Variations on..." song, so every round through the "theme" is different. It's more creative than I would've expected out of Weezer. Do give it a full listen...

Weezer [The Greatest Man That Ever Lived (Variations on a Shaker Hymn)]

B: I don't know how long this has been there, but have you used Amazon.com's MP3 Downloads section? It's just like iTunes, but it's completely DRM-crap-free in 256kbps mp3 format. What more could you ask for? I think you can download it straight to iTunes if you like. I downloaded the new Death Cab for Cutie last night for $9. Seriously, even for someone such as myself, who downloads a LOT of music off bittorent (I'm sorry but I'm not going to pay iTunes to "protect" my music unless no where else on the internet has the song), this is really appealing. I really do LIKE paying for things. You have to believe me. I just like having a good REASON to pay for it. It has to be worth it and other than the large library, iTunes does not make it worth it to me.

So I highly recommend you give it a go. It might not have the same depth of library yet (with respect to older more obscure things) (although last night I went crazy on getting songs from soundtracks that I'd lost or were stolen from me in the past), BUT it's a sweet alternative to iTunes. And definitely just as easy to use.

C: Some highlights from Saturday's SNL with Steve Carell...

(The Japanese Office!)

(I like how Andy just keeps hollaring and blood just keeps coming)

some surprisingly witty monologues by McCain...

and 2 from the Shia LaBeouf episode...

I like Hulu a lot.

6 weeks left.

Hot Chip and Santogold

2008-05-15T07:23:00.003-06:00

I know Hot Chip's album came out several months ago, but I couldn't really get into it then. However, I've been listening to it the past few days and I've really been digging it. It's different from The Warning, but it's still extremely intricate with lots of bass. With some good headphones you can really appreciate all the different sounds and chords in there / dance to it. These are two of my favorite tracks from Made in the Dark. Check them out...

Hot Chip [Out at the Pictures]

Hot Chip [Ready for the Floor]

The other artist I've been enjoying is Santogold. They say she sounds like M.I.A., but I think it'd be more accurate to say she sounds like Tegan & Sara produced by M.I.A. It's pretty cool stuff. Here are few tracks I like...

Santogold [Creator]

Santogold [Shove it (feat. Spank Rock)]

Happy 5/13!

2008-05-13T15:34:00.005-06:00

Mario Kart should be rated 18+ (too funny)

Truth in Website Logos (pics)

and finally, 60 Photography Link You Can't Live Without (what a list!)

And of course, today was Jesse's birfday. So don't forget to Facebook her a message or something.

My Jesse Facebook ALbum

CaptureMusicCity.com

2008-05-09T10:37:00.004-06:00

Hey everyone. Billy showed me this the other day and today Ryan brought in an article on it from the Tennessean, so I figured it was time to get in gear and get on this. It's a photo submittal "competition" of sorts for everyone with a shot of something that says "Nashville" to you. At the end, the photos with the most "votes" will be included in the book. It's free and you can upload as many shots as you want. It's pretty new and the deadline for photos isn't for another 4 months, but you better get your shots on there otherwise it's going to be "Josh Hunter's Nashville!" (I can think of worse alternatives :) )

And if you don't have any shots to put up, then just go vote for mine so maybe I'll at least get ONE in the book!

50 Ways to Help the Planet

2008-05-07T17:36:00.010-06:00

I thought this was a pretty common-sense, practical list. It's neat to see ones you've already thought of (i.e. 13. Wrap Creatively (BOOYAH))!

50 Ways to Help the Planet

05.08.08: I was reading a copy of WIRED jess had gotten and it had an interesting article on the consumption of water around the world. What was particularly interesting was this chart in the article. Look at the amount of water required to produce several common items (2,866gal of water for a pair of jeans?!). I guess I've never put too much thought into the amount of water required to produce food/goods.

M.I.A.'s Opener

2008-05-07T10:56:00.007-06:00

Holy F*ck is the name of the band. They were the opening act. And while I don't condone their name (for all intents and purposes), they had a neat giant color changing screen behind them. Their show was like an iPod commercial and I couldn't get a clear shot, so I did some 'sperimentin'. Basically, holding the zoom lens stationary, I pressed the shutter release and rotated the camera. (It took a few tries to get "right.")

(Full size on black)