Saturday, January 9, 2010
Ran's Birthday + Yakiniku
Went downtown right after work today to meet a friend. She was having a get together for her daughter's birthday. We met up on 9th street in The City and hit up a Japanese spot called Yakiniku West. Had a great time chatting, stuffing my face and downing Asahi. Snapped a couple of pics with my cell phone. The birthday girl turned 9 years old.
Van Gogh Vodka
My dude Larry from Statik Digital gave me a bottle of Van Gogh Vodka, Double Espresso flavor, today. He is a customer I had who just wanted to say thanks for my help. We were chatting about different drinks that we like and he mentioned this to me. I told him that I'd never heard of it so he remembered that and brought me a bottle.
FREE LIQUOR!
I haven't cracked the bottle yet so don't bother asking me how it tastes. I have no idea.
Van Gogh Vodka comes in 19 different flavors! Check out their website to view the different tastes.
Friday, January 8, 2010
Chanel x Winter Sports
There's no fronting on this. I'm generally not into these types of brands but I found out today that Chanel has a full line of sports accessories and gear. This is WAY left field for me but they have produced winter accessories in some beautiful wood finishes and stamped them with their name and logo. Talk about stuntin' on the mountain? This is hard body. You can find the rest at Chanel's accessory page under Off-Piste. The collection includes snowboards, skis, speed skis, ski poles and goggles.
Chay$ the Great - Fashion Innovator
Last night I had the pleasure of meeting fashion designer Chay$ the Great (shay money). She's definitely on her own swag and is doing really interesting things with fashion. I didn't get to talk to her for so long but I did learn that she goes HARD. She's learned so much and achieved so much just doing her own thing. I'm going to try and tie her down for an interview in the near future so stay tuned.
Check out her website and blog to order products and keep up with what she's doing. I expect she is going to be an underground icon in the near future. Click here for her website and here for her blog.
Daisha Daiwu's Birthday
My friend Daisha and I met in Japan a few years ago. She's a Jill of all trades and has her hands dipped in all things media and entertainment. She's a DJ, videographer, fashionista and more. While I've moved back to the US, she's been holding strong in Japan carving out her own path to a very successful future. Keep up with what she's up to (and there is plenty) by visiting her website DaiTime Japan.
She made her way back west for her birthday and had a nice celebration at Moca Lounge in Harlem. It was great to catch up with her and meet some of her friends here in NY. The spot was very nice and quaint. Staff is a little too pretentious though. That's all beside the point. It's all about this phenomenal individual Daisha Daiwu! I gave her a new nickname tonight: "The Conduit". She knows so many great people. The saying goes; "If you want to do great things, surround yourself with great people." I guess that's why she's soaring. Happy birthday, Dai!
I also met a couple of very talented individuals that I will be writing about tomorrow. I always enjoy networking as you never know who you may meet and what relationships may develop.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Awkward Situation Indeed
Whomever it is that is responsible for this ad should be fired. Australians are supposedly up in arms for being called racist. They took particular interest in YouTube newcasters The Young Turks. Of course, internet denizens have many different feelings about the ad and what it really means. One of the the dominant arguments is that the commercial is only about Cricket. In the words of Ed Lover, "C'mon, Son! Get the fuck outta here with that bullshit."
KFC is an American corporation. There is a reason that this commercial was only meant to be aired in Australia. It may have been about cricket but playing in the dark is nothing new. We ALL know what the hell the intent was. It's just pathetic that in this day in age, such a blatant play on racial stereotypes from a major AMERICAN corporation is still a topic of discussion.
Thoughts?
KFC is an American corporation. There is a reason that this commercial was only meant to be aired in Australia. It may have been about cricket but playing in the dark is nothing new. We ALL know what the hell the intent was. It's just pathetic that in this day in age, such a blatant play on racial stereotypes from a major AMERICAN corporation is still a topic of discussion.
Thoughts?
Public Service Announcement
Yo, people need to stop droppin' the deuce at work! I don't know who it is exactly but I have my suspicions about the guilty party in my office. We have two bathrooms and every day I have to pick my poison when I need to take a tinkle. The one on the first floor is usually the worst. I've actually improved my lung capacity due to the severity of the situation. I'm like a damn Navy SEAL now. I can hold my breath for like 2 minutes. Straight up.
I don't see how people can come to work and blow up the bathroom EVERY day. Really? What the hell are they eating? Whatever it is they need to stop. Forever. I should go to my boss and propose we reinstate the use of outhouses. These disgusting deuce droppers should be made to go out there whenever they want to handle their business and the rest of us are spared the horrible gassing.
There's nothing worse than going to wash my hands after lunch and damn near upchucking my food because the smell is so bad. Stank ass mofos.
I don't see how people can come to work and blow up the bathroom EVERY day. Really? What the hell are they eating? Whatever it is they need to stop. Forever. I should go to my boss and propose we reinstate the use of outhouses. These disgusting deuce droppers should be made to go out there whenever they want to handle their business and the rest of us are spared the horrible gassing.
There's nothing worse than going to wash my hands after lunch and damn near upchucking my food because the smell is so bad. Stank ass mofos.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
The Hunt Begins - Week 1
Every year, I go ape crazy trying to get my hands on Nike's Black History Month shoe. The reason I have to do that is because they have always been models not released to the general public. Aside from appealing to the collector in me, it's always a very personal endeavor to seek out and claim these releases. I'm big on my culture and history and these shoes are always nice to have.
Each week leading up to February I will post the previous 4 releases in sequential order. If I'm lucky, I'll get to post the 5th installment in February. Below is the first shoe that released in 2006. By far the most simple of all of the shoes and that's one of the reasons why this one is so special to me. I learned about this shoe while visiting Flight Club one day. Chris Vidal and I were discussing shoes and somewhow got on the topic of Black History Month. He mentioned that he had an Air Force 1 in the building celebrating the month and I almost lost my lid. I spent the next year and a half or so looking for the shoe and finally managed to grab a pair. I actually grabbed them after I got the second release.
So, for week 1, here is the first Nike Black History Month shoe.
Each week leading up to February I will post the previous 4 releases in sequential order. If I'm lucky, I'll get to post the 5th installment in February. Below is the first shoe that released in 2006. By far the most simple of all of the shoes and that's one of the reasons why this one is so special to me. I learned about this shoe while visiting Flight Club one day. Chris Vidal and I were discussing shoes and somewhow got on the topic of Black History Month. He mentioned that he had an Air Force 1 in the building celebrating the month and I almost lost my lid. I spent the next year and a half or so looking for the shoe and finally managed to grab a pair. I actually grabbed them after I got the second release.
So, for week 1, here is the first Nike Black History Month shoe.
Hip-Hop Intellectual Resistance
A good friend and mentor of mine recently had his book, 'Hip-Hop Intellectual Resistance', published. If you're a fan of Hip-Hop and you like intellectual stimulation, this book is most definitely for you. I have to give you fair warning that this is DIFFICULT reading. There are terms, references and vernacular in this book that will most definitely have you puzzled, so keeping a dictionary handy would be a good idea. Mr. Stover knows how difficult some of his ideas are so a glossary of terms is included to keep you from losing him completely.
I just ordered my copy so I'll blog again later with a review. You can purchase your own copy on Amazon.
Crunch Berries & Other Bomb Ass Cereals
I've always been a big fan of cereal. Probably my favorite thing to eat in the whole wide world. Yes, I said whole wide world. My friends called me Black Seinfeld when I was a teen because every five minutes I was talking about, eating or going to buy cereal. I got older. I got smarter. So, naturally, I stopped eating cereal so much. I actually pretty much stopped eating it altogether. Today I had the ill sweet tooth so I decided to pull out a box of Crunch Berries.
This is bomb ass cereal! It was a toss up between this and Kix. Kix is off the chains too because it's got that perfect light sweetness. I also like Honey Bunches of Oats, Golden Grahams, Pops....ohh, man....Pops are so good. There aren't that many cereals that I don't like. The only cereals I'd avoid like the plague would be those OD-oat-bran-fiber-plus-poop-to-soup joints. What are your favorite cereals?
This is bomb ass cereal! It was a toss up between this and Kix. Kix is off the chains too because it's got that perfect light sweetness. I also like Honey Bunches of Oats, Golden Grahams, Pops....ohh, man....Pops are so good. There aren't that many cereals that I don't like. The only cereals I'd avoid like the plague would be those OD-oat-bran-fiber-plus-poop-to-soup joints. What are your favorite cereals?
Staten Island Yankees
A few weeks ago, a project just sort of landed in my lap. I'm becoming more familiar with the people involved and they seem to want me to be an integral part of what is happening. I can't get into too much detail as that would violate confidentiality agreements in place.
I was invited to a meeting this morning with the President of the Staten Island Yankees at their stadium. It was my first time even hearing of this team let alone visiting their field. I was really impressed with the look and location of the diamond. The view from the luxury box where we met was absolutely perfect. I could see the Statue of Liberty, downtown Manhattan and tons of cargo ships going up and down the river.
The meeting was a success and it looks like I will get to be a part of a really special event. I didn't have time to take as many pics as I wanted to, but here are a couple I snapped while I had the chance with my cell phone. The white structure on the left side of the first pic is a WTC Memorial. The little dog statues in the second pic, I'm told, work better than any high tech gadgets available at keeping birds off of the field. I got a real kick out of that little tidbit. The LCD board in the rear wall was turned on for us so we could see how advertisements would roll. That is not a static image.
I'll be heading back to the stadium sometime next week, so I'll definitely try to get better pics of the stadium at that time.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
10 Things You Do NOT Want to Hear in Tiger Woods' Sex Tape
Tiger Woods and his infidelity issues are still the hot topic across the internet. Word on the wire now is that someone is shopping a sex tape of him shot 2 years ago. Porn production company Vivid Entertainment was apparently approached with the tape and negotiations are open. Aside from the comedy this whole fiasco is already, I thought about how funny it would be if Tiger's tape is full of horrible golf puns. So here's my list of 10 things he better not have said while swinging his club.
1. Now this is a 9 iron, Baby.
2. Hole-in-one, Bitch!
3. Let me skeet on your fairway.
4. Can I put it in your bunker?
5. You're a good lay so my balls must be in a good lie.
6. Foooooore! *skeet*
7. Come on! Give me a Mulligan! (After missing the hole.)
8. Let me show you my penalty stroke.
9. Hold that club like a caddie, Girl.
10. Yes, my balls are dimpled too.
Duped by Diddy
This summer I was puttin' my friends and family on to "Ciroc Obama". A concoction of Ciroc Vodka, Chambord and Lemonade. It's a damn good drink. Every time I made it, it was a hit. I'm not a vodka drinker normally, so I didn't think much about it when they said that it's a 5 times distilled grape based vodka.
I found out today that it is in fact an eau de vie which is fruit brandy! What the hell? By law, the bottle must distinctly notify the consumer that it's a brandy. It does. It's just marketed as a vodka because people pay more for vodka. Cot zang. I've been duped. Oh, well it all intoxicates me just the same so I'm good. Had no idea anyone could or WOULD do such a thing but you learn something new every day. Of course, now I'm going to look at every bottle funny and question what I'm drinking.
I found out today that it is in fact an eau de vie which is fruit brandy! What the hell? By law, the bottle must distinctly notify the consumer that it's a brandy. It does. It's just marketed as a vodka because people pay more for vodka. Cot zang. I've been duped. Oh, well it all intoxicates me just the same so I'm good. Had no idea anyone could or WOULD do such a thing but you learn something new every day. Of course, now I'm going to look at every bottle funny and question what I'm drinking.
Late Pass Courtesy of Pandora
I got bored at work today, so I turned on Pandora radio on my cell phone. I cued up my Janelle Monae station and heard a bunch of stuff that I currently have on my iPod anyway. I heard Lily Allen, Erykah Badu, Gnarles Barkley, Lykke Li and others. All songs I know well but definitely a nice change from the pop station they have on in the office that plays the same 8 songs 80 times each every day. Then I heard something that I've never heard before. That's a great feeling for me. I love having that little light go off in my head. So I look down at my phone to see what it is....
Monday, January 4, 2010
Joell Ortiz and Corey Gunz in the Studio
If you are not yet aware; Corey Gunz is SAVAGE! The verse he lays on this track is just banini. Joell Ortiz is no slouch by any stretch of the word either. This is all about Corey though. I'm mad he wrote his verse on a Sidekick too.
via Culture VI Media
I Got A Ticket
Way to kick off the day. I woke up this morning at 7:30. I was tired as hell so I decided to stay in my bed another half hour. Probably 10 minutes after I closed my eyes, my phone goes off. It's my wife messaging me. She says, "We got a ticket." I'm like, "What the hell? It's Monday." I'm thinking that the ticket was for an alternate side parking violation. That's when I'm made aware that the ticket was for an expired inspection sticker. Cot zang!
There should be some sort of notification when your inspection is about to expire. The sticker should change color or some shit. You should get a pre-recorded message phone call.....anything! Who the hell checks that sticker regularly? Obviously I don't. So I got a 60 dollar ticket to remind me. Hopefully I can get it wiped. I took my car in for an inspection immediately and the lady at the desk told me that if I show them the inspection receipt within 24 hours, they might cancel the ticket.
Here's hoping they give me a break. The inspection was only up last month. I should get some sort of grace period.
There should be some sort of notification when your inspection is about to expire. The sticker should change color or some shit. You should get a pre-recorded message phone call.....anything! Who the hell checks that sticker regularly? Obviously I don't. So I got a 60 dollar ticket to remind me. Hopefully I can get it wiped. I took my car in for an inspection immediately and the lady at the desk told me that if I show them the inspection receipt within 24 hours, they might cancel the ticket.
Here's hoping they give me a break. The inspection was only up last month. I should get some sort of grace period.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Reflection Eternal: The Re:Union Mixtape
Way to kick off 2010, Son! I came across this on Kanye West's blog and had to pillage the link to share with y'all. If you're like me, you've been waiting for this to happen since Train of Thought. This is one of the illest MC/Producer combos in the history of the art form. So glad to see this happen so unexpectedly. Click the link below to download.
Japanese Cell Phones pt. 2 - Mamorino
This little cell phone is designed for children. It's limited in features by comparison to other phones but that is the point. It's simple to use, parents can regulate who has access and young children can chat with authorized individuals only for peace of mind for parents and an all-grown-up feeling for the little ones. It's called Mamorino and Mamoru in Japanese means to protect. These are not the first of their kind and certainly not the last in Japan but this design is super dope.
The Recession Continues or Impulse Buying
I'm an impulse buyer. Nothing triggers my impulse like the the word sale. I got a text message from a friend today that a local f.y.e. store is going out of business. They'll be closing their doors on the 31st of this month and everything in the store is discounted significantly. Of course, this means that plenty of crap was marked up to be marked down but there are definitely some decent deals to be had.
Apparently f.y.e. stores all over the country have been closing for the past year or so. Definitely check your area to see if any are closing near you. CDs and Blu-Ray discs are probably your best bets. No way in hell NBA 07 for PS3 marked $59.99 and only 40% off is a good deal. I've read that deals vary from store to store though so you might catch better deals in some locations. I don't know. I hate f.y.e. and I've only been inside of their stores a total of 3 or 4 times, including today's trip.
Here's my haul for the day:
50 First Dates - Blu-Ray - I love this movie. I love all Happy Madison movies, actually. I've probably seen this movie 8 times already.
Battle for Terra - Blu-Ray - I wanted to take my son to see this film at the International Children's Film Festival last summer. I found out about the showing a little too late and when I tried to get tickets it was already sold out. Was shocked to see it on Blu-Ray so I had to cop it.
Incubus: Look Alive - Blu-Ray - I'm a big Incubus fan. (Shout out to Chico Fontaine for puttin' me on.) I had great tickets to see them at Radio City Music Hall last year that I didn't use. My dumb ass was so excited that I didn't even read the damn tickets properly. I thought they were playing at Jones Beach so I drove to Jones Beach. I get there and, in true moron fashion, I'm driving around for 10 minutes in PITCH BLACK night like, "Where the hell is everybody and how come I don't hear shit?" I finally have some semblance of a synapse firing and check my tickets. You should have seen my face when I realized I was at the wrong venue. I was too upset (and pretty much too late) to drive back to Manhattan to catch what I could of the concert. This disc will make a nice companion to my Red Rocks disc.
Weeds: Season 4 - Blu-Ray - My wife bought this. I have no idea what it is. Read the back of the case though and apparently suburbanite white lady sells weed. Clever.
Slumdog Millionaire - Blu-Ray - I've been trying to catch this movie for the longest. Missed it in theaters. Missed it on premium channels I don't know how many times. Now I own it.
None of these over $17.49. Booyah!
Apparently f.y.e. stores all over the country have been closing for the past year or so. Definitely check your area to see if any are closing near you. CDs and Blu-Ray discs are probably your best bets. No way in hell NBA 07 for PS3 marked $59.99 and only 40% off is a good deal. I've read that deals vary from store to store though so you might catch better deals in some locations. I don't know. I hate f.y.e. and I've only been inside of their stores a total of 3 or 4 times, including today's trip.
Here's my haul for the day:
50 First Dates - Blu-Ray - I love this movie. I love all Happy Madison movies, actually. I've probably seen this movie 8 times already.
Battle for Terra - Blu-Ray - I wanted to take my son to see this film at the International Children's Film Festival last summer. I found out about the showing a little too late and when I tried to get tickets it was already sold out. Was shocked to see it on Blu-Ray so I had to cop it.
Incubus: Look Alive - Blu-Ray - I'm a big Incubus fan. (Shout out to Chico Fontaine for puttin' me on.) I had great tickets to see them at Radio City Music Hall last year that I didn't use. My dumb ass was so excited that I didn't even read the damn tickets properly. I thought they were playing at Jones Beach so I drove to Jones Beach. I get there and, in true moron fashion, I'm driving around for 10 minutes in PITCH BLACK night like, "Where the hell is everybody and how come I don't hear shit?" I finally have some semblance of a synapse firing and check my tickets. You should have seen my face when I realized I was at the wrong venue. I was too upset (and pretty much too late) to drive back to Manhattan to catch what I could of the concert. This disc will make a nice companion to my Red Rocks disc.
Weeds: Season 4 - Blu-Ray - My wife bought this. I have no idea what it is. Read the back of the case though and apparently suburbanite white lady sells weed. Clever.
Slumdog Millionaire - Blu-Ray - I've been trying to catch this movie for the longest. Missed it in theaters. Missed it on premium channels I don't know how many times. Now I own it.
None of these over $17.49. Booyah!
3rd Times the Charm
The fam and I decided that we wanted to go see the apparent phenomenon that is the film Avatar. Word on the street is that it MUST be seen in 3D. Even better in IMAX. So I logged on to Fandango and tried to book tickets for a showing about 2 hours later. Didn't happen. Sold out.
The next day, I get a text from my boy Riddle just before noon. "Avatar?" "Hell yeah!" I replied and jumped over to Fandango again. 7:00 pm showing....sold out. 10:35 showing....sold out. Damn!
Ok. Now I have it figured. So after an evening of laughter, food and Mimosas at my Mom's house, I walked back into my place around 9 pm. First order of business; BOOK TICKETS! I got tickets for the next day; 10:35 showing.
We know we have to get to the theater early to get good seats. So we get ready, head out and arrive at the theater an hour early. We turn the corner to the IMAX theater and what do you know? There had to be at least 75 people on line already! Cot zang.
Side note: Serious LOL moment when a group of about 5 people realize after waiting on line for more than an hour that they did not have tickets for IMAX 3D. They were quickly banished by security. I'm willing to bet they thought they could pull a fast one.
So after a 45 minute wait we're allowed into the theater. I got top row seats. Dead center. Booyah! The movie starts and I'm treated to the most engaging and socio-politically relevant fantasy movie I've seen since 'The Matrix'. That's all for another post though.
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