Bold statement: This may be one of my favorite songs of ALL time.

First 4 seconds are fantastic. The way the piano tumbles in. I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend. 3 days! Use them well.

(As I write this, I’m sitting in my balcony garden tending my new charcoal grill’s flames and soaking up the fresh spring sunset.)

Uncle Rico: Kip, I reckon… you know a lot about… cyberspace? You ever come across anything… like time travel?
Kip: Easy, I’ve already looked into it for myself.
Uncle Rico: Right on… right on.

Ok, so this post has a heavy dose of nostalgia (thus Uncle Rico from Napoleon Dynamite). While I love Chicago, there are a few things I miss about Gainesville. Probably the biggest being indie dance night at the Atlantic. Whether you had class or not the following day, you didn’t dare miss this weekly mandatory social function.

I’d lock my bike to the railing in front of the Top restaurant and stash my bike lights in the potted plants. Since arriving at the Atlantic at midnight was considered kinda early, I’d get my wrist band early around 11:30ish, hang out at the Top, and then skip the line when I’d official arrive around 12.

The following playlist is a monument to all my favorite indie dance songs from that era. These songs were played at the Atlantic and/or the UC and house parties. While there are a tons of songs I could add from the year since I’ve graduated (like Those Dancing Days and MGMT), I wanted this to be an authentic period piece. Suggestions for additions are welcome!

Note: this mix isn’t any kind of party order. Just as they came to me.

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Vimeo prank video

Geoff was at work early waiting to capture my reaction to the awesome prank that he masterminded. See video link above.

After a week of vacation travel, I returned to my beloved corner office space to find a fantastic prank awaiting me.

Geoff, Scott, Adam and a few others:

-photographed my area
-removed everything from my area
-printed a gigantic 2D trompe l’oeil version of my space walling off my office area
-hung a poster with me on a milk carton

Apparently there was some debate about whether I would appreciate this prank or not. I LOVED it. So hilarious. Thanks guys. Feels good to work at such a fun place.

Geoff is out on work travel for two weeks… Oh you know this prank won’t go unanswered!

On the return flight this past Sunday night, I wrote down everything I did on vacation. Whoa. In my free time (cue laughter), I’d like to create a zine to capture all of this.

That’s right! I’m on vacation! Here I am eating my favorite fast food, the Moo Moo Mr. Cow from Moes (not available in Chicago). It was glorious.

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Here’s a bit of freelance I just finished last night for a collaborative art show. Lately I’ve been noticing in my work how the letterpress class has influenced my type treatments. I’m thinking simpler, bolder, more to the point. I’ll have to post some pictures of my letterpress work on here.

Basically, this Co-Lab show is the commissioned collaboration between the winners of the UF Cirque show that I did some work for. I think it’s a really cool concept to curate artistic collisions.

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Here’s a sketch I did last night of this tiny Mom we see almost every day (sometimes twice) with her baby strapped to her like a tandem skydiver. And sometimes we see her gigantic husband. I’m not sure if she’d appreciate these drawings… I’ve been drawing a lot lately and it feels great

Let me just say that I do not take for granted my awesome job. Almost everyday I’m excited about what I’m doing. That’s priceless. Breakfast time! Going to skate a local indoor skate park tonight. I’ll be the one with full body pads working on my transition skating. (aka going back and forth between two mellow ramps.) : )

http://vimeo.com/2702078 — The password is polar.

Here’s a post I started wayyy earlier this year and just couldn’t find the words to fully express how shocking and invigorating and terrifying doing a polar plunge is.

Chicago, known for its soul-sucking weather, has a large lake with Titanic-sinking glaciers and killer winds that stab like ice picks. So…I decided that I must swim in it. On New Years Day 2009.

My weather widget read “Feels like 19.” The polar bear websites predicted 33 degree water.

I thought long and hard about doing this. I tried not to think about it at all. When I heard about it, I felt compelled to definitely do it. I announced it at work still a little unsure if I could do it. Even the night before, New Years night, the fear and doubt were creeping in. Will I have a heart attack? Puke? Get pneumonia or frostbite?

I managed to convince my work buddy Adam to do it too. Although my girlfriend was really concerned, I ate my usual PB and string cheese breakfast and started stuffing a duffel bag with towels and tons of clothes. I sipped a little coffee to “accelerate your heartrate, it might help.” Thanks doctor in residence friend.

So I did it. Once my clothes were off and I was running into the freezing water, the whole world got really quiet. Did I mention that I have always hated swimming in cold water? I’m always the last one in the pool. The one dipping toes in for half an hour before getting in. I lost my old black frame glasses in the lake. I forgot to take them off. Once I stripped down, I couldn’t be bothered with the details. It was just me vs. the lake.

In the weeks after my big swim, I’d remind myself “It’s not that cold today, I swam in the lake.” But that comparison doesn’t really hold up. When I emerged from full submersion (This is the rule. Crowds of onlookers will boo if you don’t get you head under.), I was heaving, unable to catch my breath and so afraid I’d pass out and no one would see me. I practically ran on the water to get back to the jagged icy shore. Standing soaking wet in the wind on the shore felt like summer compared to being in the water.

It was awesome, and I’m glad I did it. I really don’t know if I ever want to do it again, but I proudly shared this video at our Monday Morning Work meeting and boasted that this was our new office tradition. Kicking the year off in such an extreme way. It feels pretty good.

I’m so excited about Chicago’s art scene. Getting involved.

A free bucket at work + some black and white tape + my fondness for animated gifs = a 2 sided bucket.

My least favorite surface for creativity is a blank canvas. I like drawing on the paper foot mats that car mechanics lay down. And pushing balsamic vinegar around the edge of a plate with a fork. And then folding the paper napkin ring until the meal comes. I like the boards in the alley and the snow on the bushes.

Here’s a bit of snow outside the library near my work that I doodled with a skinny stick. Bits of snow were flying around me like Edward Scissorhands. The winter is beautiful and serene. I spent most of the weekend my sister visited sledding with her. An activity that we southern kids had never even dreamed of.

We sledded until we could hardly climb back up the hill exhausted from laughing. Our gloves were matted with frost.

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In keeping with the Mexican food theme, below I have pasted my recent plea to Moe’s Southwest Grill to reconsider its eradication of their Moo Moo Mr. Cow menu option. You get a little burrito, chips, a cookie and a drink for just under $5.

It has been weeks, and I still haven’t heard back from Moe’s customer service department. Pretty disappointing.

———-

Hi Moe’s, I’m frustrated with your restaurants and the way you’re handling your business.

While in college in Gainesville, FL I went to Moes ALL the time for the Moo Moo Mr. Cow. I’m worried that the Moo seems to be endangered. I am unable to attend Moe’s anymore since Chicago doesn’t have one, but when I encounter a Moe’s while traveling, I have been rebuffed with the same response “We don’t sell the Moo anymore.”

The way I see it, the Moo is your cash cow.

While I assume the Moo was originally conceived as your “kids meal” offering, it is just the right amount of food for almost any hungry adult (and more than enough for a child). The rest of your menu features football sized burritos that dwarf even the most pig-headed burger chain’s “Supersize Me” entrees.

A burrito. Chips. Cookie. And a drink. That’s all I ask. Charge more if you must. I understand the profit on that package is probably considerably less, but I was hooked. From the time I entered and you greeted me with a boisterous “Welcome to Moes” to the time I finished the last bite of chocolate chip cookie feeling pleasantly full - you earned your spot as my favorite fast food. Now I feel estranged and empty.

The Moo is your ageless Happy Meal. It is the total Moe’s experience wrapped up in a little bag. It isn’t daunting in size and laborious in consumption as your other burritos are but instead a delight to hop from each of the various tastes and textures.

Yes. I’ve given this some thought. I wouldn’t have if I didn’t care about your franchise and want you to succeed. Please reconsider your menu, know your fan base better, and free the Moo.