Whew! Liz and I have been in California since Friday, and we just got back into town last night. Our friends Kevin and Molly got married, and I’ve got tons of photos from the weekend. I’ve had limited access to the web since we left, and it’s been ages since I’ve left the blog unattended…
Like everyone else, we were caught by surprise when hearing about Michael Jackson’s death. Today, Derry brought in a bunch of DVDs of MJ – tons and tons of videos. He set up things in the kitchen flatscreen, looping a lot of Jackson’s videos throughout the day. At first, I figured it would be a…
Hard to believe but I posted about Zubbles over four years ago, way back in 2005. Imagine my delight and surprise when I saw an email come in this morning – announcing that their bubbles were officially available for pre-order! I’m happy to say that within 10 minutes of getting the email, I ordered me…
My ass had a very important meeting with the couch this past weekend. I’m happy to report that meeting went very well. This is Baxter, hanging out under the table. Me? I’m taking a nap working out camera angles for that screenplay I’m writing, in my head. One of the problems with having a camera…
Yesterday, Liz and I went out for a lunch near the fountain by the Art Institute. We were able to sit in the same area where I proposed marriage, which is always nice. I like these lunches, as I always tend to follow the same pattern. I get nervous and worried about time, when we…
Between you and me, I figured we were already done figuring out all the stuff we can do with vegetable oil. But apparently, we’re not. Spotted this on the walk to work yesterday, and it gave me a chuckle. It seemed like such a strange tagline to promote. I imagine it would be akin to…
I spent WAY more time on this than I should have. The gameplay and graphics are nothing to write home about, but it’s these #$^$%&! awards/achievements that just appeal to my compulsive/obsessive nature, and suck me in for the long haul. Learn to Fly has a cute intro, but the gameplay and graphics are… ok….
Liz and I went down to Frankfort for the afternoon/evening, hanging out with Bob and her mom. I watched Bob install a new gas line and get their fancy new Weber grill up and running. Nearby, a small bird had settled and was apparently a little addled or sick or… something. He was just hanging…
In the past, when Liz and I have gone away for a long weekend, we’ve been able to come up with creative ways to ensure Baxter’s taken care of during our absence. Sometimes we have friends stop by to visit. Sometimes we put her in our bedroom, or let her roam the apartment, with an…
My friend and co-worker James VanOsdol is raising money to fund his book, tentatively titled “Chicago Rocked!” In the 1990’s, James was on the airwaves at Chicago’s alternative station Q101, hosting a music radio show called “The Local Music Showcase” (later to be called “Local 101”). During that decade, he gathered together a ton of…
Found out I got a nod from Garr Reynolds over at Presentation Zen. Earlier in the week, I saw that he was soliciting some stories from folks for his upcoming book. I ended up sending along the Pecha Kucha Guide I made, after attending Pecha Kucha Chicago, Volume 9. I’m absolutely flattered that I got…
Civilization is a video mural on display at the Standard hotel. As the elevator goes up, the visuals change to depict images of heaven; as the elevator goes down, the visuals change to depict images of hell. The project was a collaboration between Marco Brambilla and Crush. Though the video is on Vimeo, you absolutely…
On the ride in to work, I got a message from Mike: You and your camera need to swing by federal plaza today. State Police are here giving a demo of what happens during a rollover accident. They actually have a truck, looks like a roller coaster ride…. Sweet. Liz and I detoured a bit…
I’ve just spent the past 20 minutes totally sucked in to this video of Clay Shirky, talking about the ways technology and the Internet are changing the way we communicate. Here’s a taste: “What matters here isn’t technical capital, it’s social capital. These tools don’t get socially interesting until they get technologically boring. I tisn’t…
Over the past weeks, I’ve been putting together some notes and ideas as a result of my Pecha Kucha talk. I found that I really enjoyed the creation process, and ended up having a lot of thoughts as to all the ins and outs of what makes up a Pecha Kucha presentation. When I first…