Top 10 of '09 - Songs

Top 10 of '09 - Songs
These are my favorite songs in or around the year 2009.

1. Percussion Gun - White Rabbits

2. 1901 - Phoenix


3. Spaceman - Killers


4. Furr - Blitzen Trapper


5. I Want You To - Weezer


6. Meet Me On The Equinox - Death Cab For Cutie


7. Electrify - MuteMath


8. 11th Dimension - Julian Casablancas


9. Help I'm Alive - Metric


10. Oscar Wilde - Company of Thieves


Honorable Mention
Kings & Queens - 30 Seconds to Mars
The Reeling - Passion Pit
Uprising - Muse
In One Ear - Cage The Elephant
Alligator Pie - Dave Matthews Band

Top 10 of '09 - Albums

(The first of a few lists of my Top 10 of '09)

Top 10 of '09 - Albums

1. Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix - Phoenix
2. Armistice - Mute Math
3. The Resistance - Muse
4. Ocean Eyes - Owl City
5. Cosmic Egg - Wolfmother
6. Cage The Elephant - Cage The Elephant
7. I Told You I Was Freaky - Flight of the Conchords
8. Twilight Soundtrack - Various
9. Tell 'Em What Your Name Is - Black Joe Lewis
10. Brand New Eyes - Paramore

Honorable Mention:
Strict Joy - The Swell Season
Fantasies - Metric
Manners - Passion Pit
Best of - Foo Fighters

Soggy Waffles - Madonna

New Alice In Wonderland Trailer - wowza

Here is the trailer for what is sure to be next year's blockbuster hit, Tim Burton's "Alice In Wonderland", starring Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter...ought to be interesting. It is a story of Alice going back as a 19 year old, to the Wonderland she knew as a girl and running into her old friends again. Enjoy!

The Race - a poem from senior studio

While cleaning my room, I came across this poem I wrote one [late] night in Senior Studio:
The Race
Bowed legs harbor a slowly-stooping structure: a frame. A frame once upright, now hunched. A frame which supports a head that houses weary eyes. A head that holds a brain. A brain that is a prize-winning racehorse of which caffeine is the jockey and there is no finish line in sight. Legs shaking, body defeated, brain wild and unpredictable. It makes lists. Revives old memories. Wants further stimulation from television, but will not be rewarded. Veteran white blood cells unaware of viruses lurking ever nearer are nestled in their beds for the night while the rookies attempt to keep watch over the structure. A yawn escapes as a digital 4:24 becomes a digital 4:25. Muscles loosen and begin to relax. Teeth earlier drenched in coffee, now lay unbrushed. The brain slows to a trot as the jockey dismounts and leads it back to the stable. There will be another race tomorrow.
-2/3/09
This was scribed about the 4th week of classes...and it was only the beginning of a looooooooooong semester.

A Creed

Some pretty cool and powerful words by a WWI vet

"My Creed" by Dean Alfange

I do not choose to be a common man.

It is my right to be uncommon. I seek opportunity... Not security.

I do not wish to be a kept citizen, humbled and dulled by having the state to dream and build, to fail, and to succeed.

I refuse to barter incentive for a dole. I prefer the challenges of life to the guaranteed existence; the thrill of fulfillment to the stale calm of utopia.

I will not trade freedom for beneficence, nor my dignity for a hand out. I will never cower before any master nor bend to any threat.

It is my heritage to stand erect, proud, and unafraid; to think and act for myself; enjoy the benefits of my creations; and to face the world boldly and say, "This I have done with my own hand, I am a man. I am an American." -

Listen to it here

*Originally published in This Week Magazine. Later printed in The Reader’s Digest, October 1952 and January 1954.

Soggy Waffles - Semicolon

Newords

I've started to notice this phenomenon in recent American culture: using words that already exist, adding a letter or 2 to them, and 'cello' its a new word - or 'neword' (©stephenfloyd09).

Here are some examples:

*Dollar Menunaire from McDonald's

They used this to try and connect with the lazy, cheap, slobs of American society. I mean look at that dude guy in the ad, more like a "hair-don't". Shoulda called this class of people 'Lazeap Slobicans' - basically the same thing.

*Mexicutioner - Joakim Soria for the KC Royals - no Mexplanation needed.


*"Ginormous" from the movie Elf

Yes, our friends at Webster's Dictionary & Other Spelling Books Company have decided to add this 'neword' into their end all, be all book of definitions. C'mon! Its a compound word of both 'gigantic' and 'enormous'. Before you know it 'cotton-headed-ninny-muggins' will be a way for kids to get their mouths washed out with soap.

*Staycation - this is a vacation that you take in your home state or surrounding area

Isn't the point of a vacation to 'get away'? YES. Its dumb to think you need to go in debt to be on a cruise 6 weeks every summer anyways - unless of course you are the captain of a cruise ship. Then I suppose you come to Kansas.

*Bromance - A non-sexual relationship between 2 straight men that are unusually close

Really? We're allowing this? That's just brotastic.

*Scrotegé - looks up to and acts just like a toolbag that he admires

See what I mean?

Since I fancy myself as a 'pun master' of sorts, I have decided to add to this trend:
*Preancé - Someone you are dating who you are sure will become your fiancé soon
*Freevening - An evening all to yourself, especially one with no plans
*Myena - A pet hyena that is only yours
*Gunderwear - A holster for your gun
*Cupgrade - a. Larger drink at a restaurant b. a teenage girl getting older

Have any to add?

Ultimate Road Trip Mix CD

I'm headed out to the Middle of Nowhere KS this weekend so to help get me there, I set out today to make the most awesome road-trip mix cd the world has ever heard. I believe I have achieved a nirvana-like success (not the band, but rather the beatitude that transcends the cycle of reincarnation, ya know.) My list had to include songs that were good for the ROAD, not just good in general.



1. That usually means that they are from the classic rock genre. Because let's face it, when these songs came out people had 8-track players in their cars and engines bigger and louder than a robot playing a pink electric guitar - so the music had to be rockin enough to hear above the roar of these beasty machines.
2. This also means that the songs had to have a good rhythm and lyrics. This also fits most classic rock songs.
3. Songs about cars, traveling, or summertime are a must as well. Some songs, The Mamas & The Papas "California Dreamin'", "Keys to the Hovercar" by Andy McKee, The Beatles' "Ticket To Ride", and "Lowrider" by War unfortunately did not make the cut.
4. Has to be fun to sing to. And I have to know the lyrics to it. Both have to happen.

Here is the list that I came up with, let this ear candy give you brain cavities:
"Born To Be Wild" - Steppenwolf - This has got to be the ultimate road trip song.
"Hot Rod Lincoln" - Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen - Song about a car going really fast, with an awesome bass line? You bet it made the list.
"The Boys of Summer" - The Ataris - I know Don Henley sang the original, but this newer version really lends itself to be a road trip worthy song. Newer rock riffs and less pop strums is why it makes the cut. Plus it has the word "Summer" in the title.
"Takin' Care of Business" - Bachman Turner Overdrive - TCB by BTO just a flat-out sweet song for the road
"Radar Love" - Golden Earring - Their only hit. Maybe the only song they ever wrote. Quality over quantity.
"Sweet Home Alabama" - Lynyrd Skynyrd - This song is SO over played and very predictable to make this list, hence it made the list.
"Here I Go Again On My Own" - Whitesnake - Epic song. Great one to sing along to. A nice break in the midst of so many thunderous classics.
"Summer of '69" - Bryan Adams - Had to make it. Such a sweet ballad. Not to mention "Summer" is in the title. It just had to be. Also, the beginning has to be played very loud.
"The Boys Are Back In Town" - Thin Lizzy - Fun to sing echo on this one. I think these cats are great.
"Crazy On You" - Heart - One of the few bands I can stand that is fronted by a woman. Awesome beginning, awesome chorus, awesome guitar licks.
"Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)" - Journey - One of my all-time favorite songs. Amazing from beginning to end. Also have to play this one loud at the beginning. I am a synthesizer sympathizer at heart.
"Foreplay/Long Time" - Boston - A 7:50 song wouldn't normally make a list like this, but how can you not have it make the cut? Such a classic song and the best intro to any song all-time. Yep, just said it.
"Hungry Like The Wolf" - Duran Duran - The "Do-do-dos" of the bridge are perfect for the road. This one barely made the cut, but its classic, has good rhythm, and is fun to sing to.
"Cold As Ice" - Foreigner - One of my favorite bands ever. The beginning is stellar. Although it is a bit slower, it still has opportunity for some good air guitar and air drum parts.
"Rock You Like A Hurricane" - Scorpions - Do I even need to explain this one? Didn't think so.
"Sink Hole" - Drive By Truckers - A fun song to sing along to and has excellent rhythm. Not classic rock, but has that same feeling. Great for crusin'!
"Bad To The Bone" - George Thorogood - BBBBBBBB-Awesome song! Another epic tune (and predictable list-maker).
"Cold Hard B***h" - Jet - Yes mom, this song has a bad word in the title. I'm sorry. Its about this female dog that get frozen stiff... Jet has a sweet classic rock sound and feel to many of their songs and this one is one of those that fits the bill.

Road Trippin' Vol. 1 has been set. Feel free to let me know if I missed an obvious song, but I'm pretty sure I did not. Maybe a Vol. 2 could happen with some less classic rock and some more newer songs, doubt it.

PS - RIP the biggest Thriller of all time.

Soggy Waffles - Safety in Sombreros

Wamego, Land of Ehz?

So Wamego KS is the self-proclaimed "Land of Oz", everything there is Wizard of Oz related.
Example 1: A Barbershop - "Scizzors of Ahhhz!"


Example 2: A taco shop (the only taco shop in town) - "Toto's Tacoz"


There are more than these I'm sure, but the world had to know about these 2 Oz-ities especially.

I am going to Mars . . . sorta

So I found this link online. I don't know if this is a hoax or not, but you can sign up your name and NASA engrave it on a microchip of the latest $gajillion robot rover that is being sent to Mars. Here is the official NASA proof:

I may regret this if an alien robot baby (because, like everyone knows, they have acute mico-vision) gets a hold of the rover and starts using it as a rattle or chew toy and rips it to shreds, exploding microchips out of it and then reads my name (because it can read English already), it may then come to earth looking to seek and destroy. Because although they look harmless, alien robot babies are in fact some of the most dangerous creatures in the entire Milky Way. That's just a fact.

Soggy Waffles - OCTO

Stop-motion video

Here is a sweeet stop-motion video made with letters and confined to specifically spaced areas:

Prince (not the singer)

My alma mater, Campus High School (GO COLTS!) had their Spring Prom this year and check out who is lookin' good and winnin' prom prince:



CONGRATS TO THE LITTLE BROTHER!
He's got a better record than his older brother who was 0-2 on prom/homecoming prince/king wins. (Maybe its because I didn't look as studly as that handsome fella.)

Way to go Sam!

Soggy Waffles - Aerosol

Weekend Wrap-up

Went home this weekend to Justin's wedding:


Two babies at the reception:


Had to go with Paige to this place:

(Check out their sweet logo!)

She tried on bridesmaid dresses, I kept myself entertained:

MuteMath - 'Spotlight' Vid

MUTEMATH - Spotlight


MuteMath is my favorite band of all time. I have seen them in concert more than anyone else. Even saw them in NYC when I was there. They flat out ROCK.
This is their latest and greatest music video to their song "Spotlight", not quite as revolutionary as their all-backwards "Typical" video, but not easy to make a song look like its being sung in real time while the tape is in fast-forward. Enjoy!

Soggy Waffles - Lunch with Ninjas

Weirdest Commercial EVER. Period.

Caution: If you are not on drugs when you are watching this video, you're going to wish you were:


Brought to you via: PictureIsUnrelated

PICKLE SURPRISE!!

Soggy Waffles - Up A Creek

Yeah, I've felt like this before

Omelet

This is my feeble attempt at an omelet for Sunday brunch:

Thanks to Paige for the new skillet! -Looks like Heck, tastes like Heaven...well, Purgatory at least.

Soggy Waffles - Rhymes

EARTH

Next to HBO's Band of Brothers (seriously, can a Hanks/Howard co-production EVER be beat?), my favorite series on television has to be the Planet Earth series by Discovery.
They spent over 10 years gathering footage and filming some of the most magnificent and never-before-seen animal behaviors. Incredible footage.
In leu of the over-used 'going green' campaigning, Disney has jumped on board and will be showing a 1 day only event called "Earth" at select movie theaters on April 22, Earth Day. This movie will follow 3 animal families over the course of their season and all of their struggles and triumphs.

This is the beginning of a series called 'Disney Nature'. I imagine that it will be pretty cheesy since its geared towards kids, but I don't mind. I mean, its narrated by James Earl Jones - can't get much better than "The Voice" can it? Fortunately Seth Childs is showing the film and I'll be there at the 9:30 showing - join me if you'd like!

Gourmet Heart Attack

As Americans we apparently love to combine foods that are delicious and fattening just by them selves with other foods that are also delicious and artery clogging. Most of the time these 2 things should never ever be combined.
Items that come to mind are:
*Krispy Kreme burger

- this replaces the buns of an already unhealthy burger made at some grease-pit probably called "Frank's Middle-of-nowhere Diner" next to a Waffle House and served on a plate that was once broken but has recently been duct-taped back to perfection by a toothless waitress named Flo, with 2 deep fried and mouth-watering, glazed Krispy Kreme donuts. Could you have chosen anything more fattening? Maybe next time just slap two 1/2 lb batter dipped ham haunches on and call it a day.

* Macaroni and Cheese Pizza. Two childhood favorites. Although Mac&Chez isn't totally unhealthy adding it to a baked crust and drenching it in mozzarella cheese can't be that friendly on the ol bowel system. At least its not a combo of other childhood faves: chicken nugget cereal, hot fudge hot dog sundaes, or Peanut Butter and Jell-o sandwiches (cut diagonally of course).

But the latest of these has to be the gourmet chocolate made by Vosges. It combines 2 of America's favorite fattening items: Chocolate and Bacon.

Dentists everywhere must be rejoicing! C'mon America! Seriously? Chocolate and BACON?! The only thing that could make it more white trash is deep-frying it and having ranch dressing to drench it in. This doesn't evens sound good to me. Makes me shudder and my arteries cry out in distress begging me not to intake this mess. Well don't worry fellas, I will not be ingesting this fondue hog any time soon.

Have any thing to add to this list of unnecessarily gross food combos?

Soggy Waffles - Powerpoint

Rant - Baby Names

Ok, this has bothered me for quite some time now and I have to let it out: Baby Names.

This does not revolve around people who name their kids off the wall names like Scout, Shauntrellutaun, Chaqueffa, Moonbeam, or Rodney. No. I'm talking about when people name their child something so that they can call them a nickname of that name.



Example time: Naming a girl Elanor so that you can call her "Elle". Here's a bright idea, just name her Elle. If that is what you want to call her, then name her that!

I don't mind people naming their child something like Charles and calling him Chuck, Charlie, or Chaz. But by all means don't name him Charles so that you can call him Chuckie - just name him Chuckie. Deal?

Example time 2: My brother's name is Samuel. Everyone calls him Sam. My parents named him Samuel, but not with the intention of calling him Sam, Sammy, Shlamenskee, Samantha, or Goober. Although all of these names are used for him, this is not why he was named Samuel.

I do understand naming a child something that gives them the option to go by a shortened version when they are older (Gregory -> Greg, James -> Jim, Michael -> Mike) rather than giving them a fixed name (Ryan, Brent, Jason, or Scott). This makes sense to me.

However, I just do not understand this logic (or lack of) when naming a child. If the opportunity presents itself to call your child a certain nickname then feel free to take it, but please do not name your child a name so that you can call them by a nickname of that name.

ALSO: What's up with naming kids old people names? Why are Emma, Elanor, Josephine, William, Evelyn and Velma so popular? You are just asking for your kid to be a 90 year old in a 3 year old's body.

Forever Proud Logo

A working logo for a young alumni group on campus known as "Forever Proud" - not to be confused with the already established "Wildcats Forever" or "K-State Proud"

Soggy Waffles - Santa?

(This is assuming, of course, that you have snow on your roof 365 days a year)

Soggy Waffles - Chopsticks

I've been wanting to show these to the world - so now I am! Drumroll please (Drrrrrrrrrrr) introducing my new cartoon sketches currently known as Soggy Waffles!
I present to you the first of many installments. Hopefully this gives you some insight into this wild noggin of mine.



Let me know what you think! Drop off suggestions, new name ideas, better taglines, improvements, etc.

(Inspired by comic Demetri Martin and Toothpaste for Dinner.)

Hatch Show Print

Long story short, I would like an internship at Hatch Show Print in Nashville more than anything this summer.
It is the sort of place that holds many of the same values that I hold. It is also rich in its 130+ year history of using the old-fashioned get-your-hands-dirty way of designing. They still use old wooden blocks of type for printing that give each of their posters that allow for such a unique and personal quality that cannot be replicated with any technology today.

I am sending in my application this coming week, but first I had to send this thank you letter to Jim Sherraden, for his talk in Dallas and his impact on my design. He has influence me more than he will ever know. Wish me luck on an internship opportunity!!

The Blonde Dame

A melodramatic re-telling of an un-melodramatic affair.
It was your typical warm, windy day on the Western Kansas plains. I myself was westbound on a two-lane road. An appointment. I was headed to an appointment, at least this is what I recall. Like I mentioned before, it was a windy day.
I was nearing the appointment's rendezvous locale, when she appeared on the horizon. The dame was along the left side of the road. She was currently unoccupied so I decided to roll the dice and take my chances. I got out of the vehicle and approached her. The dame's blonde hair was like a magnet that drew me closer, closer, closer. I couldn't believe believe her hair. It seemed to go on forever. I stood in amazement. The wind picked up and ruffled her locks a bit which startled me, but I remained planted in wonder.
I don't recall much that happened after that. I do remember calling out to this random Rapunzel, but my frail voice getting lost amidst the breeze and her long strands. I found myself driving away, still staring at her in my rear view mirror. Grateful that I stopped, but ungrateful for how I exposed my heart to no avail, like a red balloon drifting off in the wind above the trees and towards the sun. The dame stole my heart and my soul. I'd be a liar if I said I didn't think about that day from time to time. That woman. Her hair. Her gorgeous blonde hair that went on for miles.

DALLAS Pt. 1

This show in Dallas has been great!



I've been able to meet a lot of really fascinating people as well as hear some interesting speakers. I think my favorite speaker is actually the very first one that I heard, Stefan Mumaw. He has a book out called: "Caffeine for the Creative Mind" and its full of fun little 10-15 minute tasks that really do a great job of getting your mind working in the morning.
I have had the opportunity to network to people in Dallas, Houston, Truman State U, South Dakota State U, Fort Hays, and Oklahoma U.

Overall, a very fun trip. So glad I came...although, not so ready to get back into the swing of things on Monday :(

More to come!

New Website!

I have a new website up:



www.stephen-floyd.com

leave me comments on what you think about it/ any improvements

STeAlyouRBUCKS

In a college town, there are many places that try to take advantage of inexperienced, dumb-as-a-brick frat boys, daddy-bails-me-out sorority girls, throwing-money-at-it-solves-all-of-our-problems Johnson County kids. But none more so than Starbucks. So you go in expecting to pay $first-born child for a venti white chocolate mocha w/shot of chocolate carmel espresso, that's a given. But here's where they get you. You wanna log on to the internet to check your e-mail, blogs, fantasy baseball, your fantasy relationship with your fantasy girlfriend? Its gonna cost ya. $2.99/2-hour log-in, or $9.99/mo. No thank you.

I imagine that this is to keep some of the riff-raff out, but last time I checked the riff-raff was just discovering that WWE RAW had been moved to Monday nights and that they could upgrade their single-wide to a double-wide. I mean the 22-hour laundromat in aggieville has free internet and it has all of the town's riff-raff who more or less live there (more).
So how is the monster defeated you might ask? Simple really, see what other networks are set-up in the area and log on to one that you don't need a password to (I suggest the one entitled "Motorola"). How do you think I'm posting this right now?
Dear Starbucks,
You may be able to charge me my first-born child for one of your delicious gourmet coffee drinks, but I will not sell one of my kidneys to use your internet. You have been defeated. Jerk-heads.
Love always and forever,
Stephen

Excessive Ping-Pong celebration

To some people, ping-pong is more than just a sport.

Watch this all the way until the end:

Gotees & Mullets

(Had to post something about my excitement for these guys!)

Some of my very best friends are in a band called Abandon Kansas. The lead singer, Jeremy Spring, has been one of my best friends ever since he moved to Kansas in 6th grade. He and I grew up thru high school and eventually put together a band called $12 Skolarship (even won the talent show Senior year, hear a song here). That didn't last past high school for me, but as for Jeremy it was only the beginning of what would become Abandon Kansas.
They are responsible for much of the beginnings of my design work. They let me design all sorts of shirts, posters, etc for their band. It was pro-bono work, but had it not been for them, I wouldn't have had nearly the amount of contacts that I had to be able to have a semi-steady income from doing free-lance work.
I was also able to spend a whole month last summer on tour with these guys. One of the most incredible adventures I had ever been on.
I was talking with Jeremy last night and he told me some of the most exciting news I had heard all week:
Abandon Kansas is signed to a label!!!
They signed with Gotee Records who has produced such artists as: Relient K, TobyMac, DC Talk, John Reuben, Force Family 5, Jennifer Knapp, and many more of the top christian artists. This is very exciting news for the guys. I have been told it is a 3 year contract and that they will be recording their first album under the label in May.

The $455.59 Poster

My poster got accepted to a Nation Student Show in Dallas. VERY EXCITING! But at what cost?

I had to mount the poster on matte board to mail to the show. Sounds simple and cheap right? Here's the break down:

$9.99 - Matte board
$21.25 - 18x24 Poster print out
$21.25 - Second 18x24 poster print out because the colors were messed up on the first one
$50 - Parking ticket because I had to park on campus to cut and mount everything
$80 - Towing fine for my truck (the one that got the $50 ticket earlier)
$81.10 - UPS store's price for a box + guaranteed delivery for Monday (deadline for submission)

$263.59 (Total cost of getting this poster to Dallas)
+ $192 (total cost of submitting work $17 + registration for event $175)
_______
$455.49 = Grand Total (before food/lodge/swag/books/etc.)

Not to be a Mastercard commercial, but I know that after the even is over it will end up being a PRICELESS experience.
But this arm & leg stuff upfront is frustrating.

Betchya Didn't Know (Part 4)

(This is part 4 of a 5 part series of getting to know little known facts about me - some of these you may already know)
I have never had chicken pox.
Fact:I was sheltered as a child.
I often played by myself in my room listening to educational tapes and building impenetrable Lego forts. So sheltered in fact, that when I went to Kindergarten I had never had chocolate milk before, I came home wildly excited exclaiming "Mom, they have brown milk at school!"
We moved quite a bit when I was young and I never had any friends until Kindergarten in Missouri and then we moved to Kansas - so i wasn't ever in direct contact with anyone who had the red polka-dotted virus. When I was about 16 I was given a shot that gave me the symptoms without the itchy bumps, this was so if I caught the virus as an adult I wouldn't get the shingles. Now you know.

Larry entertains!

For St. Patrick's Day, Larry (the German) sings 'MacNamara's Band' and Irish classic:

Check out:
- Wicked glasses
- Debbie on beat! (in the background)
- Tyler sighting (white/blue striped shirt)
- Auto harp (Larry explained "Doesn't mean that it plays by itself")

The Springtime Basketball Tournament ®

The Springtime Basketball Tournament®
Since the name that is normally used for this "mad" time of year is registered, I came up with my own: The Springtime Basketball Tournament® (if you use it without my express written consent, then I get to hunt you down, beat the snot out of you and shot your dog)
Here are my Final 2+2®:
Michigan State, Memphis, Pitt, UNC - Pitt is crowned victorious after a tight battle with Michigan St.

Obama's Final 2+2®
Louisville, Memphis, Pitt, UNC

Emma Story!
Today she was filling out her bracket for our office pool. I kept hearing her say, "Oh, I bet they'll win. Oh, they're probably pretty good." Taking pity on the girl I went over to see how things were going - not good, not good at all. Really Emma #15 Binghamton beating out Duke in the first round? Or Western Kentucky making it to the Elite Eight?
I took some time to explain how the rankings work and that the closer the team is to being #1, the better they are. She understood and proceeded to print off a new bracket. Out of curiosity I asked her why she chose the teams she did, her response was (and I am not making this up), "I choose the teams according to who I think has the most black players on it." Can you blame her? Better factoring than choosing teams based on whether their mascot could beat up the other mascot I suppose.

Procrastination...

Procrastination video by John Kelly

Reporter Slip-ups

Artistic Bucketlist

About 7 years ago I came up with my own bucketlist (long before the movie). I called it "100 Life Goals". This is not unusual since I make lists for everything.
I came across a site called Wordle.net. It asked for a large amount of text to be entered into the box so it can make a cool typographic composition, I used that bucketlist and got this:

(click to enlarge)
This program scrambles the words to make this masterpiece, leaving some of it not making sense.
Example: "Go book hot fishing etc" "helicopter bed bear", and "Buy fire fly help". Sure does make for a fun and interesting read!

Stephen Does Dallas

About a month ago I stayed up some stupid-long hours to put together a portfolio to send to the 5th annual Dallas Student Show. This is a national graphic design show aimed at college seniors. I had planned on attending the show regardless of whether or not any of my work made it in.
I am very excited to announce (drumroll please) that I MADE IT IN THE SHOW!


My winning piece is below, entitled MacBeth:

If you notice, I am completely surrounded by students who have gone to Texas schools. This makes me 1 of just 3 in the state of Kansas that has work being shown in the show! I am very excited about this and super-pumped! Just goes to show that hard work pays off every now and again. Stay tuned around April 1-5, I will be posting more about how the conference went. You can check out more here.

Personal Rider

For those of you who don't thumb through a Lawyer word list or Rock & Roll Dictionary on a regular basis, a "rider" is the term for those unique little clauses that you get to add to your contract for before and after you melt faces at a venue. The most famous being Van Halen's concert rider referring to their desire of M&M's, stating "ABSOLUTELY NO BROWN ONES".
I figured that I should get an early start on my rider so that one day when I'm a famous rock musician with my band "The Garamonsters" or world-renowned graphic designer about ready to give the presentation of your lifetime, it will already be ready:

STEPHEN'S RIDER
A. At the Venue
1. 60" Flat-screen tv with access to ESPN, Comedy Central, Discovery Channel, Cartoon Network, TBS, and NBC
2. At least one Cadillac Couch the more the merrier and all in silver and navy blue
3. Latest edition of Print, How, ESPN, and Time magazines
4. Dim lighting, but not too dark. Just enough to set the ambiance...(oh, wait, yep, no, almost had it, little dimmer, yeah, no, oh, yep that's it...ahhhh)
5. A fluffy blanket and 3 fresh pillows - firm, but not too hard and not too soft (powernap awaits!)
6. A small space heater set to warm
6a. This applies only to the months of October-March, otherwise disregard
7. Book for sketching/note takeing - must have a navy blue cover and made of leather and a pencil (not mechanical) but a real pencil made from real wood

B. Refreshments
1. Fondue Fountain - with strawberries on little sticks, bananas on little sticks, and a shallow bowl of coconut shavings that I can roll the chocolate covered fruit in
2. Bottles of Jones Soda - Berry Lemonade & Fufu Berry - don't judge me (bottles NOT cans)
3. A HOT pizza from Grimaldi's Pizza in Brooklyn
4. Chilled carton of chocolate milk - 2% only
5. Water, lots of water - chilled but with no ice

C. Additional
1. Quick and hidden access from the party bus to the venue so as to not be attacked by swarms of fans
2. Must use one of the following for my intro music:
*"Eye of the Tiger" - Survivor
*"Rock & Roll: Part II" - Gary Glitter
*"Thunderstruck" - AC/DC
*"Welcome to the Jungle" - Guns 'N Roses
2a. Never must the same song be used at a similar event in the same time zone in a given fiscal year
3. Pyrotechnics must be used upon my exit of the stage whenever possible

I don't think this list is too much to ask for.
This is in response to Armin Vit's rider

Half of Life's Guarantees

I believe it was the man on the $100 bill that coined the phrase, "Nothing is guaranteed in life but death and taxes". Today, I took care of one of those. (the taxes part of course...although the other might happen by the end of this semester)

This is the real deal here. In the words of the punk band The Ataris: "Being grown up isn't half as fun as growing up" - and don't that ring true

Right Here, Right Now: The Facts

This video is incredible. If you are not convinced that we're living in a time of an informational revolution, look no further. Not only is it done so well artistically, but also the information that it contains is phenomenal:

Thanks for the hook-ups Aubrey!

Irish Music - LIVE

While in Kansas City this past weekend, I got the luxury of hearing the band "Flannigan's Right Hook" perform at the Raglan Road in the Power & Lights district. What an awesome show! They did some original music as well as quite a few awesome covers.
Here is some video I took to highlight their music:

Hell Week Stats

This past week was overwhelming to say the least - rightfully dubbed "Hell Week". Literally half of what is assigned this semester in my Senior Studio class was due this past Thursday.
Chart of the hours I was in studio for each day:

Hours of real, money-paying work missed: 22
Power Naps: 7
Cans of Mtn. Dew: 9
Cups of Coffee: 4
Paper cuts: 1

When it was all said and done I was in studio over 70 hours in 6 days. I will have pictures of what was due on those days in a later post.

Abandon Kansas stops in Manhattan

Some of my best buds, the Abandon Kansas boys, made a stop last night and played a show at PJ's in Manhattan last night.

Fun pics:
(that's me making a cameo and shakin my groove thang)

Really fun show!

New song, "Make Believe":

Pumped (and Circumstance)!

Well, its officially official:

My Mural

I have never designed a mural. I have never painted a mural. I have hardly ever seen a mural. Nevertheless, I was asked by my friend Elizabeth of West Hall 4th floor to design a mural for their lobby area. I wanted to give them something that was unisex (since it will be a co-ed building next year) and something that was fun and would hopefully stand the test of time (for at least a few years)
This was not easy and took a lot of time, here is what we came up with:


I am very pleased with how it turned out :)
Elizabeth put in a lot of time into painting it and it looks great. Kudos girl!