Also take a look at some of my recent projects:

hsfriday.com
blueswarm.com (I am a bit removed from this one at the moment but my homies are rocking it)
recipesnap.com

Much more to come!

This plugin for Mac changed my life and continues to do so to this day.]]> Fri, 25 Jan 2008 20:31:43 -0800 http://virb.com/n0s0ap/posts/text/433610 http://virb.com/n0s0ap/posts/text/430784 I've become very attached to various pieces of software and webapps and I often find myself wanting to evangelize for them.]]> Thu, 24 Jan 2008 04:28:06 -0800 http://virb.com/n0s0ap/posts/text/430784 http://virb.com/n0s0ap/posts/text/371036 Merry Christmas to all and to all a digital Christmas card. Click here to recieve my binary seasons greetings and to hear my top 10 Christmas songs this year.

Here is my top 10 in no particular order with commentary:

1. A Marshmallow World by Bing Crosby
Can you really have a Christmas song list without Bing? No you cannot. This is one of my favorite Bing songs ever. Who can resist the cheer! It has perfectly described the wintery Colorado weather we've been enjoying the last few weeks.

2. Frosty the Snowman by Dan Tymins
I love the acoustic play on this thumpity thump thump over the hills of snow. I never really liked this song till 'ol Dan did it justice.

3. Oh Come Emmanuel by Rebecca St. James
This song is truly haunting in the way I think the true spirit of the season is.

4. I Saw Three Ships by Michael W. Smith
What can I say? I am a sucker for the pipes.

5. In Like a Lion (Always Winter) by Relient K
I don't have enough room on the internet to talk about this song. It is probably one of my favorite songs ever. C.S. Lewis painted such a beautiful allegory in The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe and Relient K powerfully expresses the emotions of the Narnian citizens waiting and longing for their savior. If you don't listen all the way through the song you might feel that it is quite depressing. Well, it is kind of at the beginning. Always winter but never Christmas is a desolate prospect, but when everything is brought to life by the appearance of Aslan (Christ) the joy melts away all the cold. Ok, anyway the reason I love this song the most is I think this is a perfect picture of what Christmas means, at least to me. It is a full on celebration of the appearance of Christ on this world and his victory over evil.

6. Winter Wonderland by Joy Electric
This song just makes me happy. Always has, always will.

7. Song For A Winter's Night by Sarah McLachlan
I love the feel of this song. It's a bit sad if you listen to the words, but anyone who's been in love understands the longing expressed here. I could stretch it and say it also works as an extension of the longing for our savior like in the Relient K song. But whatever, I like it.

8. Let it Snow by Michael Buble
This is just classic.

9. Mele Kalikimaka by Bing Crosby
My man Bing bringing the island greeting.]]> Fri, 14 Dec 2007 14:41:41 -0800 http://virb.com/n0s0ap/posts/text/371036 http://virb.com/n0s0ap/posts/text/369417 48%How Addicted to Apple Are You?

Looking for payday loans?

This is quite an accomplishment for me since I've had an online portfolio in the works for about 7 years. There have been countless iterations getting more complex, then more simple, then more complex. On and on and with an artist's inability to get any personal promotion work done it never came to be. So today I rejoice.

When you live, you gotta live large.
Let the world know who's in charge.
There will never be a better time than now.
Never better than now.Finally changed my number, keep the calls from coming in.
I'm just not interested.
The medicines not working, but I'm feeling the effects
from all the side effects warned on the box.
I'm left here wondering.
Was there poison in the sting that pierced my heart,
cause I feel momentarily paralyzed.
But I get back on the horse and correct my current course.
Cause I have run aground, yes I have let you down. Cause I have run aground,
yes I have let you down.
When you talk, you gotta talk fast.
Your next breath may be your last.

The road's been winding down now for a while. Never better than now...

-Never Better Than Now, MXPX

I'm loving the new album from MXPX, Secret Weapon. They're rockin' my socks off once again and this run is leaving me excited and inspired. Check it out. Keep throwin' your 7 different kinds of smoke.

And let me say this is not another one of those freaking so-called "social aggregators." This is way more than a blogroll of your rss feeds. This is a fun way of looking through all of this content with ease. Just give it a try. It's in private beta right now so if you want to give it a shot let me know and I'll get you an invite.

Oh man. I love Robot Chicken's take on Star Wars. They're doing a special episode just on Star Wars this weekend. It's gonna be great! Check it out.

Today is the first Hawaiian Shirt Friday officially recognized by the internet!!! HSFriday.com has gone live today, aiming to give us a global tally on Hawaiian Shirts worn today.]]> Fri, 11 May 2007 11:25:20 -0700 http://virb.com/n0s0ap/posts/text/35557 http://virb.com/n0s0ap/posts/text/30976

Blue Sky Studios has an incredible blog where a challenge is issued each week and artists there take it on. There is some truly amazing work there and it's so cool to see that immense talent take free reign of all manner of things. Some of my favorite challenges have been Spongebob, Star Wars, Pixar, and the wild west. Recently I've decided to join in the fun and take my shot at their challenges. This weeks was Ghostbusters.

Anyway, for anyone who doesn't know, the term Graphic Novel is basically used to elevate a Comic Book from it's lowly status. Most people associate Comics with kids' stuff and super heroes and comic writers were sick of it. Comic Books grew much more lengthy, mature and complex than they used to be and so they came up with the new term. A good way to look at it is a Graphic Novel is to a Comic Book is as the movie Cast Away is to an episode of Lost. One is long and covers one story arc completely, the other is short covering a piece of a much larger story arc and is generally more formulaic and pulpish.

I thought Graphic Novels were stupid at first. It just seemed like these writers were just writing complex and mature because they could and went wild with it. But over the years I've discovered some gems that made me realize the true meaning of Graphic Novel. Once when I was reading a particularly good Graphic Novel I said to myself "this is literature!" And that has been the sticking point for me in regards to Graphic Novels. Some Graphic Novels I view simply as overcomplicated Comic Books, but some I see as very good works of literature that deserve more recognition than "it's just a comic book."

So, to come to the real point of this post, I would like to recommend to you a Graphic Novel that I just finished reading. Little Star by Andi Watson is a story of Simon, a man who is a proud stay-at-home dad and part-time worker. Here is the official description:

Simon Adams is certain of what he's not: he's not one of those dead-beat Dads. He's a thoroughly modern "involved" Dad. Watch him stagger through the pee, the poo, and the puke in a sleep-deprived haze. Observe as he becomes a second class citizen in his X-chromosome controlled domicile. And feel as Simon tries to juggle career ambitions and his family in an act worthy of the best circus performers. No, you're not alone; this is what it's like for everyone.

This description does this book no justice. It has all the technical data about the book but fails to convey the real heart of the book. What I loved most about Little Stars was the sincere love Simon had for his daughter. It was refreshing to see a struggling parent who didn't resent his child and how his life is changed by her. Simon's decisions throughout the book seemed to be totally driven by this love and care for his family and not by selfish ambitions or apathetic submission to "i've got a kid, i've got to work a crappy job" syndrome. As I am not a parent at present, but hope to be someday, I found this look into fatherhood fascinating and intriguing. I'm going to have to remember to read this book after I'm a parent.

I'll post more Graphic Novel recommendations as there are a lot that I'd love to share. Don't get me wrong though! I'm no Graphic Novel snob, I love Comics too. Batman rules!!!