St. Jacks diner

new thing.

2009-04-15T16:01:00.000-07:00

hey all.......6 of you haha!!!

i will start using a new blog as of now. for the most part. i will still use this from time to time. but the wordpress thing is for a new project im starting the pod collective. hopefully youll see cool things from this group soon.

caio

j

just a friend....ly birthday invitation.

2009-04-03T16:39:00.000-07:00

i dont remember asking to be on the chicago defender's email list. but im glad i am. cause i get stuff like this in my email every once in a while.

OH BOY!!!!

polablog, blogaroid, whatever.

2009-04-01T09:54:00.000-07:00

check it out.

this is a good thing. everyone try to do what you can. i know you have that one polaroid picture that means so much to you. i have many. i believe it needs to keep going. digital is ok. but the feeling of a fresh polaroid in your hand, the look of a happy life, a picture that was truly an instant in your life. i think future generations need this.

this photo taken by my old friend nicole. beautiful aint it?

this weekend.

2009-03-31T09:53:00.001-07:00

two shows that you should go to this weekend if your in the chi area.

first is my buddy blutt show @ the star lounge(my former place of life). he is moving to seattle and is selling as much of his work as he can for cheep. he is a supper nice guy and a really cool artist. chicago will miss him.

second is the "nesting" show. @ a-okay official. people painting on russian nesting eggs. sadly an idea i had a few months ago but did not have the time or recourses to get done right. a-okay always dose a great job curating shows. so it will be great. my friends at ohnodoom, and buddy jason brammer are in the show along with a bunch of other great people.

.
and last but not least. the show im working on is coming along nicely. i have 22 people so far contributing. some bigger names in chi so im excited. the show will be in november. and we may just have a little book of all the work for sale for cheep. and i have man other thing in my brain right now. hopefully i can get some of them done.

oh my god.....

2009-03-25T17:10:00.000-07:00

this is just beautiful.

2009-02-16T12:23:00.000-08:00

"Make for yourself a world you can believe in.
It sounds simple, I know. But it’s not. Listen, there are a million worlds you could make for yourself. Everyone you know has a completely different one - the woman in 5G, that cab driver over there, you. Sure, there are overlaps, but only in the details. Some people make their worlds around what they think reality is like. They convince themselves that they had nothing to do with their worlds’ creations and continuations. Some make their worlds without knowing it. Their universes are just sesame seeds and three-day weekends and dial tones and skinned knees and physics and driftwood and emerald earrings and books dropped in bathtubs and holes in guitars and plastic and empathy and hardwood and heavy water and high black stockings and the history of the Vikings and brass and obsolescence and burnt hair and collapsed soufflés and the impossibility of not falling in love in an art museum with the person standing next to you looking at the same painting and all the other things that just happen and are. But you want to make for yourself a world that is deliberately and meticulously personalized. A theater for your life, if I could put it like that. Don’t live an accident. Don’t call a knife a knife. Live a life that has never been lived before, in which everything you experience is yours and only yours. Make accidents on purpose. Call a knife a name by which only you will recognize it. Now I’m not a very smart man, but I’m not a dumb one, either. So listen: If you can manage what I’ve told you, as I was never able to, you will give your life meaning."

— Jonathan Safran Foer, A Convergence Of Birds

.................?

2009-02-07T12:04:00.000-08:00

i believe there is some great life lesson in this video somewhere. im just not sure what it is.....

2009-01-26T14:53:00.000-08:00

the show im curating @ the shop. it opens soon. come by and buy something. its for a good cause.

2009-01-24T13:06:00.000-08:00

im not sure what it is. but this is a very moving painting.

2009-01-22T10:49:00.000-08:00

obama speaks to the people of sin city.

2009-01-21T10:49:00.001-08:00

this just looks goooooooooooood.

2009-01-20T11:13:00.000-08:00

so, i guess a few of his friends came out to party.

"Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions - who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage."

"that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness."

"Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America."

"What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them - that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works..."

".....because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government."

"For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness."

"..because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment - a moment that will define a generation.....................

.....it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all."

2009-01-18T18:14:00.000-08:00

the lucas sisters: my cousins.

we see each other about once a year, if we're lucky.

they hold a very special place in my heart.

and over the years, distance, time, life, we grew apart.

tonight i wish more than ever.

this was not true.

2009-01-16T14:06:00.000-08:00

the temp b4 i walked to work. i thinks its above 0 now, im not sure.

ouch......

this weekend

2009-01-11T16:20:00.001-08:00

i watched the west wing. in this one they almost cured cancer.

i made seitan. i know i know. i looks like, well.....gross. but i swear, this is like a weeks worth food. and so delicious. i feel dumb eating frozen pizza as it cooks, but whats a guy to do? i was hungry.

oh ya, in chicago, over a foot of snow, after about 10-11 hours of constant snowing.......damn kids, thats just another day.

mel kadel

2009-01-09T08:53:00.000-08:00

just found this artist. mel kadel

"hearts don't break"

this is lovely.

amen hunter.

2009-01-08T18:42:00.000-08:00

2009-01-06T18:25:00.000-08:00

"sometimes obsticles are there to remind us of our own strength. even if it really really sucks!"

part of an email from a friend today.

how true.

lets hope i got some strength left in me.

2009-01-01T20:01:00.000-08:00

i did not take pictures last night. this sums it up, i think.

yay 2009!!!!

2008-12-31T10:44:00.000-08:00

ummmmmmmmm its new years. why not have pom mimosas? @ noon? right?

shhhhhhhhhhh. don't tell the boss man.

2008-12-30T19:56:00.000-08:00

"That picture reminds me so much of Grandma. You know if she were alive she'd be posing like that in a Star Lounge T-shirt"

a message from my mom. i was reluctant to post it. but, when it comes down to it. i needed to. for me.

2008-12-27T15:58:00.000-08:00

x-chicago artist bunus's excited grandmother. she got art for xmas. this makes me sooooooooooooooooooooo happy. its adorable.

oops.

2008-12-26T14:44:00.000-08:00

worst idea EVER.

2008-12-19T06:49:00.000-08:00

chicago artist risk got a little shout on juxtapoz check it. risk is a chicago mainstay. he has been getting'up* around here sense the 80's. good stuff.

on another note, seventh letter graff artist revok has had some legal trouble in the lsat month or so. and his newer post about shepard fairey(you will recognize all his work for obama) is really cool. but if you dont want to go to all thies places, just check revok painting live.

2008-12-18T09:53:00.000-08:00

Blackbooks Stencils, and Logan Hicks curated this epic mammoth of a show, featuring street art’s best painting on permission walls all over Miami.
more info here

boxi

revok and reyes

2008-12-18T09:15:00.000-08:00

all i know is this guys name "might" be tieri & he is french & his work is really cool. but his website is in french so, how you say? no comprendo.

ghetto blaster. made from spray paint cans.

his site here

2008-12-17T10:54:00.000-08:00

my friend just gave me this book. ummmmmmm..........its amazing.

2008-12-12T04:46:00.000-08:00

their is somthing magical about 6am, sigur ros....

and a cup of tea.

2008-12-11T17:14:00.000-08:00

deuniti
a group of 4 friends in medellin columbia.

i love the mario house. check it.

2008-12-10T16:47:00.000-08:00

artists to check.

2008-12-10T16:10:00.000-08:00

iv seen work by both audrey kawasaki sand jeremy fish b4. so i spent about 2 hours today looken @ their sites. oh man.........

audrey kawasaki

jeremy fish

2008-12-09T09:33:00.000-08:00

so iv ben on radio silence for a few days.

just not in the mood to be on the interwebs. i guess.

so some stuff from last week.

one: ohhhhhh man i got to meet jay ryan. a famous poster artist from chicago. he has done posters for a bunch of poeple, fugazi, the decemberists, death cab, my friends hum. we actualy got to talk about the old champaign scene, hes friends with alot of people i know. and even went to school with my old boss alisa. here is the poster i got from him. loveit.

i saw this on postsecret.

a part of me loves the sentament of this, as i am a huge hunter fan. but at the same time, i think he would have some problem with obama. im sure he would support the man, but his nature as a writer and political wise ass would have made us all thik just a little more about what was happening. this election would have given him soooooooo much energy, he would have been jumping, screaming, and plowing a new course through our ideas. making us think, and laugh. i wish we could have seen it.

oh ya, and this

and this

and always thiiiiisssssssss

love.

2008-11-28T18:20:00.000-08:00

dear america;

i hope you made it to your super savings.

sad....

friends and shirts.

2008-11-26T19:16:00.000-08:00

ohhhhhhhh man.

new stuff from our friend blutt for star lounge hoodies and t-shirts. im kinda excited.

2008-11-19T20:51:00.000-08:00

mom, this is for you.

2008-11-18T22:47:00.000-08:00

i know i already mentioned ELBOWTOE two posts ago. but i just went to his flicker page and read about his new project. its amazing. here is what its about.

"My current body of work is an allegory about memory's power to hold us back or move us forward. The central character in this parable is a 6 x 10 foot linocut of an Everyman, who has lost it all and wanders the plains with all his belongings strapped to his back. He navigates a world in crisis by learning from his past. The remainder of the characters that he encounters are individuals lost in regret.

I have developed these paintings and prints during the American housing and credit crisis of the past year. In contemplating where we are and where we might be, I have found myself looking back at history, remembering the Great Depression, and considering what effects it had on the American psyche. The uncertainty that existed then is present now, and I am addressing the kind of escapism through nostalgia that can occur in the midst of calamity. Every character that the Everyman sees is gripped by this need to escape their present circumstance. They are people lost in a memory at the very point when they should be paying attention to what lies ahead.

Many different artists have inspired the flavor of this world including the photography of Walker Evans, the films of the Cohen brothers, the music of Tom Waits and the theatre of Robert Wilson."

please go to his page and look at the characters he is working on. this is some of the most beautiful work iv seen in a looooooooooooong time. plese check it out.

2008-11-18T14:30:00.000-08:00

one of our employes, val, knows nothing about pop culture. its funny.

a conversation we had about her only knowing stuff up intill about 1979.

me: have you heard of star wars? its all the rage right now.

val: i think iv seeen part of one. is that the movie with the little bears? their cute.

Brother, Can You Spare A Dime?

2008-11-16T20:07:00.001-08:00

Brother, Can You Spare A Dime?
Originally uploaded by guy_on_the_streets

nyc street artist ELBOW-TOE. this is one of the best wheat paste pieces iv ever seen.

The Chicago Slushie

2008-11-15T09:37:00.001-08:00

The Chicago Slushie
Originally uploaded by spudart

i saw this this morning. and just think its the most beautiful, gross, creepy, amazing photo.

2008-11-14T16:27:00.000-08:00

"thank you for saving my life every day"

just saw this on the interweb.

i hope you all have someone you can say this to.

oh man..............

2008-11-11T09:40:00.001-08:00

Obama

2008-11-10T18:02:00.001-08:00

Obama (Chicago Graffiti)
Originally uploaded by mick.chicago

chicago, as you would expect is crazy for obama. and as i have shown b4, street artists are no exception. this is nice.........REALLLLLLLLLLLLLLL nice.

2008-11-05T19:58:00.000-08:00

this was written by my dear friend adriel harris. she is spot on.

"this is a profoundly, important historical moment and i am so proud to be here - aware, involved, and appreciative of what has just occurred and what amazing potential lies ahead. i was on the phone all night with several friends who were at grant park taking it all in with their own eyes and the potency is undeniable. i haven't been around for a very long time, and i'm only old enough to have voted in two elections prior to this one, but the energizing effect this entire election season has infused my generation with is something that i feared would never be possible.

we can tend to be an apathetic, selfish and cynical group of people. not because we are hateful, but because we have become isolated in a pervasive feeling of hopelessness. we have lost much of the joy of sincere communication and authentic community. we have grown up in a culture of text-messaging "dialogue" and internet "friendship". we have become suspicious of all forms of leadership... not just in our government, but in our schools, our churches and even our homes. we have become un-trusting and detached.

i would never be so naive to presume that this elected figure represents some "idea" that will fix all of these characteristics in us, but it is simply impossible not to note the turning of a page that has occurred. in my peers, i have never witnessed more passion, more intelligent and informed conversation or more of an understanding that it is imperative for us to believe in something. to have some sort of faith that our collective effort can actually accomplish something and make some sort of difference. i know that many of you are disappointed today and had hoped for a different outcome, but i hope that you can see what has been ignited in an entire generation of people. for us, it wasn't just about taxes. it wasn't just about a war. it wasn't just about an economy. it was about the fact that we actually cared. we cared enough to educate ourselves, to communicate, argue and challenge each other. to put all of our endless internal dialogue and tension into some sort of concerted and collected effort. and the effort wasn't necessarily to elect one person or another, it was to find something to hope for again. it was was an effort to convert our apathy and cynicism into interest and action.

and in that conversion, so many of my prayers have been answered. not all of them, but many...

i love you all and its been a long time coming, but i can say, with a great deal of sincerity, that i am proud..."

introducing...

2008-11-05T09:39:00.000-08:00

i was not there.i was around good riends. wine, and a bonfire.....and a cell phone. my birthday could not have been any better.

btw, i got 3 texts that just included one word. like: "huzza!!" "whooo!!" and "bam!!!" is it not funny that i responded to them with "RECOUNT!!"

2008-11-04T12:45:00.000-08:00

so sitting here after a busy morning at work. eating cupcakes and playing with legos(thanks mom and dad, im glad you kinda wish i was still 10, i do to somtimes, life wasent so hard then). and thanks carrie for the cupcakes, shoot......id vote for me.

i have alot going through my mind. its my 25th birthday AND a very important day in our countrys history. wishing i could type as fast as i think. the air in chicago today is excited, scared, anxious, everything. its nice to see people so full of hope, and believing in themselves again.
and the air in my mind is wanting to be cought up in it with everyone. but i cant stop thinking about the last 24 years of laughs, mistakes, tears, mistakes, ect....the future is far more uncertain than i hoped it would be by 25. but it all boils down to wanting a place to be myself. a place with art on the walls, the smell of food, sounds of friends, wispers of love, peaceful, bright, happy, welcoming, and just maby someone to look me in the eyes like i am all thoes things.

2008-11-03T07:13:00.000-08:00

so some street artist last weekend printed up a BUNCH of sticker heads. fantastic.

but fo'real who cares about the election?!?! there is somthing, that in my opinion is ALOT more important happn'en tomorrow.

2008-11-02T00:08:00.000-07:00

im on the saul williams e mail list. if you dont know him, google that shit.

this was a part of an email i got tonight from his site. one that fits my life and another email i recived.

Dear History,
You are behind us and we are no longer looking back. We are standing on the threshold of new times, new days, new worlds, and charging forward without battle cry or trumpet, while cynicism, apathy, and cowardice take their place beside you, behind us.

2008-10-23T15:51:00.000-07:00

it took almost 8 months of just coffee. but im cooking again.

tonights meal includes.

-black beans slow cooked with garlic, onion, nutritional yeast, and spices.

-sweet potatos, onion, and red pepper cooked in homemade adobo sauce.

-and pan fried plantains.

(my friend jay said he is bringing his own "side of meat")

the sun is going down, and this windy chicago sky has a creepy end-of-the-world look to it. if it is the end of the world. at least it ends with good friends, music, conversation, and food.

see ya tomorrow.

2008-10-08T17:24:00.000-07:00

OMG....NYC

here i come.

who wants to kiss???????

2008-09-30T14:30:00.000-07:00

2008-09-29T21:27:00.000-07:00

holy crap, this is funny.

i love you onion.

vote

2008-09-28T19:48:00.000-07:00

as i have ben looking around the flicker chicago street art page. to find, and ask people to be in this group art show im curating at the shop. and admittedly im being kind of picky. i came across vote, and i liked his stuff. from the smaller ammount of pics/work, and comments in the forums. i could tell he is younger, and new in the street art scene. and i thought "ya know it would be nice to have some new faces in the show, among some of the veterans". so i sent vote a message and he sounded super excited. and is in the show.

tonight, at work, a mother and son came in. walked around for a minute. and finaly came up to the bar. the kid, no older than 15 years asked if i was josh. i said yes. he looked at me all shy and goes

"oh....im....vote"

so we talked about the show for a minute. he told me this is his first show. and said thank you a bunch. when he asked me who else was in the show. i dropped some names that i KNEW would make him excited. and i was right, his eyes got HUGE.

his first show will be with some people who he really looks up to. and now im as excited as he is, just because i get the chance to make this happen for him. it feels pretty good to be in a place where i can facilitate this for someone so young.

2008-09-27T11:01:00.000-07:00

omg, paul newman died......im sooooooo sad. what a great actor.

and his salad dressing......
..........delicious

r.i.p. paul newman jan 26, 1925-september 27, 2008.

Butch Cassidy: Then you jump first.
Sundance Kid: No, I said.
Butch Cassidy: What's the matter with you?
Sundance Kid: I can't swim.
Butch Cassidy: Are you crazy? The fall will probably kill you.

thrift store jackpot!!!!

2008-09-24T14:04:00.000-07:00

all vhs. all awesome......allllllllllllll mine.

2008-09-23T10:59:00.000-07:00

this is travis, hes a friend. he built this bike himself. its CRAZY. i guess there are only like 3 or 4 poeple in the country who have such a bike.

"hey, wanna see this bike do a flip? throw a dollar at it."

2008-09-22T15:14:00.000-07:00

soooooooooo, after work i did somthing i do about once every 6 months. i know what your thinking. and i agree. its disgusting.

2008-09-20T19:00:00.000-07:00

i got this old polaroid camera today at a friends yard sale. its heavy, big and awesome. i doubt ill be able to find film. but i dont really care. soooooooooooooo excited just to have it.

art?

2008-09-18T09:28:00.000-07:00

so iv got a group show coming up at the shop after the first of the year. im super excited. some of the street artists iv showed you here are involved. its for an after school arts program called co-op image group . they do alot of great stuff. its should be fun. this is my first time curating a show. and i love it.

2008-09-09T10:41:00.000-07:00

this is joe. he lives downstairs at the house. this pic may be a little creepy. but hand to god, he is one of the nicest guys ever.

bam!!!!

like clockwork.

2008-09-06T12:51:00.000-07:00

ring....

carl: hey buddy.

me: hey papa, did i wake you up?

carl: sort of, but not really.

carl: hey can i call you back later today? what are you up to?

me: oh, you know, ill be sitting around watching lord of the rings, eating corndogs, and wallowing in sadness. so ya, call whenever.

a quick conversation carl and i have about every 6 months. we had it today.

rejoice

2008-09-02T10:44:00.000-07:00

so im gonna give you guys some chi street art love about once a week. this week its rejoice

dont know alot about the person. love the work though.

colab with the grocer.....
next to a solve piece....
enjoy...

lillian delsie boyer

2008-08-29T21:15:00.000-07:00

this is my new neice lillian, a fourth reason i wish i went home more. she is so beautiful. also, will, mary, and libby, the other 3 reasons.
and my sis kate.

2 things.
1. yesterday i called kate to say congrats, and got her voicemail. after a strange and awkward message, i ended it wih an excited "enjoy the baby!" is it a blockbuster movie? a rented car? (return with full tank please) a twix candy bar? no josh, no. what a wierd thing to say.

2. i must say my first reaction to this picture(and i think the reason i chose to post it). is the look on marys face. correct me if im wrong, but does that face not say, "hey you, ya you, wanna buy a baby?" i think so.

oh universe....your like my interweb yoda.

2008-08-29T10:51:00.000-07:00

"And to think that every single one of them have forks in the road of life, just up ahead, that even now swiftly approach. Adventures and choices that will take them, at least temporarily, out of sight, beyond reach, and eventually, closer to "home." Yet until then, they're so incredibly near, you have so much in common, and there are still stories to tell.

Treasure every beautiful second."

2008-08-27T09:43:00.000-07:00

so most of you know, last year was not the best year for me. and by that i mean last year may have ben the worst of my life. and to thoes of you who were there druing that time. i hope you know what it ment to me. but besides that small group of beautiful people. i had sigur ros. a group of the most talented and inspierd artists iv ever heard.
i had to work kinda hard to repair myself, my new-found trust issues, my complete anguish over school, the plain ol'loneliness of a small, cold apartment(that i never left).
they were the soundtrack to my repairs. my peace, my solitude.

its hard to articulate(ha!), so lets just say, i would not be the person im happy to be right now, without them.

i think even for the biggest music lover/listener/"nerd", its impossible to fully understand the awesome power music has. but every once in a while you will put on that song, one you'v heard a million times. and somthings diffrent, you can feel the tingle of tears in your belly, as they work their way up. sit back close your eyes, and for a brief moment...nothing...but you and this devine power.

2008-08-25T22:15:00.000-07:00

"The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who NEVER YAWN or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn, like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars..." -Jack Kerouac

2008-08-20T10:13:00.000-07:00

i think i have finally decided on my own street art idea.

im kinda excited.

street art from rio

2008-08-18T14:20:00.000-07:00

this is work from a guy named JR. thats all i know. his work is beautiful. go here for the website.

i would highly suggest going to the site and checking out his "women are heros" stuff in africa. its amazing.

this kind of work is amazing to me. our citys "graff" laws are so ridiculous, to think that this kind of work would be a nuisance to the people around it is just sad.

2008-08-15T11:21:00.000-07:00

go here and listen to "as tall as cliffs"

it makes my skin crawl with excitment.

the arrangements are beautiful, and so are you.

listen to "bookworm" too.

2008-08-14T12:38:00.000-07:00

my thoughts after reading lindseys post today. btw shes a much better writer-obviously.

after spending a good part of last year burrowing, crawling...crying. i realized, that yes, every day forces are out there working against you. and they will destroy you. and yes, it happens to the best of people. inevitably you will walk around as a shell of a person, ruined. its what you do with your shell that makes all the diffrence. and removing it is a painful process.

new, unexposed skin will burn, shiver, and bruise. but you "decide to wake up" again and again. wake up and fight, not in the traditional sense of "battling the destroyer". but you fight for the people who's shells are still around them. and the best weapon you have is the thing that broke yours.

my sword is a place, love, smiles, ridiculous conversations behind a bar, caffeine, comunity.

2008-08-14T11:26:00.000-07:00

im gett'en better at this latte art thing......

my new best friend.

2008-08-12T12:24:00.000-07:00

2008-08-11T10:50:00.000-07:00

i set out to write about how wonderful things have been the past few weeks. but everything i typed out didnt feel right. so...........

......i feel like this every day.

2008-08-10T22:44:00.000-07:00

again with the post secret.

yesterday i put on an old pair of pants. i havent worn them in like 4-5 months. i reach in the pocket and "hey theres a dollar in here" not quite. it was a 50!!!!! and on it, in MY hand writing was writen "sushi" hahaha. so tonight i took my lovely friend jaime out for sushi. it was wonderful, and delicious, and fun. i just find it funny that this "secret" was on here this week.

2008-08-07T16:45:00.000-07:00

"rosemary: well...you pulled it off.

max: yea, it went ok...

...at least no body got hurt.

rosemary: except you.

max: na.......i didnt get hurt that bad."

as much as i like the writing in his other movies. the acting in rushmore is AMAZING, i never realized.

am i.m. conversation with my friend nathan.

2008-08-06T18:26:00.000-07:00

Joshua
come party dude

we like to party

Nathan

because I like to party?... (Talledega Nights)

Joshua

yes!!!

Nathan

wait.

Joshua

i use that word to much

Nathan

i DO like to party

Joshua

i know

Nathan

you can not use the word YES too much

just as Kerourac

Joshua

god............party.party.party!!!!!

Nathan

oh.

that

yeah. you do

Joshua

i know

Nathan

I would substitute the YES for the word Party

Joshua

i told a lady the other day that we were out of bagels at the shop b/c "we like to party?"
best conversation ever

Nathan

as in... we like to YES?

see how you confused you can get people before they catch on

Joshua

party

party i do

Nathan

see i'll come over for the yes, Party?

Joshua

now youv got it!!!!

Nathan

i like where this is going

Joshua

me too

Nathan

next we'll switch the words "Existentialism" and "Dookie"

2008-08-06T10:20:00.000-07:00

beautiful losers. a new film. i must see.

Beautiful Losers film trailer from beautifullosersfilm on Vimeo.

2008-08-04T22:08:00.000-07:00

so....like, 8th post in 2 days.

great lighting storm tonight. and alot of rain.....................................................................

i just went downstairs to the first floor. water was pouring in under our front door. and water was cascading(sp?) (as if i care about spelling) down the stairs into the basement. we have about 8inches of standing water. amps, drums, detergent bottles floating around, alot of stuff. under water. no good. as i was walking around getting stuff off the floor. i look over and one of the amps was plugged into the wall, with the cord resting UNDER WATER. oops.......

its a bad scene.

srry no pictures, camera phone sucks.

hahahahahahaha

2008-08-04T20:22:00.000-07:00

2008-08-04T11:09:00.000-07:00

alot of saying goodby this weekend.

my friend andy is going back to afganastan on the 20th. "for the money". i worry for him. hes a very old friend(i met him at 5). we sat around and talked about climbing trees and playing with legos over a couple beers. it was nice. andy was always this funny goofy guy, and still is. but hearing him talk about what he dose was such a escape from the guy i thought i knew. he took so much pride in it. it feels wierd to say this, but im extreamly proud of my old friend.

in chi we got to make friends with two people from austin texas. they were here for the last month. they just left. and maby its because of all the other goodbys said this week. but i was very sad to see them go.

my dear friend kayla is moving to nashville this week. we have a complicated past, but we became great friends because of it. i got to watch her grow into an amazing woman. but her leaving champaign will have a huge impact on me(even though i left a year ago). she was a part of my champaign, my past that i hold so dear to me. i wish her all the luck in the world. and i hope her going away party(that im gonna miss) truly shows her just how much she is loved. the thought of it alone chokes me up.

and the last goodby this weekend was to champaign itself. going back and seeing all the change was a shock at first. the feeling of family is still there. but so much has changed i could not help but feel the place that was our safe-haven, our best kept secret, our own private clubhouse, my home. is gone. and im struggling to accept that. it is reduced to ghost's of memories. familiar sights that somehow lost their magic. we are now a memorial to the years that changed so many lives. walking blueprints, the "how to" of how the world shoud be, imprinted in our dna, our smiles, our memories.

the only comfort i can find, is that here, now, on chicago avenue i have a direct influence in recreating my former home. to love as i have ben loved in the past. and to not mourn a time come and gone. because it is not gone. it is me.

2008-08-02T14:08:00.000-07:00

somthing floats above my head. looming dark as if to be a rain cloud. and at the same time, bright and holding the potential for somthing great.

but the fear takes hold once again. a knee jerk reaction, my animal instincs, the forseen thought of that same mistake. it seems almost ritualistic now.

but could it be diffrent? lying on the floor. a slow melody. a euphoric haze of recovery from to much cold medicine.

somthing is diffrent. this time. but this time hasent even come yet. and that is were it all goes dark. do i enter this unknown abyss?

or should i just go out and buy a flashlight and a beer. like every saturday.

2008-07-31T10:40:00.000-07:00

so, sitting here all hopped up on sugar and caffine, in cut off shorts, t-shirt, no socks, and a mission to not cut my hair. thinking about pizza for breakfast at 12:42. excited about eating my weight in gummi worms tomorrow. garfield books in my bathroom. an inabillity to spell, or use propper grammer. bills paid. 60 hour work weeks.

im a 24 year old, hairy, tattoo'd, kid. sweet.

is this a bad thing? am i living in some detached reality? rock shows, coffee, and summer vacation? i have many friends who can call themselves "professionals". i talk nonesense, music, and art, with coffeeshop people and make latte's.

dont get me wrong, im not questioning the importance of what i do. im a part of an amazing comunity, and a special time in this city.

but in 4 months i will be 25(lego's are a great gift by the way). and i feel like 25 is the "stop f'ing around" age.

but maby im wrong, and maby its all about what you love.

me!

2008-07-24T22:33:00.001-07:00

my name by niceone, a chi street artist. fresh.

stills from a distant past.

2008-07-24T20:38:00.000-07:00

i ran across all the still pictures from carls old birthday video we made a few years back. the pictures take me back to a time that i miss, the people, the shows, the person i was. this last week i've been thinking about that person alot. as much as i like what im doing and who i am. i miss the energy i had, i feel like i smiled bigger, longer. life was too good to worry, too fun to not be reckless. it was never a struggle to be happy. now i feel i work to hard for that happyness, that used to just flow. but none the less, thies pictures still make me smile. if you are in one, x's and o's. you are missed.

2008-07-11T15:57:00.000-07:00

at least once a month someone has a "secret" that sums up how i feel now in chicago.

postsecret

i know i post alot about my job. but when 12 hour days make you happy-its worth bring'en up from time to time.

solve

2008-06-20T15:20:00.000-07:00

just last week an artist named solve(brendan scanlon) in chicago was killed. i did not know him. but i see his stuff everywere. and just wanted to pay my respects, i thought this would be as good a place as any. the reaction on the internet and here in chi has been huge.

its strange to be affected by the death of someone you've never even seen b4. and its not like i "knew him" through his art. i guess its just the fact that someone who would risk arrest, fines, even jail time, just to say......

should not be taken from this earth so inhumanly, or at all for that matter.

all i can hope for is that he is at peace. and that from all the sadness, anger, and pain of his passing, something positve and beautiful can be created.

a memorial....

sloves flicker

please check out his stuff and keep his friends and family in your thoughts.

remember:

dont take art of any kind for granted, even the art you pass by on a mailbox or bus stop. because its there for your quick little smile as you pass. and you may never actually notice it untill one day its gone.....and you realize you needed that little smile.

i cant wait

2008-06-19T18:40:00.001-07:00

this might make me cry, as wierd as that sounds. its true.

and this will just be fun.

2008-06-18T12:58:00.000-07:00

a friend and i made granola last night. we may start selling it. couse we rock.

-curry/lime granola w/ peanuts and pineapple

-spicy mexican granola w/pepitas and peaches

hot damn!!!!!

on another note. i had a dream last night that i was trying to tell that knock knock joke about fruit. you know "orange you glad i didnt say banana?" but i couldent get the really lame punchline right. i woke up kinda mad about it.

the new sigur ros record is AMAZING. that is all.

either or.....

2008-06-16T21:16:00.000-07:00

the painting of elliott smith my friend jackie just finshed for me. i cant wait to hang it.

2008-06-10T12:18:00.000-07:00

we hosted some friends from just coffee last night at the shop. had a party so to speak. they had a farmer from nicaragua with them. the woman i talked about a while back whos a part of an all woman co-op. great stuff. it was wierd to serve her coffee that she has grown.

but i talked to a guy from guatamala/chicago who has made a documentary about a co-op in the mountains of guatamala called "voice of a mountain".
we are going to try and have a screening at the shop in the back yard sometime in july i think. i would urge all of you to come. it looks amazing.

2008-06-07T18:50:00.001-07:00

so, as you have seen in my last post. this week has been stressful. today i got to work. my sandwich cooler is still broken. so im running a much smaller menu-that i like alot actualy. and about an hour after getting to work our espresso machine breaks. so we could do regular coffee, and tea. not alot. our repair guy came out on his day off to fix it. hes amazing.
but during the whole ordeal im talking to wookie about it, and the hanging light above us goes out. classic. all i could do was smile. and i thats just what i told wookie. "just smile man, what else are we gonna do?"
i have no idea what put me in such a good mood today. but i have some ideas.
-waching lindseys eloquent video post like 6 times yesterday, and sharing in her excitement.
-listening to freinds music for the last 48 hours.
-chillen with my boy rick.(ill post about this guy later-hes family around here)
-the rain and sigur ros-at the same time.

or maby its just what my dad always calls "positive reinforcement"

its a day for that little black scrapbook. where refrigorators, coffee machines, lights, bones, spirits, all are broken.
but here i am, dancing at my espresso machine. with lightning in my blood, and the future in my wounds....waiting

as rick just told me, "aint no use cryen over spilled milk, it COULD be whiskey."

and suddenly........

2008-06-04T20:01:00.000-07:00

so, im working on a summer menu. now that im in charge of ALL the food stuff at the lounge, that includes all the pastry's. i love it. sometimes.

and i must say i was frustrated almost to the point of tears today. i had to sit on the back porch with my eyes closed listening to a friends music for about 20 min b4 i stopped breathing heavy. all i want to do is provide decent food, but cost is a big issue. i want to cut some sammies so i can buy better bread. but "they all sell to well to get rid of". so i stick with the crap bread we have. i understand money is an issue. and i have a solution, but im shot down right out of the gate. and i get into that, throw up my hands and say "ok, you do all this shit yourself!!!!" mood. but then i calm down, and realize, i'll win this battle. even if a little money comes out of my own pocket, it already dose-by the way. and to tell you the truth, im proud to do it.

when you work with a group of people who are all making daily sacrifices just to keep a business on its feet. and all the people act as if their sacrifices are the greatest. it often feels like nothing will get accomplished. but the fact that at any given time of day i can walk out to the floor and sit with a customer and chat because i know them. or the simple act of three diffrent regulars asking me if i was ok today. its not a sacrifice, its a blessing.

"and suddenly i wasn't tired, suddenly i wasn't poor, suddenly im not the victim anymore."

why do i get this in the mail?

2008-06-02T17:12:00.000-07:00

my address and everything. i think its funny.

2008-05-19T10:30:00.000-07:00

coming to a bathroom near me.

2008-05-16T12:12:00.000-07:00

you know you want some......

left to right: wookie(chris), jay, me, (ryan was sick).

2008-05-12T12:45:00.000-07:00

yesterday me and two of the dudes(jay and wookie) drove up to madison wisconsin. to a roasting facility called just coffee, we are going to use their coffe in the future. and maby get a roaster from them for our shop. they are GREAT people.

but yesterday they had visitors, some of the actual farmers they buy coffe from. people from mexico, peru, venezuela, and columbia. they talked about free trade and how small businesses like just coffee help them as farmers, and their comunity.

dealing in fair trade means that the growers have control over how much people pay for their coffee. instead of a middleman going to them and saying "this is how much ill pay you for this coffee"-its very low and unfair to the grower.

i cant rember his name but this man was from columbia, he talked about how by dealing with just coffee it has helped him free up more time and money for fresh water and roads for his village. and the co-op he works with is now an example for other co-op's and growers on how much they SHOULD be selling their coffee for.

a woman from venezuela was there representing a co-op of all women growers. they only produce 19 tons a season(one container of coffee). but they also produce honey, hibiscus, and food for their familys. they fight for child labor change. and as you can expect, womens rights are not the same there. so they constantly strugle with this great thing they are doing.

one man even talked about how with the new organic way his co-op is growing coffee, it saves the lives of a certan group of native birds. a man who comes from a world that we consider in poverty, sat in front of me and talked about how important it is to him that his work stay in tune with nature.

its hard to think about without getting a little teary-eyed. it knocked all of us on our ass a little bit.

and every one of them used the word solitude alot, and every time it was a very positive thing. i thought a couple of you would find that interesting.

it was a humbling and amazing experiance. i cant wait to go to ciapas, mexico later this year to visit one of the farms.
a band played too, traditional music from mexican working class people. sweet.

2008-05-09T15:00:00.000-07:00

this was almost a whiny emo post, aint you happy im not listening to bright eyes or somthing right now.

and i have gas.

2008-05-01T11:47:00.000-07:00

yup!!!

times, times, times.

2008-04-27T15:51:00.000-07:00

boy i love street art. this is so great. oh ya, check out joshua allen harris on you tube, its soooooooooooo fresh.

its benn a crazy couple weeks. i love it. i was made a manager at the coffee shop, and put on salary. sweet. i even have my own email, josh@starloungecoffee.com, and soon business cards, and a bio on the website. im running the kitchen. we have a slamen seitan sandwich on special this weekend(i sooooo made the seitan myself). it may become a regular thing. and i made panzanella(bread salad) too. yum.

the new house is wonderfull. im in a 6-apt building with 11 people i know. we hang out every night, were gonna start screenprinting in the basement, a workshop, bikes, gardening out of buckets, stencils, music, cooking, family pictures, nag champa, tattoos. i am in one of the best times of my life right now.

-my thoughts go out to jobee, and the friends that love him.

blutt

2008-04-06T07:26:00.000-07:00

after moving to chicago i found out that i love street art. and have ben lucky enough to talk to some of the people who do some of the stuff i like.
blutt. "it's pronounced with a long u. yes, it's german."
is again, a regular at the coffee shop. he is best known around town for his stickers. this is his new one. its on my computer too.

and one from last year.

hes a nice guy.
jay(one of the owners) and i were talking after blutt left the shop last week. about how when jay was like 18-19 he would drive up to chicago to go to this club. and he has a sticker in his car from said club. and it turns out that blutt made the stickers for the club. and jay said that "do you think the little connections like that are a sign that im doing the right thing with my life?".
i told him, ya that coincidence could mean somthing, but look around man, how much more convincing do you need?

2008-04-04T12:17:00.000-07:00

this is vernon tonges. hes a regular at the coffee shop, and is just the greatest guy. he is playing a show here tonight. it should be fun.
oh and by the way for thoes of you who care i am now a full time worker and drummer. just like a year ago only now in chicago. lets hope this works.