farewell chicago.

Tomorrow afternoon I will be getting on a plane and heading to Johannesburg, South Africa. To say that I'm excited would be an understatement. I've been looking forward to this trip for several months now and I can't believe it is finally time. I will be visiting my brother, Brandon, and his wife, Rachel, who are working on behalf of the Peace Corp in South Africa. I have been so impressed by the work they are doing over there. Not only are they helping out with everything the Peace Corp has asked them to, but they have also gone above and beyond by starting the Palala Girls Club and the Palala Boys Club. I could go on for a while about all the work they are doing over there, but I'm sure whatever I say it won't do them justice. I'm not exactly sure what we will be doing while I'm over there (they're keeping it a secret), but they've told me to expect the trip of a lifetime. So you can probably understand my excitement. Be sure to check out my flickr for all the photos when I return.

little bit.

Lykke Li - Little bit

Usually I don't like to play out a song that I like for fear that I'll get tired of it and end up not liking it in the end. However, once in a while I hear a song that I just can't stop listening to. This is one of those songs. This video is so good to. And if you like this check out Lykke Li's Youth Novels album with more quality pieces.

original run.

Nike has this little project called Original Run where artists put together a 45 minute track which which is set at a nice tempo for runners to listen to while they run. So far Crystal Method and Aesop Rock have done an album for the project and I hear that A-track is due up for the next album. Nike is always coming up with new ways to intermix culture with their brand and I think this idea is pretty genius. Unfortunately I don't have time to go out runs right now, but I'll be looking forward to hearing A-track's album whenever it comes out.

cypher thirteen.

These guys are good. Cypher Thirteen is a design/strategy team out of Boulder, Colorado whose work is pretty impressive.

impressive photoshop skills.

Amy Dresser has the ability to take a photograph and completely change the look of it. Her website is full of photographs that she has manipulated and perfected using Photoshop. She's not ashamed to show the originals though. Make sure you scroll over the photographs in her portfolio to see how they looked before she touched them up. She does amazing work. It's also nice to see how all of those beauty's might have looked before they were put on the cover of a magazine.

sneakerology 101.

I thought it was pretty cool when I saw that students at Carnegie Mellon University will now be able to take a university level class on sneaker culture. Street culture is getting a lot of respect these days. Read the full post at hypebeast.

football as it should be.

Coke Zero has put together a pretty fun little website. It's an interactive site where the player has 4 stages to pass before he/she can be allowed into the Coke Zero Lounge at the local football match. The game is pretty addicting and the site is put together really well, combining video and interactive media. Well done.

i'm feeling this.

Santogold "L.E.S. Artistes"

I'm really liking this L.E.S. song by Santogold right now.

changethethought.

Changethethought was founded in 2001 and is basically a look inside the mind of Christopher Cox, an impressive designer and visual communications guru. His site is full of his work, which consists of print, web, illustration, apparel, and type. He also has a blog and an online store to keep you busy for a while.

notcot does the ultimate grill.

Notcot has teamed up with Leo Corrales and Jenny Lemieux from HERO Design Lab to put together a mini series called NOTConcepts. There will be four NOTConcepts where they will be going through three stages of the design process, from conception to a 3D rendering of the final object. The first series is on portable grills and BBQ's. So far it's looking pretty cool. I'll be looking forward to seeing the rest of the series.

new gnarls barkley.

Gnarls Barkley - Run [NEW]

I just saw that Gnarls Barkley had a video for their new single "Run" which is off their up coming album The Odd Couple. It has a similar feel to it as "Crazy" off their last album, pretty high energy and "poppy". I have to say I'm not super impressed by the video, but it does have Justin Timberlake so I guess that makes it a little bit better. I am looking forward to hearing the rest of the album coming in April though.