slow street art.

Street artists are getting more and more creative with their canvases.

MSNBC news spectra.

If you are like me and have a little trouble staying on top of everything that is going on in the world, you should take a minute and check out the Spectra Visual Newsreader, by MSNBC. The Spectra allows you to customize your news in a colorful and playful way. If the news doesn't interest you, than the swirling colors will probably keep you entertained for a while. This is definitely where I will be getting my news from now on!

M.W.M. solo show.

M.W.M Graphics flickr set from his solo show at ROJO in Barcelona. Impressive work.

nonnative.

Just came across Nonnative on lifelounge. It's a Japanese clothing company that specializes in mens casual wear. Their website is pretty cool too.

going on.

New video by Gnarls Barkley. It was shot on location in Jamaica and was directed by Wendy Morgan. The choreography is great.

li wei.

Li Wei is a 37 year old artist from Beijing. He takes surreal photos of himself flying out of windows, falling off rooftops, crashing into sidewalks, and standing on top of light posts. His photos are pretty amazing. Here's a little interview with him and some more photos.

new nike commercial.

Nike football

Nike put together a nice little ad thanks to the help of Guy Ritchie. The commercial was done by 72 and Sunny out of Amsterdam, was directed by Guy Ritchie and stars a few of the sports best athletes.

the hoxton: urban lodge.

If I ever make it over to London, I think I'll spend a night or two in The Hoxton Urban Lodge. Since opening in September 2006 The Hoxton boasts that it is a place where "urban living meets country lodge lounging". The hotel also seems to be somewhat budget friendly. The earlier you book your room, the cheaper it will be. The art and decor looks pretty cool too.

who do online shoppers trust?

I found this post on thetrendwatch and thought it was interesting. I am not surprised to see that consumers are trusting their peers more than advertising, but it is interesting to think that these peers might be complete strangers that have merely posted a review about a product or service online. Hopefully these online peers will remain trustworthy. It will be interesting to see how advertisers continue to find news ways to reach consumers through digital media.

nice shots.

Cedric Delsaux has a nice looking portfolio. via lifelounge

Dear God.

The founder of thecoolhunter.net has recently created a new site, dear-god.net. The site was designed by Something Somewhere and is a forum for people to post questions, comments, hopes, fears, or dreams about God. The site is non-denominational and uses the word "god" in a very broad sense. The Cool Hunter states, "In its first week, the site has sparked an organic revolution, with people all over the world embracing the opportunity to unburden themselves, to share their hopes and fears with others in an effort create hope, healing, inner peace and clarity." I like this idea. The site looks good and many of the posts are pretty thought provoking.

that was good.

You know when you go on an amazing trip and when you get back it kind of feels like the whole trip might have been a dream? Well, that is how I'm feeling right now about my trip to southern Africa. I spent two weeks camping on top of a Land Rover and touring through South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, and Namibia and saw some of the most beautiful places on earth. Thanks to my brother and sister-n-law, I had a trip that will probably never be topped in my lifetime. One thing I took away from this trip is that there is no substitute for traveling and seeing how other cultures live and view the world. The internet and television can only give you so much information about what the rest of the world has to offer. Somethings just need to be experienced first hand. I could go on about all our adventures, but I won't. I took about 1,200 photos during our travels, and I put my favorites up here if you want to check them out. Thanks Brandon and Rachel for such an incredible trip!

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.