Something Out of Nothing

Bon Iver at the Uptown with Kathleen Edwards

2011-09-10T12:25:00.001-05:00

I love seeing bands I like perform live. Some of the best concerts are ones in which the band does something a little different than what you've heard before. Bon Iver played at the Uptown last night and they were surprisingly loud and flexible with their music. One of my favorite performances of the evening was an excellent Björk cover, which I captured with my iPhone:

The opening act, Kathleen Edwards, was great too. Beautiful voice, great lyricism, and between songs, a mouth like a sailor. She came across as a very real person.

For more pictures of the concert, check out my flickr gallery: Here

Introducing My Next Tattoo

2010-05-04T12:50:00.001-05:00

I got my first tattoo on my first wedding anniversary with Maura. I've been trying to decide what to do for my second the moment I walked out the door of Exile Tattoo. I've toyed with various ideas - cephalopods, skulls/bones, mechanical parts, etc. and couldn't really decide on anything. I also knew I wanted to have one of the many talented artists I know create it, but everything was up in the air until the Two Headed Beast approached me about coding their website.

The Two Headed Beast is Chris and Mirna Stubbs, two very talented artists, a designer (Chris), and an illustrator (Mirna). I told them I would code their site in trade for a tattoo design. Chris had designed some tattoos for himself and I have to admit that I was a little jealous. I explained my initial to Chris and after some design and critique back and forth, this is my next tattoo:

The Cephaskelamech!

Yesterday we met with Chet at Mercy Seat and I have a tentative date set to start inking! He seems excited to work on Chris' designs, yesterday he said "It's not worth doing if it's not a challenge". It should take between six to eight hours in at least two sessions to complete.

In an email today, Chris sent me some fundraising ideas to fund our tattoos. They cracked me up and I had to add a few of my own! He's getting one soon as well, after having designed mine, he went to work on an idea he's been mulling around for a while for himself - Chris' Tattoo. They're both pretty big and very detailed, they're not going to be cheap.

His list:

temporary lawn service: "grass for tats" (I call weed wacking)
donate blood. it will be symbolic of the needle in the arm thing.
1st Fridays we claim a corner and give crash courses in web design/ photoshop on our laptops.
shoe shine stand
donate sperm... okay no
a non-violent bank robbery achieved through the annoyance of begging
counterfeit with bills that have subliminally printed the phrase "thanks for the tat honey"

I added a few more:

we sell advertising space on our bodies and get logos,etc tattooed in various places. Price depends on size and location...
scooter delivery service, delivering small items, not scooters
sell body parts, obviously not ones we’re having tattooed. Do we really need two of everything?
sell our hair for wigs and paint brushes, it’s big money and if there’s one thing I have in abundance, it’s hair!

I'm excited to have such an original piece on my arm (the left one) - Chris did such a great job synthesizing some of my favorite things.

Spicy Coconut Shrimp Soup

2010-02-14T17:36:00.001-06:00

Maura's had a pretty bad cold all week, so although we had reservations for a nice Valentine's Day dinner on Saturday night, we cancelled them and stayed in. Instead we made an incredibly tasty soup. It's very quick and easy, but so full of flavor! A few of you asked for the recipe after I tweeted about it so here you go! By the way, this recipe is from Cooking Light Annual Recipes 2009 cookbook - everything we've made from these books has been super tasty and good for you too!

Spicy Coconut Shrimp Soup

Ingredients

3 1/2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/4 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1/2 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
1/4 teaspoon red curry paste (use more if you like spicy! I used 1/2 tsp. and it still wasn't terribly spicy)
1 cup light coconut milk
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

Preparation

Combine first 7 ingredients in a large saucepan over medium-high heat; bring to a boil.
Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes.
Stir in coconut milk; cook 2 minutes or until hot.
Add shrimp to pan; cook 3 minutes or until shrimp are done.
Remove pan from heat; stir in onions, basil, and juice.

Serve and enjoy!

Oh Oh It's Magic!

2009-10-29T14:56:00.002-05:00

After days of calling to check if my local Apple Store had the new Magic Mice in stock, I finally got a positive response: "Yes, we have a few in stock."

I rushed out to my car, quickly drove (following all applicable traffic laws) to the Apple Store, walked in the door, barely responding to the warm greetings of the friendly Apple staff, headed straight to the peripheral section - lo and behold, an entire stack of beautifully packaged Magic Mice/Mouses.

I've been using this mouse for roughly two hours. Visually, it is beautiful. If it can be said of a computer peripheral, this is one sexy mouse.

It's got a very solid feel and the low profile is very comfortable. Scrolling with it feels like it should be counterintuitive, but it isn't "Wait, there's no scroll wheel, oh yeah, that doesn't matter." It scrolls just like you expect it to, even better because it has a momentum option which is just like the iphone scrolling - you don't have to work as hard. I've been using the smart and powerful SmartScroll to supplement my scrolling needs, and will continue to do so, since it still works well with my laptop's trackpad. Two fingered swiping for navigation works better than I expected, since it takes only a very light touch - you won't be moving the mouse every time you swipe.

The only downside I see so far is the fact that it has no extra buttons like the old Mighty Mouse or countless other third party brands. If you were using those for Space, the Dashboard, etc., you will have to revert to using the keyboard. Although, since the Magic Mouse is a touch sensitive device, Apple could add more gestures/finger actions later through software updates.

I'll admit that I'm a bit of a Apple/gadget junkie, I just bought Wacom's Bamboo Pen and Touch a couple of weeks ago, but I really like this mouse. Sometimes I wish Apple would quit making such cool stuff. Well, no, no I don't.

Blogging, Scooting, etc.

2009-05-06T10:11:00.000-05:00

I know, I know. Yet another post about post (in)frequency. I'll make no excuses; I've neglected this blog for several months. I guess it's a combination of Twitter, free time, and Winter blahs. Strangely enough, now that I'm starting to get motivated again, I'm also about to get really busy with the web dev thing. I have two bids due by the end of the week, one site about to ramp up to the final stages, and another site coming up very soon. Not to mention updates to current sites getting our OWN site up and running. I'm excited, honored, and nervous about all of this. I still can't believe I actually get paid to do this stuff, it started out as a hobby.

In other news, I've finally joined the exciting world of scooters. I bought a 2002 Genuine Stella. Here she is:

I also bought a bright orange helmet:

I've been wanting one for a while. I don't work far from home and it seems a little wasteful to drive a car every day. Beside, it's a blast! I'm having a hard time parking it when I get to work, I just want to keep riding! The second day I had it I rode it out to my mom's in Prairie Village, down State Line. I guess I took to it like a fish IN water - I can't believe I waited this long to get one! The Stella is based on the older style of scooters, all metal - very solid with a manual transmission and a 150cc engine. She'll get up to 70mph or so.

Fontcase - beautiful font management for Mac

2009-01-22T09:53:00.001-06:00

Check out my review on the awesome design blog pica-n-pixel

Resolutions

2009-01-05T14:23:00.001-06:00

It's the beginning of a new year; a chance to start fresh. All of the bad habits from last year can stay in the past. Whatever. There's actually only been one year in my entire life that I actually followed through with all of my resolutions. My friend and I set some very specific, achievable goals and held each other accountable for them. At first I wasn't even going to bother with any, I usually don't, but as I thought about what I would want to achieve this year, I managed to come up with a few that I could deal with. So here they are, in no particulat order:

Develop a thicker skin - I resolve not to let people get to me and make my life miserable, even (especially) the stupid people.
100 pushups - My wife and I have tried this program a couple of times, but some thing kills our momentum and we stop. Not this time, this time I resolve to trudge through the arms feeling like jelly phase and eventually reach 100.
Second tattoo - I already have the designs of the next two chosen, I just have to get someone to draw the third one. I resolve to finally get my second tattoo.

That's it for now. They're nothing big, but they are very specific and definitely achievable.

Flaming Lips + Beck = Mmmm Mmmm Good!

2008-12-12T15:15:00.001-06:00

Sorry about the sparse posting lately and for the video links - I'm mostly posting these so that I remember to check them out later. I'll get back in the habit soon, maybe.

Money

2008-12-11T14:07:00.001-06:00

Very cool video, featuring all sorts of faves:

N.A.S.A. - Money ft. David Byrne, Chuck D, Ras Congo, Seu Jorge & Z-Trip from smokeYYY | That Real Ish on Vimeo.

Maura's New Studio

2008-11-09T16:54:00.001-06:00

I'd like to present to you the newest addition to the Fowler/Cluthe home:

We've been spending most of our free time working on Maura's new studio and it's all been worth it! In fact I took a week of vacation to help with the siding. We're so excited to see it near completion. There are only a few more small details and it'll be ready for Maura to move back in!

I've been obsessively taking pictures of the whole process. You can see them all at my Studio Renovation Gallery. Thanks to our friend Mike Mastin and his crew, Mike, Pete, Chris, Randy, and everyone else that helped. They do great work if you need anything done to your house!

This is the First Day of the Rest of Your Life

2008-11-05T13:57:00.001-06:00

I remember going shopping for my mom for Mother's Day one day long ago - my brother and I picked out a plaque which read "This is the First Day of the Rest of Your Life!" Of course, neither of us had the slightest clue what it meant but it sure sounded significant. Over the years, that phrase has stuck in my head. It just pops up every once in a while and I think about what it means. It has always sounded kind of silly and contrite to me, but last night it popped into my head again.

Today is the first day of the rest of our lives. Today, for the first time in a very long time, I can actually say I'm proud to be an American. Today al whole lot of Americans voiced their opinion on how they think conservatives have been running the country for the last eight years. All I can remember since first caring anything about politics is a sense of cynicism and hopelessness. Today I have hope. I woke up this morning feeling like a huge weight had been lifted.

Obama will certainly have his work cut out for him, especially with that new puppy running around the White House!

Same as it Ever Was

2008-10-20T09:07:00.001-05:00

This has been quite a concert season for us. First we saw Midland Theatre. Then we drove to Denver to see Sigur Ros at Red Rocks, followed quickly by Beck the next Monday at the Uptown. Sigur Ros was great, especially considering the location. Red Rocks is a beautiful place, and the sound was awsome. Beck was technically good, but he seemed burned out somehow, like it was just another day on the job. It all pales in comparison, for me anyway, to last night's concert. After a lifetime of being a fan, I finally saw David Byrne live! He is, by far, one of my favorite artists. He's so original, and yet totally genuine. He seems to be truly touched.

One of the two first tapes - yes, tapes - I ever bought with my own money, back in junior high, was Talking Heads '77 (the other was Joan Jett - I Love Rock 'n Roll). I've loved his music ever since, whether as part of Talking Heads or his solo career.

In concert he looks like he's really having fun. The audience gave him a standing ovation the moment he got on stage and by the end of the third song another one, worthy of a cheer for an encore. I think he and his band were truly taken aback by that - they looked a little surprised and touched. David Byrne smiled a lot, which is great to see. The first two encores at the end of the concert were expected, but the third looked totally impromptu.

The whole evening felt a little surreal to me - I couldn't believe I was actually seeing him in person. And we had some great seats, center orchestra, just seven rows from the stage. Byrne played a great mix of material. I wasn't sure he would since the concert was billed as an evening of him performing his collaborations with Brian Eno. Don't get me wrong, I would have been just as thrilled to experience that, but he also included stuff from his own solo career as well as some Talking Heads material. It was the most incredible evening. I was in tears for a lot of it - overwhelmed by his presence. Anyway, enough gushing, here are some pictures (these and a few others are now on my Flickr Page):

And a couple movies:

Too busy to think

2008-08-18T19:34:00.001-05:00

I'm swamped at work - the new semester starts next Monday and, just like every other year, everyone realizes that they need everything at the last minute. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining - I love my job, more than ever, but it's wearing me out. The last two and a half weeks (is it only Monday??) I get home and crash, I can maybe stay conscious for a movie, but that's about it. I can't wait for the semester to actually start so that I can breathe again!

But that's not what I set out to share. This is:

Two of my favorite musicians - David Byrne and Brian Eno - have collaborated again, thirty years after their first incredible collaboration. I've been listening to this as much I could all day and it's great. Everyone that came into the office asked what it was - they were all really digging it.

AND David Bryne is coming to Kansas City in October! I missed him last time he was in town - I'm not going to make that mistake again!

Vancake

2008-08-05T21:08:00.001-05:00

If you didn't already know, I have a soft spot in my heart for vintage VW's - Ghias, Vans, Squarebacks, Things, but particularly Beetles. I have an extensive collection of toy VWs, mostly Bugs, only a portion of which I have the room to display. Someday I hope to photograph my collection and post it. We just buy a beautiful new display case which lives in our front entry so several more of my friends can live out in the open. They love sharing the space with Maura's robots too!

The observant amongst you will notice that the walls are a different color. It's a bad picture taken at night with a flash, so the color's not 100% accurate but you get the idea. We did that last weekend, it needed new paint and we decided to go with something a little different.

However, none of that was what I really set out to write about. What I wanted to share with you was this:

From the original post:

Volkswagen parts specialist Just Kampers teamed up with artist Andy Saunders to produce the World’s Lowest VW Bus – also known as the Camper. The 3-foot (1 meter) tall VW Bus entitled "Vancake" that’s fully road legal was created by Saunders and his team in just three days during this past weekend’s (July 18 to 20) Bug Jam festival at the UK’s Santa Pod Raceway. Apart from lowering the roof the team also applied a custom paint job and an electric sunroof.

I love seeing the modifications people have made to their classic VWs. It's great to see them restored to their original condition, but some of the mods are very creative and fun!

One Hundred Pushups

2008-07-01T13:29:00.001-05:00

Maura and I quit the gym we had been going to - a good friend of mine had an unfortunate interaction with the owner (I won't provide details, but the owner could have handled the situation better), and in all honesty, we hadn't been in a while. A couple weeks ago a ran across www.hundredpushups.com and lacking any other physical exercise, we decided to try it. It's a progressive pushup training program, each week you are required, and able to do a few more, until after the sixth week, you should be able to one hundred pushups in one go, with no breaks. I managed to do twenty-five in the initial test, which surprised me. At the end of the first week I did sixty-three with breaks.

We just started our second week and I definitely feel a difference. Right after doing them my arms feel like jelly, but the pain I felt when I first started, which lasted for a few days, is gone. I don't hurt at all after a new set.

I realize that it's far from a complete workout regimen, but it's a start.

Spore!

2008-06-17T20:59:00.000-05:00

Electronic Arts will soon be releasing Spore by game designer Will Wright (creator of such titles as Sim City and Sims). Today, as a way to get people addicted, they released the Spore Creature Creator and it's very cool. I've wasted (XX) hours playing with it today!

Meet Yarfla, one of my Spore Creatures

You can create creatures using all sorts of parts, body colors, and by stretching the pieces around to liking. Then you can move him around a test area and take snapshots! The full game will be much more complex, involving the survival and evolution of your species. If the Creature Creator is any indication, I can't wait to see it!

I made a couple of different creatures and took some candid shots of them in action. Check them out! And then go download the Creature Creator, the demo is free!

My Debut Album

2008-06-02T20:57:00.001-05:00

I found the instructions on the net, so I can't claim anything here, but it was kind of fun! I might have to do another one!

Go to a random Wikipedia entry:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
The first random Wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.
Go to Random quotations:
http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3
The last four words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.
Go to flickr's "explore the last seven days":
http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days/
Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

Put it all together, that's your debut album.

Here's what I came up with:

Going to Nashville

2008-05-30T08:10:00.000-05:00

Maura's been working on some pieces for a show at Tag Art Gallery in Nashville and I think we're going to try to make the opening! In the four years I've known her, we have yet to make it to one of her openings together. She's been out in the studio a lot in the past two weeks, with the exception of last weekend of course) and she's been doing a lot of super fun stuff! This is one of my favorites:

Visit her page on the TAG website for a preview of the work she's displaying. Here's more info about the show.

Another very cool piece:

I'm very excited about the trip. Nashville is an interesting place, but it's also the first opening of hers that we've been able to attend! It should be a lot of fun!

Corkboard Mac

2008-05-29T16:15:00.001-05:00

Man, this give me some ideas...

This old disassembled laptop still works! I have a couple old non working laptops that I've thought about doing something interesting with. This is kind of a cool idea. Knowing me though, I'd have to dress it up a little. Let's see, what do I have going on this weekend...

Another shot:

Second Anniversary

2008-05-26T19:27:00.001-05:00

Two years ago today Maura and I got married! We spent the weekend in Lawrence at the Eldridge Hotel.

The hotel has an interesting history, as does Lawrence. The existing hotel is actually the third iteration. The first - The Free State Hotel - was burned down by the pro-slavery sheriff Sam Jones, the second by Quantrill and his raiders.

The hotel was beautifully renovated and reopened in May 2005. Our room was spacious and very comfortable. Everything looked as historically accurate as possible. The staff was very courteous, if a little impersonal. Room service was prompt and tasty! We had a great weekend checking out the town. We go to Lawrence pretty frequently, since most of Maura's family lives there, but we spent more time downtown than we normally get a chance to. We found all sorts of treats!

Here's the view from our Mass. Street window:

Dinner at Ten was excellent. The winner, in my opinion, were the truffle and parmesan fries I had with my garlic rubbed ribeye, which was also superb. I know, fries, right? But wow, my mouth is watering just thinking about them! Maura had the corn & crab encrusted sea bass and it was incredible as well. Check out the menu. They also have a great bar and wine selection.

It was a great weekend spent with my wonderful wife

Here's to many more years together, Maura. I love you

Hell Boy II

2008-05-22T15:23:00.001-05:00

Guillermo del Toro + HellBoy = AWESOME

Check out the TV Spot here

Twittering

2008-05-22T15:11:00.001-05:00

I've been neglecting my blog lately and I had been doing so well! I got sort of addicted to Twitter and it seems all my writing juices have been filtered into it. I promise I'll try to do better, but I've also begun studying to become Leopard certified. Not a monumental task, but the tests are very detailed - like stuff I'd never need to know in the real world.

As for the Twitter thing, I'm not going to explain why. If you think it's a dumb idea, don't do it. If you're mildly interested, give it a try and either find yourself totally addicted or drop it like the dumb idea you initially thought it was.

I like it because it's like a constantly updated IM blog. There are a ton of interesting people, some even saying interesting things!

Kitten Update

2008-03-28T16:42:00.001-05:00

I think we finally settled on a name. Thanks to Äna for the suggestion! Drumroll, please......

Introducing Luna!

Luna, playing with her favorite toy

She's settling in fine. She's been spending most of the daytime hiding under the bed and doing some exploring at night. She also seems to think 3:00AM is a good time to play with the noisy toys and nibble at fingers. Luna seems to fit her better every day!

In the picture above you can see her oddly bent tail. It looks as if it had been broken in two different places and didn't get a chance to heal correctly. She doesn't seem to notice at all - she wags it just like she would if it were straight. Our first visit to the Vet is tomorrow morning!

Smile for the camera!

2008-03-25T22:18:00.001-05:00

Smile for the camera!

My wife got me a cat for my birthday! We adopted her from Second Chance Pet Adoption. They get animals from shelters and put them in foster homes until they are adopted. Her number was up the day they got her from the city shelter. I'm glad they rescued her, she is the sweetest cat!

We don't have a name for her yet, but we're considering Slinky. Her tail looks like it was broken in two different places; it no longer sits straight - it has two ninety degree bends in it. She's sleeping now - she's had kind of a rough day. We picked her up on the ways to my mom's for dinner so she's been all over town today!

Events

2008-03-25T09:09:00.001-05:00

Thirty-seven years ago today, at about 1:00PM, the most significant event of my life took place. It would form the basis of all other events in my life. Every single person I have met has been affected in some manner. Everything I have ever done - none of it could have happened if not for this event. Yes, thirty-seven years ago today, I was born into this world. I have to say, life's been pretty good so far. Particularly the last several years, thanks to my amazing wife, Maura. She got me this awesome new (old) tin toy Beetle to add to my growing collection!

As is happens, tomorrow the second most significant event in my life happened. I didn't know it at the time, but this event would change my life in more ways than any other event, besides the one I mentioned above. Yes, thirty-seven years ago tomorrow, my awesome, beautiful, talented, smart, kind, generous, playful, silly, colorful wife, Maura Cluthe, was born into this world. Thank you, Maura, for making life so wonderful.