Josh Rodenberg

Glensliding with Eddie

2012-01-23T14:47:00.000-08:00

2011-11-17T14:04:00.001-08:00

Someone is gonna be pissed when they are going to lather up that hot dog/ burger

Guys from Wiskate

2011-11-09T10:49:00.000-08:00

These guys are always killing it with a bunch of inventive tricks and goof ball antics. They always make skating look fun. It's nice to see people out there skating to have fun and not treating it like it's work. enjoy

Ratemykickflip from Gabe Chan on Vimeo.

New Lifeblood video: We Must Bleed

2011-11-09T10:41:00.000-08:00

this video is pretty awesome. Some of the best transition skaters around. Hope you get a chance to see it. They are showing it in various cities across the country this weekend. Check out the website for a showing near you

http://vimeo.com/31436473

http://lifebloodskateboards.com/

Dignity Village

2011-08-20T10:23:00.000-07:00

We have had a lot of visitors lately. It's been great having friends come in from VA to skate and make art. One of which is our good friend Johnston Foster who is doing a very large scale installation at the Disjecta gallery space in north Portland. Johnston's work requires large amounts of found plastics and other discarded items. Portland is good at setting things that may or may not be useful out in designated piles in random neighborhoods so we were out and about looking for desired materials. We came across a "yard sale" in the north east as we casually got lost. It looked janky as hell and decided to stop. We pull up and quickly noticed a small fenced in community. As we entered the gates we were slightly greeted by the security of this compound. As direct as possible he question our visit to the community but quickly asked if we wanted a tour. Johnston and I looked at each other and I thought he would ketch how large and wide eyed i was, which in eye contact language is lets get the fuck out of here before we get killed by some hobos. We did not share that moment. Johnston agrees with a "sure, but also a " what is this place." It's always a good idea to ask where you are before you get murdered just in case one of you gets out and is able to contact the authorities. The security guard told us to stay where we were and he'd find someone to give us a tour.It took a minute for the guard to find someone, during this time i was trying to hint to Johnston that we should just cut out. Yet again there must of been a communication block because we stuck around for around 5 minutes waiting for someone to show up. Her(him?) was named Rocky and the tour began. Rocky showed us about 3 of their structures before we were greeted by a guy named Dave. Dave looked like he had been around the block multiple times. He had a marijuana bandanna on pinning his long gray hair down to his head. He wore aviator sunglasses with a light tent, enough to see how gentle his eyes were. He spoke to us in a way that sounded like he was half way paying attention to what he was saying but his mind was somewhere else. As the tour went on, It was explained that this was a village for people who didn't have homes and wanted to live in a community that is nurturing and safe. Nothing shady could go down at Dignity Village and not be dealt with. I started to realize that the vibe at this place wasn't pathetic or hopeless but inspiring and up lifting and kind of felt ashamed for wanting to leave so quickly. To my credit, within the first steps of our tour we witnessed a guy hitting a couch with a sledge hammer taking it apart for what i guess for the materials. This place used everything. All their houses were built in precarious ways with what ever they could score through donations and what they find. Anything they could get their hands on was useful just like every body that was in the village had to be useful and help the community. They have their own micro government, they make their own rules and regulations. This is something that they could control together and succeed because alone they were too weak. We finished our tour and went on our way. Their pride was the most memorable about the whole experience. That and the couch

Big Ol' Neglect

2011-08-20T09:54:00.000-07:00

I'm so sorry people. I feel like I've treated you so wrong and now I must make it up to you all. No no no, it's not okay. For those of you who have followed me with my bullshit comments and what nots i let you down. Got some fuel these days though. Some topics and things and stuffs that I've either observed or just stumbled upon. It was never you, it was me. I just love you so much baby, why can't you see that? I never meant to hit you, twice. Just come back baby! We were meant to be....

Slight old man rant...

2011-07-12T10:25:00.000-07:00

This happens from time to time.... but when I go to my local skate park, I just get so annoyed by teenagers. No respect for anyone older than them at all. I figured that they would just get out of my way much like i did for anyone older then me skating when i was a youngin'. This is not the case anymore. I get sassed by kids on a regular basis. I've turned into the "Old Dick". Constantly yelling for kids to move. I just don't want to be injured by someone's negligence. I've been ran into by bikers on several occasions and it fucking hurts. I figure if i don't yell at them they'll never figure out that they are a nuance. plus they are so worried about their hair and cloths that they are a danger to me and themselves. jerks. ok done

I also tumble

2011-07-08T00:05:00.000-07:00

This is where i post all my drawings at. I feel like i'm cheating on blogger but whatev. http://joshrodenberg.tumblr.com/

2011-06-28T13:26:00.000-07:00

The A Team Movie. I have so many things to complain about with this movie but this being only one of them, it's a good one. WHO RIDES SPREAD EAGLE ON TOP OF A DANGEROUS CONVOY? Why would you ride on top of a HUM-V like this? you’d get shot so quickly and it just looks dumb

Tears for Beers #3: Lagunitas, Hop Stoopid

2011-06-18T17:58:00.000-07:00

After a frucking long day at work, I was in some dire need for some drinks. The Lagunitas Hop Stoopid was recommended by a coworker. Being easily coxed into whatever most of the time I went for this Ale. It didn't hurt that it was only 3.99 for a pint bottle. Lets face it. I want something quality from time to time, but i don't really want to pay for it. It's the 'Merican way really. How often do you just go out and spend a bunch of money on an item that you've never had before. Probably never, unless you're one of "those" types that either spends all your money and complains about not having any or you are so rich from your parents that burning $100 bills can't bring you joy thus further. Back to the beer, I opened up this ale which by the way has an 8% alc. content. Shit that's a good amount for a $3.99 beer. Makes that papst/rainer/busch/high life/ any other cheapo beer in your hand go placid. Your first sip of this beer will be a bit confusing. Your taste buds need a chance to be submerged with the flavor/ texture of what the fuck is going on. Slow it down buddy, enjoy that shit. A couple more sips go down and maybe a gulp was intermingled in there as well. You get a light dry /citrus flavor with that hoppyness that jumps across the tongue. All of this considered, it is a smooth beer, doesn't have that meatiness that others have where you can't tell whether you've had a beer or a meal. Maybe the only problem here is these could go down too easy. I could really see myself drinking a few more of these and starting some ruckus. I've only had about 8 oz. and I'm feeling a little reaction. I'm no little tike either. 3 bottles of this and i'm sure I'd be either on the floor or possibly wrestling my friends in a friendly WWE(i still consider it WWF) Cage match, just like at my wedding. Get this as either a connoisseur of beers or if you just want to do the job and forget about the worries of your normal day. Make sure the Ibprofen and glass of water is waiting for you in the morning.

Tears for Beers #2: Walking Man IPA

2011-05-30T09:41:00.000-07:00

A long time friend came into town this weekend and there was a few things that we needed to take care of. Getting caught up and drinking. We had the opportunity to try out many of the micro brews that Portland bars have to offer but one definitely stuck out from the rest. We visited a Coffee shop/Bar called Cooper's to watch the Timbers Vs. United soccer match and ordered a few Walking Man IPAs to quench the old thirst. Immediately the flavor of this mild IPA was honest and smooth. It had just enough hoppyness to make you notice it was in fact an IPA but not that overbearing ending that smacks the tongue like a Midwest domestic violence incident. Those hard hitting IPAs end up making me chug the rest of my beer in order to prolong that final taste. I then get wasted by their high alcohol count and the next thing I know I've had half a bottle of Jack Daniels, I've tried to hop over a fence and rip my pants from ankle to thy, have scraps and abrasions from trying to skate drunk and barely recall being slapped in the face. The next day of my life is devoted to swearing off alcohol and sweating out the evil. With the Walking Man IPA, this was not the case. We enjoyed the beer more than the game because it was a way more organized taste unlike the haphazardly chaotic playing style of any American major league Soccer team. Drinking a couple of pints definitely eased the pain of our beloved Timbers losing in a 3-2 match. Ended up only being 3 dollars a pint for this quality beer, leaving my wallet and I both satisfied.

Born Ugly Mag!

2011-05-22T11:30:00.000-07:00

Check out this zine some friends of mine in Richmond VA do. It's great quality, with high caliber art and writing and its FREE! buy so swag, order some back issues or just donate to the cause! p.s. I also write some stuff occasionally for the blog

http://www.bornuglymag.com/

The Room: A dumb night with Tommy Wiseau

2011-05-22T10:42:00.000-07:00

Last week, a co-worker informed me of an event he was working at and invited me to come watch a Q and A and showing with Tommy Wiseau of The Room. This film is rated one of the worst movies ever made and it is nothing shy of that. The movie stars Tommy with a cast of no-names who "act" in such a way that it almost seems like they are aware of how bad the movie really is. It's a awful story with a dialogue to match. It is full of cliche scenes and includes things that "good ol' 'mericans" do like play football, even if the participants are 3 feet away from each other. It was shot with a digital and film camera because Tommy didn't know the difference. He claims to be from the USA but I am highly doubtful of this. He has an accent like no other American and his English is on par with an immigrant. I feel as if he learned english by watching porn. The only way I can describe how he speaks is as if he were a dumb Werner Hertzog. All the arrogance but non of the intellect. you can learn more about his background through Wikipedia . I was turned on to the movie by two different friends who knew not of each other and told me I had to watch this movie. Being a fan of obscenely terrible movies, I rented it from netflix. Within the first 3-5 mins there was a sex scene, giving a full back shot of Tommy also know to my friend Nathan as "a piece of Lithuanian Jerky". I quickly paused the movie, called my other friend Jesse and asked if he had suggested a porn because I was watching this with my wife and sister and it was very awkward. He reassured me it wasn't and to continue watching but to be warn there were more disgusting adult situations to follow. He was exactly right and they were very long scenes. It was gross.

The event had four showings. I went to the fourth. I had seen this movie at least five times prior, mainly because I would show friends how much of a train wreck it was. Most were reluctant and for good reasons. I met some friends before so we could grab some food and drinks. We showed up to the movie theater and were surprised to see Tommy right there by the doors signing autographs and taking pictures. He was being quite the ham. It's as if he couldn't get enough of the attention and got in every chance to show off. He was wearing a cut off satin shirt with a leather vest chaps and pants with chains and loops. Something that you might find at an S&M shop or Hot Topics. (btw i've never been to an S&M shop, but it's what I imagined) We got up to him and I got my picture taken. I had a few beers so I wasn't letting any inhibitions stop me. I told him to flex his muscles and i did the same, while i held on to his bicep. It did feel like jerky!!! I was disgusted to be honest. I was walking away when Tommy insisted that the friends I came with all get in the picture and he demanded a person in line to take the photo. They hopped in and we got it. It was getting close to show time so we continued to our seats.
As the Q & A was beginning, my friends and I were conversing about the movie. On friend hadn't seen it at all and the other only partially because of how bad it was. The announcer introduced Tommy with an intro fit for a good director, I couldn't believe what i was hearing and was wondering if this was the same person. Tommy's name was announced and he came running down the isle just like a WWF wrestler (wwe now) would have, ready to fake wrestle with our questions. He talked in person just like his script. It was obvious he had written this movie. He was playing the crowd who were all major supporters of him, one in which had seen the movie over 50 times. I was clearly at a pep rally for a jerk off's ego. One by one the questions were asked and Tommy chose to either answer them or just reject the question and move on if he didn't like it. I thought this was kind of bullshit. He's trying to keep a mysterious personality but it's so lame that I barely care. I really just want to know where he is really from. So I mustered up the courage and asked. . He rejected it of course but what kind of pissed me off was that someone in the audience (you can't hear it in the video) told me to fuck off. I responded as i did and went to my seat. Tommy deflated my love for the movie mainly because he was milking the teat of a pathetic cow. The only thing he has going for him is a movie that he made sincerely and everyone laughed at it. By the way he called it a black comedy after the reaction wasn't what he expected. He's a hack and is trying to play it off as if he indented it to be this way. I'm calling him out on it. It would take a epic genius in order to pull this off and even then, that person would give you some sort of hint that it was all a hoax. I think he's just trying to get as much out of this as possible and float for the rest of his life. More power to him and we'll really see if his next movie ever comes out because it IS a comedy. I'm sure the jokes will be contrived and unbearable. I never had respect for the guy, I guess i just wanted him to be a little bit more humble. He's very lucky to be where he is and god knows there are millions of people more talented who could use the hype.

You can't take the country out of the...guy from the country?

2011-05-18T10:44:00.001-07:00

For those of you who are fans of what i call "red neck games" I decided to bring the country in me out to Portland. I started building a few games that I am fond of from my days in the Midwest. 1: being Corn hole, I know the name is dumb but it is a pretty fun game.(hehe I rhymed) I've been meaning to build this game for years but never got around to it. With all the time in the world, I got crackin'. You get 4 bags filled with corn, hence the corn part, and you throw it at a board with a hole, I think you got it. Look red necks aren't the most creative and i'm pretty sure they knew what they were doing when they named it. It's fun to drink and play. Number 2: is the game Washers, yet again brilliant name. You get these large washers and pitch them at a board with holes in it. There are variations of different boards that you can build and lord know arguments on which one is the right way, but i'm sticking with what I know and building a 5 hole board. Yeah i know i got some country in me and my educated college brain is fighting it, but shut up righteous brain! we're getting drunk and playin' some back yard games.

Mural Project done!

2011-05-18T09:56:00.001-07:00

It's been done for a a few weeks. Internet has officially been installed at my house so i can post more regularly. The Slogan (by me) is a little dumb but who the hell cares. I thought it was witty. As we finished the last details like painting the top of the jersey barrier, it started to rain. Portland and rain, go figure. The rain/paint water began to run down the front and immediately we were pissed. After a few minutes, We realized it looked like rain and just fit. Happy accidents are grand. I do need to put another coat of sealer on it and it's pretty much there.

Mural Project

2011-05-03T06:20:00.001-07:00

My wife Charlotte and I are about to start a mural project at the Brooklyn spot. We were given the OK a while back are allowed to paint on one of the Jersey barriers street side of the entrance. I'll post some of the preliminaries here soon. and back with the progress. Hopefully we'll knock it out this week before the benefit show this saturday

brooklyn Spot

2011-04-30T20:30:00.000-07:00

This is a Portland DIY spot created and funded by skaters and skateboarding lovers.
It's probably one of the hardest but fun spots to skate. A bonus is that everyone who builds, organizes and funds this spot are cool as hell. Donate to the cause if you got the extra skarilla

Tears for Beers:#1 Hop Valley Brewing Co.

2011-04-25T12:40:00.000-07:00

I decided to start an ongoing beer review series after reviewing a cheap-o beer a couple weeks ago. Why you ask, because I like beer and there are a few million to try up here in Portland, OR. So with out Further adieu:

This will be a double trouble post because i drank both the Vanilla Infused Porter and the Alphadelic IPA. We had a long day of easters, entertaining family and friends for the first time in our new home in NE Portland. My wife Charlotte had bought these beers to share with our guests but after they had all left, and my makers mark buzz was going strong, it was time to crack open that shit. I open the fridge and at first I avoided the Porter because of it's vanilla infusion. Anytime something is infused with something else it automatically makes me not wanting it. What is this process of infusing? I open the IPA and it gets drank. This is probably where my beer review is gonna get fuzzier and less informative. I remember it was very "hoppy". I feel it is hard to describe completely because pin pointing taste is redundant. We all have our own tastes and we won't have the same opinion about how things taste. It left my tongue dry and restless. A lot of smacking of the chops and I needed another liquid to wet this desert tongue of mine.
Out of frustration and needing more liquids, I open the porter. It actually wasn't too bad. Maybe there was something to this infusing thing. The vanilla kissed your tongue ever so gently as you were able to drink this lighter porter that didn't leave you feeling as if you had swallowed a swollen baby cow. As the tasting went on Charlotte and I continued to drink another of each. They couldn't of been too bad right?

The Job Interview : repost

2011-04-21T13:02:00.000-07:00

I wrote this a little while back while trying to find a job. A friend suggested that I take it down because it is the information age and potential employers might google search me and if I'm shit talking them on the internet, well forget that job. Personally I didn't want the job that this interview was for anyways and I kind of wanted them to read it. Also, I got my dishwashing job and i'm gonna stay there so here it is again. I think it's one of my best pieces but i'm bias

There may be a few out there who have not experienced the embarrassment and frustration of the job interview, so let me take this opportunity to illustrate a recent experience that I have had. The search for a job can be and possibly more strenuous then the actual job that you are trying to acquire. It is a demeaning process that leaves very little room for self-esteem or confidence in one’s abilities. This is why when your resume some how is noticed through that large stack of other applicants, you have to muster up all that you can to prove to this establishment that you are a go getting, a team playing, an ass kissing, yes saying, fun and exciting, obnoxiously smiling, happy go luckying, ready to do anything machine. For someone who has a shred of pride left, this is not necessarily your time to shine. This very well could be the weeding out process that the management has developed to hire the most malleable employees, or it could be the one of many conspiracy theories that you have imagined up one sleepless night while lying awake restless in bed. Either or, it is one of the elements of the job hunt that makes this process unbearably mind numbing.
You receive an unfamiliar number on your cell phone one day. There is a tingle of hopefulness in you stomach that for some reason makes you stand if you are sitting, or sit if you are standing or pace the room as if you were a unsettled mental patient in an insane asylum. You answer the phone in your most calm, clear, and smooth voice. Side note, be careful not to sound too relaxed so the caller does not think they have accidentally called a sex hot line. This particular call is your bank thanking you for all your loyalty over the years. DAMMIT!!!!, you think to yourself. You frustratingly push your way through the conversation with a lot of “uh huh, yeah uh huh, great, thanks uh huh” until you can hang up the phone. In this small amount of time, you feel exhausted, as if you just finished a marathon or what you imagine it feels like when you just finished a marathon because you would never partake in such a tiresome endeavor. Later on you receive another unfamiliar phone call. Put yourself back in to calm cool and collected mode but not too calm cool and collected. This time it is a perspective employer asking you are available for an interview at such and such time on such and such day. You are violently scribbling down the information on a note pad with such excitement for the appointment. You say, “I look forward to meeting you as well, good bye.” As you hang up the phone you look over the note pad to translate the chicken scratches that you so vigorously written down. Sometimes I think it would be easier to decipher the Dead Sea scrolls over this newly formed language that you invented. You have a time, a date, a contact name, but this concludes all of the information given. What job are you interviewing for? What company? These are important questions to ask yourself. You try to reflect on that minuet conversation you just had with your potentially new employer but found no useful information. It is almost impossible to go through your emails in order to find out what you recently applied for because you have been applying to almost ever job you can find. You will have to show up to the interview and be extremely quick on your feet to pull this one off.
The day of the interview comes. You spend the morning mentally prepping, convincing yourself that you in fact have confidence and that you could perform this job better than the employer’s expectations. You could be in a coma and still succeed. You park in the establishment’s parking lot. You look good, you feel good, don’t forget to lock the doors to your car and for god sakes remember to SMILE. This in particular is hard for me to do. No, smiling is easy; forcing yourself to smile so that you appear to be a happy joyous person who is never in a bad mood is extremely hard. I hate that type of smiling. I feel as if it written across my face that I hate doing it as well. It’s a type of smile that is pathetically begging and feels desperately unnatural. The adolescent part of my brain is laughing at me, calling me a sell out. He tries to convince me that this isn’t my type of job, these aren’t my type of people, that I can’t have a day to day banter with these people about the weather or the last night’s rerun of the TV show Two and a Half Men. (I physically cannot bring myself to watch that show or anything with a laugh track) I believe this portion of my brain for a minute, but quickly snap into reality and smile uncomfortably again. Hopefully no one was watching my facial expressions during this conversation that I am having with myself in my head. This particular interview was going to be a group interview. All of the applicants are taken into a room and would fill out an application then we would be given a presentation on the company. Adolescent brain speaks up again, why do I have to fill this out again, I’ve already done this online. Great, now they will know about my poor hand writing skills and inability to spell correctly without spell check (thank you spell check, I love you unconditionally). I go back to smiling. I fill out the paper work, to which there are numerous errors and turd like scribbles to mark out mistakes. This is why I love technology. The computer evens the playing field. I finish the paperwork just as the presenter spoke up to start. Moments prior, this obviously dull tool out of a useless pile of rusted covered shitty tools was having flirtatious banter with his all female staff. It was at that time that I look at the other applicants and notice they are all women. This could be a bad sign or I could be developing another conspiracy theory. He proceeds with his presentation, giving us the run down of what the company does, the attitude they have and what the job in tales. While lecturing he discovers a laser pointer in the remote for the projector. This is not a good thing. I did get my lucky break on not knowing what job I was interviewing for! I wish this presentation were as short and sweet as I described in the prior sentence, but no. This butt hole hammed up every bullet point in his presentation making me work hard to pay attention. “Dammit! Are you kidding me? Seriously?” is what the childish part of my brain kept yelling. Keep smiling by the way. The curmudgeon continued on and on, frequently interacting with his audience AKA us the applicants. He would ask us things like, “where did you go to school?” One girl answered and before she could finish her sentence he would respond with his point. He didn’t really need to make this an interactive show. Oh, and by us, I mean he asked the rest of the women applicants these questions, avoiding eye contact with me at any cost. The talking ball sack concluded his lecture and allowed for a five-minute break. He warned us of act two of this train wreck of an interview, the part where we talk about ourselves. By this point I’ve smiled unnaturally enough to cause my face to hurt. I must take this opportunity to rest my facial muscles. The human fart of a man goes back to flirting with his staff and using the laser pointer to annoy people in the hallway who happen to walk by.
The second half of the interview begins. The incredible talking dog man give us several questions to answer in front of the group. What is your name? Why do you want this job? What were you doing before you interviewed for this job? What will you do if you don’t get this job? My annoyance level is at an all time high at this point. I was not sure of how much more of this I could endure. We each answer the questions. I feel like there was only one other applicant that would even come close to giving me any competition for this job. I feel pretty good for a minute. The steaming heap of cow shit with a mouth asks his final question. Out of all the applicants, which one would you choose for this position, and you cannot pick yourself? Fuck, I’ve been caught on candid camera, haven’t I? No wait; I was tricked to be on a new reality TV program, exploiting the desperations of the unemployed called, Your Unemployed, But At Least You Are On TV! I cannot fathom the idea of pitting applicants against each other like this. It is almost as if we are gladiators fighting each other to the death with only one to be named victor. That one may be freed and given a salary of 20K with benefits and the potential for a cake on your birthday. All the girls picked the one girl who was my only competition except her of coarse and she picked one of the other applicants. Not one of these troglodytes picked me and after I explained all of my qualifications and how I use to do this job before I moved to this city. Thanks girls, no really thanks a lot. It was my turn the final pick of the group. I paused for a minute and then repeated the question in my own words to gain some extra time to think. I then say, “ummm, I would have to say that everyone has something different to bring to the table, and that all of the applicants sound very capable for this position. I prefer to not choose an applicant.” I wish it had came out as elegantly as what I had just typed. What I wanted to say to these shit heads is, “Are you kidding me? You bring us in here; make us sit through your terrible lecture. Make us feel like assholes. Mean while you distractively play grab ass with your colleagues during the lecture and act like a four year old who has had their first encounter with a laser pointer. You have us interview in front of everyone, while we judge each other prematurely and unfairly so that we may choose for you who the right applicant for the job is? Go fuck yourself.” I wish I would have said that so badly. I felt like George Costanza when he couldn’t respond quick enough to an insult and thought of a response later. I left the “interview” let down and confused with my pride hanging on for dear life only to be worked up with anger after explaining the scenario to my wife. Poor Charlotte, she just sat through a detailed ten-minute raging description where her crazy sounding husband is on the verge of drooling on himself talking so passionately. What a good sport she is. I love her.
I continue to be baffled by the lack professionalism presented by this particular establishment. I would rather wash dishes. No, honestly. As a dishwasher, you are the boss of the dishes. You are their King, gracing them with your presence enabling them to be cleansed of their dirtiness, allowing them to go on and function and contribute to society. You, as the dishwasher do have a boss, but as long as you wash the dishes, you’ll be fine. Now if only this college graduate could get an interview for a dishwashing position…

I'm a big NPR fan

2011-04-21T12:58:00.000-07:00

But.... Neil Conan sometimes will be a bit of a condescending prick after he hears something that he doesn't seem to think is true. Its kinds of strange because he's usually cool as a cucumber and he'll challenge something that someone says in such a dickish way. Its mainly because of his tone. I don't mind when he puts someone in their place, especially when they are being dicks in the first place. Just Sayin'

2011-04-18T13:47:00.000-07:00

If there is one thing that most of us can agree on it is that money is TIGHT these days. I’ve been experiencing my own financial hardship lately and have been coming up with ways to cope with the burden. After recently moving to Portland, OR I discovered another bonus to living in the area (First and fore most being the skate parks). There is a deposit taken when purchasing your drink of choice, and after you have enjoyed your refreshment, you can put your can or bottle into a machine outside of your local grocery store and get your 5 cents back. Normally the local homeless and scum bags are the ones who participate in this activity but guess who has two thumbs and is broke as shit? This guy right here!!
For the last month I have neglected my recycling and have accumulated a substantial amount of bottles and cans. This is the result of weeks of spending money that I couldn’t afford to in the first place and it has finally caught up with me. I don’t know your situation, but after a full day of looking for a job for some reason I just want to get fucked up. I then scrounge for change in every crevasse in my house hoping it will amount up to enough for a 40oz. I quickly realize that all hope is lost because I did the exact same thing a few days ago and cleaned this mug out. One of those pigtail light bulbs lit up over my head, they are more energy efficient fuckers get with it. Because of my laziness, I have a mound of gold in my recycling bin. Finally my bumlynesss has paid off!! I take this filthy stank heap to the magic money machines in order to claim my reward! The only down side to this process is that you are intermingled with all the other bums at the machines. You can imagine the caliber of person because you deny them of change every day. It is slightly embarrassing at first, but you have to keep your eye on the prize. After depositing 85 containers, I got $4.25 back. Lets go shopping!
You have to be a smart shopper and get the most bang for your buck. That’s why I went with the beer GENESEE®. A buck o’ 9 and you’re feeling fine. You have just purchased yourself 24 ounces of freedom so let go of all your worries because GENESEE® will make it all right baby. It’s not terrible and it ain’t great, but you’re not perfect either. I consider myself a coinsurer of cheap beers and I rank this one just above Busch and slightly below an Old Milwaukee. It has an honest flavor with a smooth finish and most importantly it hasn’t given me those next day shits that I feared would occupy most of my time. It is a MEH beer with a kick ass design. I feel this is the beginning of a multi-hangover induced friendship.

Sensitive hands

2011-04-14T11:23:00.000-07:00

Since I am a dishwasher once again, I had forgotten what condition it leaves your hands in. I've worked in the wood shop for so long that i've developed calluses i thought were forever deep. In one week all of those are gone and I'm left with cut and nicked up soft smooth hands. Last night i cut myself 5 times. They should come up with bandage gloves. Then when i got home I accidently picked a tiny (reoccurring) scab on my nose and it began to bleed profusely for 15 mins.

This is pretty much a pointless post, but it is a warning message to all who wash dishes. tear you up

Check this out!

2011-04-06T18:45:00.000-07:00

This is my friend Chris Mahonski's journal while he takes his expedition across the united states. The Goal is to ride his bike from West to East Coast. He started in San Francisco, CA down to LA and is headed to Richmond VA where he resides. His site is full of great stories and pictures of his journey. Last i talked to him he was in AZ. Brave chap. show him your support.

http://www.cyclinginthisdimension.com/

Born to do dishes?

2011-04-06T08:56:00.000-07:00

Well, for right. stress and care free. Dish overlord out!

Gold Teeth

2011-04-05T17:04:00.000-07:00

I think gold teeth are great. I'm working up the nerve (and skrillia) to get one of my own. I don't know what or where the fascination came from. I even get excited when I see someone's tooth black out on a billboard. Those two are really the polar opposites though. A blacked out tooth or lack of a tooth ends up being very noticeable because it is breaking the normality of that person. You may have sympathy for that person missing the tooth because you know someone who has had a tooth knocked out. Or perhaps you are actually missing a tooth and can relate to the pain and or inconvenience of the tooth being gone. I also just find it funny when it's on a billboard, but not so much with someone in front of me. I wouldn't laugh then.

The gold tooth is the glorification of the tooth. It can symbolize status (for some reason) i don't know if that is status with your food like you food will think you are cool while you are eating it or with people. Maybe your food would feel more honored being eaten by teeth with some value, not just the run of the mill regular boring teeth. I would be more comfortable being eaten by someone with gold teeth.

Having a crooked tooth of my own, it is already noticed by everyone who sees me smile. I might as well just gold that shit and make it official. I don't want it to be a status symbol but more of a celebration of the comfortability I have towards my screwed up tooth. It sets me apart from you and that other person and that one girl. Who cares anyways my teeth aren't perfect white anyways they are on their way to being gold colored anyhow. Why not speed up the process?

Wha!

2011-04-04T11:02:00.000-07:00

The worst thing about gettin all growns up (and this could just be me and probably is) is that you get use to caring about what others think of you. Even as a child I always thought there was something different about me. I haven't ever felt like I was part of the norm and wasn't sure how to utilize or harness this potentially unique brain. I will blame the beginning of the transformation to caring what others think on being a teen. This is the point in your life when you care the most about what other think and it is during these 7 years where you try to keep yourself from being scrutinized by the other zit piles. It's a defense, I get it and what I wish I could go back and tell young Josh is that it doesn't matter, they'll make fun of you regardless. I also wish i could go back and place myself into situations that would have facilitated my ideas, but I digress. So you practice this behavior of "fitting in" for the seven year duration and then it becomes too easy to keep it up and so for the next three to five years you do . The longer you let your creative brain go and contribute to normal society, the harder is to grasp what it was that was so creative about your brain in the first place.

Now as a 29 year old, I desperately want that adolescent goof brain back. Is it still there? Did it go anywhere at all? Maybe it is like exercising your muscles and it can become stronger the more it is worked out. The only problem is that your mature muscles are already buff as hell and flex all over that creative brain. My goal is to unstifle that creativity once again. There is nothing interesting in acting like someone else or a version of what someone else is. I'm pretty sick of the average. I'm interested in those who pave that way and challenge that norm. I can't imagine that following another's lead is what we were put on this glowy wet/dryish spinny rock for. Honestly I don't think there is a reason and thats another reason to just exist and not to try so hard. Get your spontaneous on!!

Skate Rant from a couple weeks ago

2011-03-04T14:23:00.000-08:00

Barreling down the blemish free, pebbless, close to polished concrete, I practice the line that I have created over the last six weeks at my neighborhood skate park (in which I have a love hate relationship with based around hurting myself). My new home Portland, OR has treated me pretty well thus far, I think to myself. Scanning my eyes across the park, trying to focus in on the youngsters who flow aimlessly in every direction, waiting for my turn to cross into what seems like enemy territory. I’m suddenly reminded of a wave in the ocean that breaks violently, causing chaotic motion in multiple directions. Just like this wave, these kids are a force of nature, unable to be tamed by any man. As my eyes scan quickly back and forth my head tries to follow but is only met with a dizziness only felt when spinning in circles for several minutes. I am sure that I must look like a delirious old man to these vibrant young ones so desperate to obtain and maintain their public image. As my brain tries to record the information necessary to keep from hurting myself and keep from running over or killing children, I stop and think for a second how hilarious these adolescents are and how much they piss me off. In a matter of a one-hour visit to my local skate park, I managed to make a list of DON’TS that these kids should take into consideration. Hopefully this is not a terrible rant much like that of what Andy Rooney would do on the tail end of a 60 minutes episode, bringing himself one more segment closer to a miserable anger filled death.

Please, just please, consider others while pushing along on your skateboard, scooter, or bike. The only reason I am paying even the slightest bit of attention to you at all is because there is a risk of me accidentally slaughtering your due to the extra 175 pounds of man that I have grown. I don’t care about your flippy tech tricks that honestly bore the hell out of me anyways. I am there for my enjoyment.
There are four different grom groups filming your styleless tricks. Ban together and make one shitty movie. Imovie for MAC already has the template for it! Plus your self-esteem will enhance from all of the new friends you have made sucking. Go ahead, send that video to your local shop for sponsorship, I’m sure they’ll get a good laugh at it, especially because I’m in the back ground making a sour face with a thumbs down.
Stop drinking Caprice Sun at the park. What is this day care? You don’t need to juice up with energy drinks like MONSTER, Red Bull, Rockstar, or Jolt cola (ok that’s before your time but still) either. Just drink some water. It is pretty refreshing too! If I see a snack pack, I’m going to slap it out of your hand, and PICK UP AFTER YOURSELF. You don’t know how lucky you are to have a skatepark!
This one is for you little bit bigger young ones. Yes, you have your license, but no that does not mean you can do doughnuts in the parking lot. Hey idiot, 1992 called, they want their shitty looking Mustang back! Buttholes drive that car.
Bikes! It is called a skate park, just sayin’. No need to continue on this one. Fill in the blank here…

Like I said. I’m enjoying my time at the parks here in Portland. For those of you who think we have a sufficient amount of parks, I would go to say that there are not enough. Most of the time the parks are grossly over inhabited with an extreme age range of people. Another possibility, and the most unsettling answer to my frustrations is that I could be officially getting old.

Updates

2010-09-27T15:35:00.000-07:00

untitled #1 Bowie Rock

2010-09-27T14:17:00.000-07:00

The Bowie Rock. More to come

Poison Snake

2010-09-27T14:13:00.000-07:00

My alter Ego/Rock Band Poison Snake has gotten a make over on the myspace site. Look for more changes, more songs and images from this MEGA ROCK BAND

http://www.myspace.com/poisonsnakemoan

Artin'

2010-05-19T08:55:00.000-07:00

Getting alot done in the studio lately. Here are some photos to prove this. I have some speaker rocks that will be done soon so i'll have some images of those soon enough

Most of March and April so far...

2010-04-11T14:41:00.000-07:00

I would have posted more the last month, but i went to out west and students have absorbed every ounce of creativity and motivation out of my body. Soon there will be plenty. for now, suck on this. i found it one night while researching what people's opinions for the "worst" was. This might have been the most inspiring thing i've seen in awhile. Not out of comedy, but out of pure genius on the account of Eli in this rap battle. It's obvious what the purpose of his visit on to this public access show was but i think he turned it around so that he was the victor. His pure nature and honest approach to rap lyrics are astonishing. During watching this video, i experience so many emotions that i was speechless. It's probably one of the finest pieces of modern day folk art out there.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHpw6CzprNY

Zardoz

2010-03-08T08:04:00.000-08:00

I just saw this last night. It might be the hardest movie to follow, but has some of the most entertaining sets, costumes, and actors.

TOLD YALL, work

2010-02-22T21:04:00.000-08:00

working working

2010-02-08T08:37:00.000-08:00

some in progress shots coming soon.....

Rap persona

2010-02-08T08:33:00.000-08:00

Wow, its been even longer

2009-12-29T16:10:00.000-08:00

Totally forgot about this blogger. I've been doing my thing down in Old Virginia. It was a full semester teaching at Art Foundations and being a Shop Supervisor in the evenings at the woodshop. I've been working on some art here and there. mostly paintings and drawings. My attention has mainly been focused around my newly rediscovery of skateboarding. Some friends and i have been ripping it up at some parks and visiting a bowl that our friends have made. Most recently i've been making some ramps of my own which i feel is more of a positive towards my influencing my art. For the most part this interest has dominated my attention, but in the long run i believe it will only help the greater good.
Still kicking. i shall return

2009-09-24T17:05:00.000-07:00

i forgot about this blog thing

2009-09-24T16:46:00.000-07:00

Hey people, i forgot all about this blog stuff. a bit embarrassing but oh well. After the show in New Harmony, Charlotte, our dog Spottie, guinea pigs Nacho, Tater, our rabbit the late Polly Jean and I went out west to Colorado. We stayed with a friend of ours Matt Barton, who lives on the back side of Cheyenne Mountain. It was gorgeous. Deep in the woods, spottie felt one with nature, as nacho and tater skitishly hid from site except for a trip to the top of the tree house 20ft in the air. Polly remained surprisingly calm in her cage safe in the quasi hut barn, even though taxidermied animals perched on shelves and windows peering down at her. This was a sad foreshadowing that i later regretted. Charlotte made a horror film of us being massacred by matt who was a psycho killer who invited artist to his "residency" so that he could taxidermy them for his collection. I mostly was a bad actor and drank beer while enjoying CO.
After our exciting journey, we moved to Richmond VA at the beginning of August. Charlotte and I are currently teaching at the Art Foundations program at VCU. I'm sharing a studio with Matt Spahr and trying to get there as much as possible. New harmony pictures are coming.

Opening at the NH gallery on saturday

2009-07-15T15:44:00.000-07:00

I've been preparing pretty hard for this show on Saturday. With the help of my wife Charlotte, my nephew William, and Alison and Sara from the gallery, We have transformed the walls of the gallery into piles of cubes. Using a thick black paint we covered 3 walls with stacks of cubes emerging, falling, and buried. After a couple hours, even the most experienced cube drawer/ painters will start to see a'skew, unable to stop their obsession of the geometric shape.

In my older work, I tried to make the environment in a space tight and confined. In this particular installation, I have overwhelmed the viewer's sight with organized chaos. The same imagery that i see when closing my eyes after playing too much tetris. i dream about falling blocks and the bastards won't leave me alone.

After this install i will need to check myself into a cubeular rehabilitation program which involves plenty of organic shapes such as sticks and rocks (aka Colorado)

Show at the New Harmony Gallery of Contemporary ART

2009-06-24T08:17:00.000-07:00

All the information about the show's dates and time of opening is on the link below

http://www.usi.edu/nhgallery/events.asp

The Show will be a continuation of my Cubeular thinking. Lots of Cubes, Some Skateboard shit, and a whole lot of luv......

Check out my Student Work

2009-05-08T08:49:00.000-07:00

They had to make something destroy itself, document it, and post it on youtube. pretty cool

http://www.youtube.com/user/colordesign2

Big T in Little C

2009-04-28T19:39:00.000-07:00

So I gave my students over at Rowan University a video assignment. They were broken into 3 groups and had to recreate the movie Big Trouble in Little China. (just one of my most favorite movies of all time) Each group had 32 mins that they were in charge of paraphrasing. So what happen is they did the scenes they wanted and Charlotte, our friend Gus and I filled in any gaps in the story that we could and did some scenes they left out that i loved. It's in 3 sections because it's too long to be seen all at once on You tube, check it, pretty cool. in a week check out our Rowan channel on youtube because they have another assignment due where they have to make an object self destruct. it will be posted on there until, well until whenever it self destructs. later

fleisher

2009-04-20T20:52:00.000-07:00

so i got into the second round of the fleisher gallery wind challenge here in philly. its a pretty big deal so i'm very hopeful. there is 9 slots and 30 artist to choose from. I had to drop off my work to be judged along with my images, so i sent my cloud city. i'll keep you peeps informed

2009-04-20T06:30:00.001-07:00

rottweilers

2009-04-19T20:44:00.000-07:00

super awesome. think about junk yard dogs. just think

new stuff

2009-04-19T20:28:00.000-07:00

So yeah, i've been making shit. its been great. first off. I had this experience of waking up at 4:30 am thinking about making work and not being able to go back to sleep . i finally (after 30 mins) got up and wrote some stuff down. I had to go to work after i got all my idea out so i didn't get to make anything right away. One of the things i was thinking of so early in the morning was this purple universe cube that was leaking cosmos. i got a couple of those in the works. I also have a gold cube inspired by cheap ass hoop earrings that people wear around here. i saw some real hideous ones the other day. I've got some skate ramps in being built. some gold skateboard trucks on a cube. I'm making the Van Halen symbol out of cubes and possibly a star destroyer out of foam cubes. I got alot of ideas that are just coming out. We'll see where they go. I got some pictures going so enjoy. i'm kind of drunk so i'll type something more coherent later

Arlington Art Center Photos

2009-01-18T12:29:00.000-08:00

like i promised. enjoy

I'm getting some photos done!

2009-01-14T07:57:00.001-08:00

I'll have some pictures of my latest installation by next wednesday. I'm stoked

for anyone interested

2009-01-13T08:28:00.000-08:00

My artist statement was changed alittle for the opening at AAC. So here is a copy of my original.

In my work, cubes become a thought process that I call Cubeular Thinking. It is a mindset that becomes meditative, but in a sort of shitty way. I’m interested in the infinite repetition of cubes as a shape, but the repetitive process in making the cubes becomes numbingly painful at times. I am use to working in a more sporadic and haphazard way but found a need to become more structured and organized to a degree. This was a realization I discovered after playing the video game Tetris for hours and hours at a time. I played this game so much that I would dream of the organization of cubes. There became a link between Tertis and what was happening in my life at that time. In the game, at first, the shapes are easy to arrange but as you advance to higher levels, the cubes fall to fast to handle. This is similar to the attempts I have had at structuring my own life. I try organizing at first, but eventually the results seem to always end up in a chaotic pile.
The cubes can represent anything. They can be examples of structure or chaos. This is why it is important that they are in order in areas, but become random piles in others. Their strengths are in numbers, depending on one another for stability. As a geometric shape cubes can represent space itself or can be boundaries of containing space. By their organization they have a practical use of space but as random piles they become a waste of space.
I see cubes reoccurring everywhere I look.

Arlington Art Center Closing

2009-01-12T13:39:00.000-08:00

If there are any more stragglers out there in the Arlington VA area, You should go and check out my show at the Arlington Art Center before Jan. 17th. That will be the last day it will be visible to the public and you should see it. Good Gravy

Best Quote of '08

2008-12-17T08:49:00.000-08:00

"It smells like reggae music in here"

--gar wood- Night Marchers

Great Concert Last Night

2008-12-17T08:45:00.000-08:00

I went to the Obits and Night Marchers concert last night. They were in bands such as Hot Snakes, Rocket from the Crypt and Drive like jehu. It was an amazing experience with quite funny banter in between songs as well. A little extra for those who love a great stage presents. Check out these two bands and especially go seem them if they are in the area. If you like your face to be rocked off and your ears to ring the sweet sound of high frequency humming, than gear up for some awesome rock.

Ready to go back mid-westward

2008-12-15T11:45:00.000-08:00

so taking a x-mas break back to Evansville, Indiana. I miss the shit out of that place, even though i'm sure i'm not missing too much. But I am. I haven't seen a river boat in a baboon's age. I haven't seen a jacked up truck with a tiny little girl driving it. Not to say that baby midgets drive big ol' trucks but it almost looks that way in truck size proportion to body size. I'm ready, I need to see it all. Just watch out, because i'll be on a rampage Indiana!

Arlington Art Center Opening

2008-12-14T08:58:00.000-08:00

So there was an awesome turn out for the opening on friday night at the Arlington Art Center. It was a great experience and everyone was such a joy to work with. Please go see the show if you are in the area. Here is the website as well. Check it out, i'm sure there will be some pictures of the opening up soon. When i get some of my own, i'll post them.
Also, if you do go, check out the highlander motor hotel just a few doors down. there is a lady who lives in one of the rooms who has the entire thing covered in stuffed animals. its insane and kind of creepy, but awesome. Rock and Roll.

I have a show at the New Harmony Contemporary Art Gallery in New harmony, IN. The show opens in July So i'll be headed back to the mid-west in june to set up. Stay tuned for updates. I'm not as busy and I will be chill-axing.

http://www.arlingtonartscenter.org/

last day of drawing class

2008-12-14T08:34:00.000-08:00

I had my final crit for my drawing class. The work was great, the students were great and the conversations were great. great great great. They worked really hard all semester long and produced amazing work. I'm extremely lucky to have had such a talented class, and also they brought in delicious food and it was awesome.

damn

2008-12-09T08:24:00.000-08:00

almost done with my show at the Arlington Art Center. Check it out if you are in the area. The opening is Dec 12th. fo real

I AM WORKING

2008-09-30T19:40:00.000-07:00

Progress

2008-09-12T06:47:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone. Sorry i haven't posted in awhile. I've been very busy teaching and prepping for my classes. Its been crazy couple weeks. Plus i was out of town for most of August in South Carolina and NYC. Here are some pictures of the stuff i've been working on. I'm building a satellite dish and a mission control station. Plus i've been making foam tape as i was before for the corral project. I've also started thinking Cubularly ( its a new study). I'm trying to come up with the structures of the particles that my satellite dish with study. Its very low tech but some how it works. I'll keep adding more pictures as i go. check back, i'm getting in a grove at the studio and will keep everyone informed.

rollin along

2008-07-22T05:38:00.000-07:00

I've just been working in the studio. Nothing too new. Its not air conditioned in there so i'm sweating up a storm. I call it my new weight loss program.
I'm still working on some stuff with the intentions of collaborating with the Spahr Brothers. I've got these cassette tapes that i am milling out of foam and some mounds of the tape from real cassettes. I'm going off the idea that they are a man made reef, somewhat like the trial man made reefs made out of tires some time ago. They were quite hazardous to the environment around them and killed life in their path. The intent for the researchers who are creating this (aka me) are to give the ecosystem something to listen to while having somewhere to live. My reefs have a similar reaction to the environment as the tires did by killing the life surrounding it by way of bad music.

I'm also working on a wooden satellite and satellite dish for a idea I have with communications to outer space. The plan is flawed from the start (the actual structures) being as i am not a engineer nor am i a scientist. I don't have the know how to create a working communication system but i build it as if there is another personality that does. Who knows you may be able to meet that scientist one of these days.

Photos of my new studio

2008-07-08T12:15:00.001-07:00

New Work

2008-07-08T12:08:00.001-07:00

some new work

2008-07-08T11:36:00.000-07:00

Sculpture Magazine Review!!!

2008-07-01T05:37:00.000-07:00

Check out the new issue of Sculpture Magazine. I was in a group show last year in Cincinnati and they reviewed it!

Back

2008-06-29T20:00:00.000-07:00

i've been in Chicago for the last week with my wife, sister in law and her boyfriend. I'm back for the attack in the studio. I'll have photos soon. I drove 9 hrs today, and i'll say that the Pennsylvania Turnpike is my least favorite road. its bumpy and the toll to drive on it is ridiculous.

I've been manufacturing these foam tapes lately. i'm creating a reef that fish feel comfortable to hang out at. they need some music to pass the time.

New Profile

2008-06-16T18:43:00.001-07:00

This is the studio space that I am currently in. Here is my profile on their site. Take a minute to check out the other artist and things that go on in the space. Its a fun experience.

http://www.pifas.net/main/faculty_member/58

New Studio

2008-06-15T20:09:00.000-07:00

i got a new studio. expect some stuff soon. i started moving in today. sweating my ass off.

watch out!!

2008-06-05T13:38:00.000-07:00

my new friend and I are gonna tear up the town....

good news

2008-06-02T14:43:00.000-07:00

I got a studio lined up. Its with, THE PHILADELPHIA INSTITUTE FOR ADVANCED STUDY. Its a sweet space. I'm super stoked to get some room to breath and work. I've had this dungeon studio for the past year and it's not ideal at all. I say dungeon because its in my basement with hardly any light and the floor joice are touching my hair. I am always hunched over. The people who run the place Rich and Brandon seem awesome and i look forward to working with them. It seems like a diverse group of artist in this building so hopefully some new influences and ideas will pop up.
check it out at http://www.pifas.net/

More Drawings

2008-06-01T08:50:00.000-07:00

I added some more drawings. At the bottom there is an example of how I morph into other animals. It shows the DNA and shit mixin' it up. I also apparently created a being but it didn't come out so well since the body never made it through the growth process. I really need to learn some science before creating more creatures.

MORPHIES

2008-05-29T20:34:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone. I've been slacking on bloggin for sure. I've been doing a lot of drawing lately. I've been thinking about how i can make a merger between myself and different animals. So I first take a picture of myself, then i take the picture of the animals. then a bunch of DNA shit happens that i can't explain and blam.... Due to my lack of knowledge of how to morph two different types of creature's basis of existence, it comes out a mutated thing. Watch for more coming

In the Works

2008-04-21T11:52:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone. Lately, I've been working on writing and recording music more than Art so I haven't been in the studio very much. I eventually want to combining the two for some sort of performance but that is in the very beginning stages. Its this alter rock star ego that i am creating that has quite a personality. Stay tuned for its evolution.

I've been conversing with a friend of mine, Matt Spahr about putting together a show with Matt and his brother Josh. We have been wanting to collaborate for a while but have been busy. We're getting a proposal together to submit to various galleries. It too is in such a beginning stage that I'll have to update you on that later. I've got some good ideas that I want to execute in the near future with the speakers from my last Installation, (which comes down on May 1st, if you still haven't gone and can).

I'm teaching a 3 weekend painting course at the end of May, so i'll be getting back to my brushes. Keep your eye out for some cooky portraits.....

later

the desk

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

here is a pic of that desk i made. It turned out pretty good. The person I made it for was pleased. It might lead to some more commissions as well. We'll see.

new commission

2008-03-26T18:58:00.000-07:00

Now that my show is over in KY, I've got a lot of free time on my hands. I picked up a commission to make a computer desk. I know, I haven't made any furniture in several years, especially pieces that are functional. The sweet thing about it is I get creative control over the design. Basically the only guidelines i have to follow are: making it to a particular size, it being flat on top, and it standing on its own. These will be pretty easy to follow. It has been exciting because i'm getting back to my roots in furniture design but I get to bring a artistic spin on the whole concept. I forgot how time consuming structure can be. Although this is just a one time gig. I've thought about making some other experimental furniture pieces and trying to sell them around town at local consignment shops. We'll see if that pans out or not but at least I could walk away with furnishings for our house.

Lexington Photos

2008-03-17T07:43:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, here are some photos from the install at the Lexington Art League. It went great. We had an awesome time at the opening and I had a lot of good feedback. My sisters Sabyn and Shanna and our friend Maggie drove the distance from Evansville to view the opening. We drank like champs. Over all, everything went very smoothly thanks to Charlotte, Mike Deetsch, Amanda Douglas, and Travis and Felicia. Thanks everyone.

p.s. there are larger photos at the bottom of this page.

the set up

2008-03-13T16:47:00.000-07:00

Setting up has so far been successful. I'm around 95% done!!! I've got some speakers to hook up and I just need to get the projector going and all done. This has been a pretty exciting installation and I'm looking forward to the opening. We forgot to bring the cord that connects our camera to the computer so I don't have any shots yet but be patient. I'll get them up asap.

Charlotte, Spot and I have been staying at our friends house Amanda, in Richmond KY. Amanda and I went to grad school together and she is dope. Its alittle bit of a drive to Lexington but only 27 miles or so. Nothing like philly commuting so its been easy. I'll have some updates soon.

in lexington

2008-03-09T19:33:00.000-07:00

hey everyone, Charlotte, Spottie and I are in Lexington. We took my stuff to the gallery space. Its a sweet space and i'm looking forward to getting everything set up to my likings. I've got to hit up a few thrift stores for some minor things for the installation but thats about it. Tomorrow I'll start setting up everything and i'm thinking it will only take a couple days of construction and a few days of tweaking. I'll try to get some install pics up asap so stay tuned. Take care

almost show time

2008-02-29T12:43:00.000-08:00

Well people, I've got a week and a day before i travel down to Lexington. It will be around a 10 hour drive with charlotte and our dog spottie. I'm still working on getting my installation to a point where i can just walk in and start setting up. I'm still building some things and doing a lot of painting and so forth. Its gonna be a long week.

new work

2008-02-26T08:55:00.000-08:00

So the stuff i just posted are parts to an installation that i will be doing at the Lexington Art League in march. Along with a video that includes the one posted at the bottom of my blog. I've been thinking a lot lately about how much music has influence pretty much everything i do. For quite a while, I've been trying to mix art and music together. I feel that this is the next step in the merger. I want this installation to be part of a slight "rock concert". Some of my most memorable experiences have been witnessing my favorite bands in person, therefore, I want to allude to this feeling without trying to make this experience for the viewer a nerdy one. So far the installation consists of a mixing board connected to multiple speakers across the room by brightly colored chords that sore through the air like lasers. The speakers will be playing the audio from the video which is a set of songs that i listen to on my Ipod while playing air guitar to. Being inspired by a documentary on the world air guitar championships a quote stuck out saying, "Air guitar is the last pure form of performance art." Not really being a big fan of performance, this quote and movie unleashed an inspiration and slight infatuation of this "art form". I don't know if it truly is an art form but I do love the commitment and self expression of these air guitarists. On a stage that is virtually empty except for their stage antics, their power and presence are very mesmerizing. Me being a musician, I do find myself unconsciously playing air guitar in various situation. It was only natural to express my own love for music and pay homage to those i admire.

Stuff I'm working on

2008-02-25T16:24:00.000-08:00

this stuff will be part of my upcoming show in Lexington KY.

Blogglect

2008-02-21T07:34:00.000-08:00

sorry everyone who checks this for not posting. I've been alittle busy with working on art, music, and some friends were in town. Nanda and Buck Soderberg came around last weekend. The had a booth at the Philadelphia's buyers market of Crafts or something of the sorts. They gave Charlotte and I free passes and let me tell you, Whooa, there were some steaming piles everywhere. Honestly it looked like some of these, "artists" took one class in what ever and decided, thats enough, i've learned plenty. Now lets start a business. Also, if you blow glass out there, quit making big wads of glass with swirly colors that end up clashing and turning into a baby poop brown, its just tacky. Wood people, just because you got a piece of expensive, figured, exotic wood from woodcraft, doesn't mean you have to make everything out of it. Also, go get some design lessons, I know you enjoy the material but common, either take it serious or keep it in the garage. Clay, geeze, i have no idea where to even begin, uhh, stop making mounds and adding a spout and calling it tea pot. I would add something for the other medias but, i don't know if there's hope.

Wow, this wasn't going to be this long originally. I could go into depth about all of these but I already sound angry enough. ha. (which i'm not, sorry out there)

One of my new videos

2008-02-13T18:14:00.000-08:00

I put one of my new video performance at the bottom of the page. Take a look and tell me what you think.

josh

magic trash

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

Being an artist can be a strange life at times. I ketch myself thinking really odd thoughts at any given time about any subject. These thought are quick and become forgotten as fast at they conspired. I constantly wonder what to make, what to make "it" out of, and how to make it. Some times these simple thoughts make no sense informing my brain that it is or could be close to insanity. These thoughts are over baring, and cause a block in productivity which as a maker, becomes a dark depressing crawl through the gutters of self pity.

Fortunately, last night charlotte and I went to an lecture given by the extremely famous, Kiki Smith. Most of her sculptures and prints (i say most because everyone who makes art has had some real steaming piles here and there), are amazing. For me, the most influential part of her whole talk was her insane ideas and the motives that drove the work, which reassured my crazy is okay. As she talked in front of a full house, on a huge stage, at a podium with a mic, and her work 15 ft. tall behind her, there was no sense of arrogance. It was as if she cared the slightest bit about the work. Of coarse this is not true, but she was so comfortable and confident that the occasional shit or fuck just slipped right out with no hesitation. Not saying that cussing is wrong, but its very unexpected in a huge forum full of professional and scholars with 8 inch ear hair growing from the deep crevasses of their sound collection holes.

Besides the cramped seating (being 6'3 can be tough at times), I walked away inspired. Still with the same questions in my head but more at ease about why I have them. I used them as fuel for the first time since moving to Philly. I collected some broken black glass today that I admired while walking to the beer store on an earlier escapade. It sat there talking to me explaining it's beauty, so I listened and took it to its new home, my basement/studio.

I guess what I'm getting at is my rediscovery of the mundane objects. It has always been influential in some regard. Art for me is the observation of everyday life. It projects observations into a medium and reintroduces it to the world. It can be a magical thing at times and it can also be an abomination. I'm just glad that I still have the attention to notice the small details that become art. I was scared that I was losing my inspiration and ambition and the fact that a pile of glass saved me is honestly a ridiculous notion but awesome. I hope that as long as I'm living, I will remember to observe these simplistic ideas and allow them to capture a magical moment.

get ready for a rant....

2008-02-04T15:06:00.000-08:00

I'm trying to figure out why my neighbor felt compelled to give me a "fyi" visit this evening. He informed me that my dog was outside and whinning all day long. My response was, "ummm, thats impossible because i have been home since around noon" He goes on to make a whole lot of no kind of since like how he has a cat, he's an animal lover but not nessecarily a activist, and other jibberish that was hard to understand.
First off, i thought maybe his cat was going crazy because of our dog. Nope, i'm not so sure why this little tid bit came into the conversation but I guess it was to bring up the point that he loves animals. Which brings me to the question of why this guy is justifying his reasoning for loving and having an animal to me. Can you only love animals while automatically being an activist, or do you have to hate animals and love to hate them and everything they stand for. No, this guy felt compelled to tell me about his cat. I don't care about his feeling for this cat. I'm glad he has a cat because i'm sure he's talking to it, instead of crazying up our neighborhood.

He goes on about some things, and at this point i'm kind of rude because he's basically telling my that we are miss treating our dog. If any of you know spot out there, you know for a fact that she gets the best treatment ever. Honestly i think she eats better than I do. If you haven't seen her, she is a robust, thick, chunky, basically pretty fat medium height dog. (she use to weight 80 lbs, she's down to around 60 lbs now) Apparently she got stuck in our back yard under the deck. This sounds bad but there is a huge space under there that she loves to go down in and just hang. You know, the stuff that dogs do. he goes on to tell me that he went into our yard and wanted to lift the dog out, but he couldn't see her. Even if he wanted to, this frail man, who has a deathly glaze look over his face, seems as if he can't lift a sandwich to his own mouth.
I don't know what this guy was trying to say. Was he was trying to be helpful or telling us that we are horrible people, something about a cat and his ability to break into our yard. This place is insane. If you like toothless crazy people approaching you at any given moment, Please come and visit.

2008-01-28T13:41:00.000-08:00

Thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes. It was a pretty good one this year. I got 3 cases of beer which i drank in 3 days. mmmm. Flight of the Conchords season one, a new tuner pedal for my guitar, some great cups, a ceramic tree, a kick ass print, and a great dinner from uncle jesse (the roommate and not the "Stamos").

Charlotte spoiled me like always. She took me to Richmond for the weekend to hang out with all the cool peps. I drank my worth in beer and liquor thanks to Matt and Michelle Spahr. They also were kind enough to put us up for two nights. We spent our first night (friday) going to the always interesting Mulligan for some wild karaoke and PBR's. I finally got my chance to sing Loverboy's "working for the weekend" . For some reason i've always wanted to sing that one but never have, and now i know why. I drive old ladies wild. They wet their diapers when they hear me sing. its quite disgusting. One lady was dancing and stared a whole through my chest. Other than the brisk whole through me, It was great to see everyone again and have fun like we use to.

Saturday we spent a lovely dinner with Sarah Mizer and her huggable man John Bladder. We went to cuba cuba to devour some tasty treats and drink some cuban coffee. Jacky Chan kicking at full speed couldn't of kept me from this amazing display of delicious.

We had a great time and came home on sunday. We even made good time on 95. it was a birthday miracle.

2008-01-28T13:12:00.000-08:00

Today I completed my second day of teaching Drawing 1. I'm trying to send myself back to the day where the tables were turned and I was the young uninspired student rolling my eyes at the instructor. Well, it didn't go exactly like that. I don't think I rolled my eyes until class was over at least. I've come to the terms that teaching the class so far can be almost as boring as taking the class. I will admit, the fundamentals of drawing are not an intense game of dodge ball by most people's standards. My class is currently doing contour line drawings. For any of you that have never taken a drawing course, this means your are drawing the outline, and the negative space of an object. Important stuff, really. The thing that I don't get is the look of absolute boredom (and I can not stress enough how absolute) on some of my student's faces. I'm not teaching math, history, economics, ect... (no offense anyone, those are boring). I teach a class that lets you master in the art of doodles. I have a student who was turned in the complete opposite direction of the drawing subject today. Unless she has an evolved skull with two (hell, even one) functional eye in the back of her head, she was just being rude. Even if she had this mutation, she was wearing a hat. I thought to myself, "do i really have to tell someone to look at the thing they are drawing?" the answer was yes. Is this how today's youngins' are going to be? really? I wouldn't be surprised if someone comes in next class to remind her to breath. "you might want to take a couple of breaths there, you are dying," as she rolls her eyes in disgust. I hate to give a lecture to individuals that are not that much younger than I am. Like I'm some all knowing wizard from the lord of the rings. I should make them draw my hat, staff, and beard next time. I guess what I'm saying is, who kicked common sense to the curb and let the bums shit on it? If anyone figures this out, let me know. In the mean time, I'm going to make a drawing video game and make millions. Dammit, i just remembered the game mario paint!!!

Are you kidding me fantastic four movie?

2008-01-23T19:57:00.000-08:00

There is a certain scene that happens in movies every once in awhile that I find annoying. Personally I didn't think any self respecting screen writer or director, or who ever the hell puts those moving pictures on the screen, would put a over used scene in a movie today. Let me back up a hair. I decided to watch (on TV) The Fantastic Four movie. I never read the comic, I actually thought the characters were a little sissy growing up, but I never saw the movie so I wanted to give it a chance. Well it sucked. Why is it that when you are watching a movie, and its bad, you keep watching it. You don't start drinking bad milk and see it out til the end, no. I know everyone else does this as well. Anyway, the very last shot was they captured the bad guy who was frozen or some shit( i was making dinner at the same time, so i missed some parts) and the authorities take him away and put him in a crate. The camera pans out as a dramatic orchestra plays some epic song. As the shot keeps going, it shows the stacks and stacks of other crates that are piled all together as if it goes on forever. As if there is a never ending room out there and the only thing we can store in it is our collectables, our trinkets. I thought to myself. Is this just a last resort for movie makers? Not sure how to end your movie? UMMM, just put that one scene in there and it will be fine and a DON DON DAAA on there for some sass. Doesn't anyone ever wonder why they are storing this stuff. The U.S. government apparently is running some kind of a pack rat warehouse somewhere. I wonder if there are some red coats shoved in some boxes way in the back? Then there are just some random crates like broken shovels, a giant rubber band ball, a Jimmy Carter fart in a jar, a bunch of those twisty ties (how do people acquire so man of those? do your hands get tired from all that tying?) and some abba tapes that got to close to a magnet so don't really work. There should be a big old garage sale or something. The rental space alone would free up some funds. Anyways, I hope that movies will stop using this particular scene. I'm giving Indiana Jones the only exempt on this subject.

the inconvenient nude

2008-01-20T19:27:00.000-08:00

What better way to spend a lazy hung over saturday than to submerge yourself in a movie marathon. This is exactly what charlotte and I did this saturday. I woke up around 10 a.m. because I was expecting a early birthday delivery from my sister and brother in law that was suppose to arrive at 11 a.m. I stumbled down the stairs in search for the coffee maker. As I fumble around the kitchen, every bump, clank, and crash is amplified to a unpleasant decibel. I remember each and every beer I drank the night before as I struggle to do this simple task. I think to myself, this coffee is the only cure to this uncontrollable headache. After settling in with my wife and coffee. We pop in The Royal Tenenbaums (which is my favorite movie) and sit back to watch the magic. After we finished the movie, My sister calls checking in on her packages' arrival. I let her know that it has not shown up yet and she contacts the deliverer. So as we waited, we decided to put in a documentary of Mark "gator" Rokowski that our roommate Jesse let us borrow. This was about one of the great 80's skateboarding heros that became overwhelmed with fame and crazy with his decent from stardom. during the film there was a particular part that was talking about how Gator would randomly become nude. Who of coarse would knock on the door at this time, my delivery of 3 cases of beer. A glorious present that I was so grateful for and my liver cursed the names of Sabyn and Matt. Well, as I ask the delivery man to come inside as I signed his official papers, a scene of a nude, wild skateboarder lays on a filthy hotel bed screaming obscenities. Charlotte scrambles for the remote to turn what looks like gay porn on the tv. This is one of those moments that it is impossible to dodge. Its funny that life just kind of kicks you in the crotch every once in a while. A real swift one. I don't know if there is any moral to this story or even a resolution but it was kind of funny or awkward, or dumb, or confusing. some thing to these affects, or effects which ever one is the proper grammatically .

Do you lose funny?

2008-01-16T06:30:00.000-08:00

I've always considered myself a funny guy but lately I've wondered if i'm still funny. Who knows, I laugh at my own jokes and recognize the hilarity but I'm not sure if anyone else does. I've had this happen to me several times where you meet some people that are not friends with your friends, and all the sudden its like you are carrot top telling jokes to deaf people. Other times its like the planets aline and an astroid of hilarious is plummeted to earth crashing into your cerebral causing an explosion of your funny glands which sends signals to your vocal chords and mouth delivering amazing. I've been trying to tell jokes to my dog and room mate's cat but they don't get my humor. They are very critical and stuck up and i don't need that right now. Damn bums do nothing but sleep all day.

I would have to say my biggest problem is that I sound funny in my own head. I woke up in the middle of the night a few days ago (like in the previous bloggins) and I immediately was thinking of American Gladiators. I'm not sure if this was funny or insane due to the lack of sleep. (does anyone else do this? i'll wake up with an idea embedded in my head, but nothing really about it. its like an awkward conversation with someone you don't want to talk to and they say something like, "I saw a baby calf being born". and you just go, what? in your head ) I continued to write about it and then posted a bulletin on myspace saying "I blog now". When i tried to go to bed, I couldn't fall back asleep because i was laughing about my phrasing. Ok this was probably me being delirious, but I feel I do some of my best work under these conditions. I've came to the conclusion that I am funny but there isn't any body around to absorb the funny. I guess thats when friends become sponges or mops, they are around to clean up the sopping mess of hilarious to that others don't slip and fall in it, because that would be an entirely different type of funny.

My reason for a blog

2008-01-14T02:13:00.000-08:00

So the main reason for my bloggings is to keep everyone informed of my artwork, up coming shows, life, tv shows i'm annoyed with, random thoughts (hang in there for those), and alittle bit of whining. I'll try my hardest to keep the whining down to a minimum. I've gave alittle insight on my artwork, art shows, life so i'll tell you something new because its 5:20 a.m. and for some reason I am not sleeping.

So I hope someone else out there has the same guilty pleasure as I do watching American Gladiators. This revised 90's hit has been sweeping my household by storm, and it may be the only one. As i hope you can recall, the old show was filled with a dozen muscle headed bad asses just laying waste to average Joes and Janes that probably only jogged on the weekends while pushing their kids in a stroller (you know that couple) and lift a few weights here and there but were really into it at the beginning of the year, trying to keep their new years resolution . Well, thats pretty much the same in the newer version but the muscles are bigger (i think), the constants are whimpier, Hulk Hogan is the host and its the funniest comedy on TV. Since the writers strikes we have not been blessed with our favorite shows to guide us in our weekly conversations with aquantinses and awkward silences with who ever you are having a boring chat with. American gladiators is filling my heart with hilarious nonsense violence that is a humor like America's funniest home videos is funny with the crotch kicking and such. I've almost pissed myself multiple times. So I salute you American Gladiators for making me laugh so much, I almost wet my self. This is an act that not even some brilliant comedies have done.

Living in Philadelphia

2008-01-13T15:34:00.000-08:00

Since August 2007 I have been living in Philadelphia, PA. The reason for this move was due to my wife getting in to Graduate Painting program at the Tyler school of Art. I have been trying to find a job in the arts ever since our arrival. Up until recently, I have been unemployed, working small jobs here and there for various people to earn money. Finally after a long dry spell, a friend of mine hooked me up with a job in NJ teaching a Intro to Drawing coarse at a community college. Drawing is something I have never taught before, but I am very excited about it. In the past I have been a very avid drawer and I kind of fell out of the habit of sketching entirely. This will give me a chance to get those much need skills back.