Jason's Notes

product lust generation, done right

I never thought that I'd want a 1980 Izuzu Gemini, but now I want a dozen. Thank you, 26-year-old advertisement (no computer graphics, natch).

small annoyances, small joys

All of the time I spent outside yesterday, I spent cursing. This is because it was a drop-dead beautiful day, with a crisp, bright blue sky and whispy clouds (and later a perfect electric-to-persian blue evening sunset sky), which perfectly offset the warm gray stone of the buildings near Madison Square. And there I was, without my camera. I had thought it too bulky to bring with me that morning.

Today, here I am with my camera, and the skys are uniformly overcast and threatening. Bah.

But small pains like that are fine. Things are going well with the new gig, I think, so far, knock on wood. I'm going to be too busy to think this weekend, but it's all in the name of science. Er, I mean greed. Er, I mean design. That's it, art. In the name of art. Yeah.

Still waiting for my baby to come back from Spain. Preferably not with half a dozen swarthy men named Pablo in tow.

Comings and Goings

It's a big week for me.

GOOD: I've started a new freelance position at a large advertising agency, doing miscellanious graphic design and flash coding. It keeps me busy, it keeps me fed, and it's the first serious work since graduating a couple of months ago.

BAD: I don't have a proper chair yet, and this low thing is giving my wrists serious pain. Facilities is on it, so I hear.

GOOD: I'm working on interesting projects for big clients.

BAD: I'm taking a tiny little role in them, mostly cleaning up other people's work.

BUT, this is to be expected at my level.

GOOD: Getting my body into a normal day-night cycle is actually giving me back some energy lost to the lethargy machine.

BAD: Waking up in time for a 9:00 start is no fun. How do the rest of you people do it? How did I do it, oh so long ago?

GOOD: Lots of cool light and vantages on the street here, I've got to bring my camera in soon, and hope I don't look too much like a tourist.

BAD: I keep putting off my application for low-cost health insurance. I've really got to get off my ass about that. Really.

GOOD: May 1st Reboot is rolling around again, as is the matching CSS Reboot. I just re-did Tranq, and while it's not perfect, I don't think it needs another update already � but Notes is due for a facelift. I might join up with CSS Reboot this Spring, if I can:

Wait until then to redesign the site.

Actually have the time then to do said redesign.

BAD: It's tax time!

GOOD: The ladyfriend and I are doing wonderfuly, and this makes me fantastically happy. Like, ya'll don't even know. She's taking a whirlwind tour of Spain with Jen right now, where the sun is bright and the grass is green.

BAD: This means she isn't here.

For those who remember

one two three
four
five
six seven eight
nine
ten
ELEVEN TWELVE

Edit: Yip-Yips haunt my nightmares. And don't ask for sweet rolls.

I can't stop. I should go fishing.

This Administration Just Keeps Getting Better

Apparently, they now think that they can do anything. If you can read this and still have any kind of faith in the administration, I... well... I don't have anything to say to you.

I really should get a job at Gitmo. I haven't gutted anyone in a long time.

Justification

The entire history of courtroom sketch artists has come down to this. For centuries, an entire class of artistic talent has been kept on the public payroll, training, handing down their talents, for this one moment. Their entire reason for existing � for ever existing � is this. Here. Now. As Ginsberg sleeps.

Microsoft Re-Designs the iPod Box

Another in a long series of link-only posts: Microsoft ReUn-Designs the iPod Box.

Ohhh, purdy

Who says black and white is boring? Not Subtraction, design and personal blog of Khoi Vinh, the new Design Director for the New York Times Online. Lurvly.

Fraud at the Polls!

You don't need fancy, high-tech touch-screen voting machines to commit election fraud. But it helps.

postcard from the edge

My computer is teetering close to failure, with a plethora of problems � most of which I believe stem from a CPU heatsink which is not conducting heat the way it ought. Whilst I struggle with both this and my attempt to redesign my portfolio book for tomorrow, keep yourselves entertained by learning about traffic waves.

Little People

It speaks to my own limited success at claiming worldwide celebrity that I spent the entire time watching the trailer to Dave Chappelle's Block Party mentally screaming "Holy shit, that concert was five blocks away from me," and, "Holy shit, that's the football field the next block down from my house."

It speaks to my own extreme whiteness that even if I knew about this thing beforehand, I probably wouldn't have gone.

It speaks to my own love for Dave Chappelle and Michel Gondry that I'll pay good money to see the film.

It speaks to my own laziness that I'll Netflix it.

It speaks to my own poverty that I'll ask my roommate to Netflix it.

Bits and Pieces

The Polish have made some amazing movie posters, some of which have almost nothing to do with the movie they're representing. If we had posters like these, I'd see a lot more movies.

Speaking of movies, Nightwatch finally comes out this week. About time.

Thanks to my holiday trip back to Pennsylvania, I learned that Radio Shack is phasing out their budget line of Perfectly Fine Cables and starting to carry only their Eight Hundred Percent Markup Gold Tipped Cables. Thankfully, the internet has come to the rescue.

A Lesson is Learned but the Damage is Irreversible is a fantastic web comic.

Zebomedia is home to someone who likes to take great photos of New York at night. It's a good gimmick, and he's better at it than I am. Speaking of cool photographers, Shivy has set up a photoblog, and I'm loving the work. Check it.

I'd like to thank headline aggregator Fark for making me remember one of my favorite quotes from Snow Crash, a classic of western literature which everyone should read:

"Until a man is twenty-five he still thinks, every so often, that under the right circumstances he could be the baddest motherfucker in the world. If I moved to a martial-arts monastery in China and studied real hard for ten years. If my family was wiped out by Columbian drug dealers and I swore myself to revenge. If I got a fatal disease, had one year to live, devoted it to wiping out street crime. If I just dropped out and devoted my life to being bad. Hiro used to feel that way, too, but then he ran into Raven. In a way, this is liberating. He no longer has to worry about being the baddest motherfucker in the world. The position is taken."

Well, I'm twenty-five now, and I'm definitely not the baddest motherfucker in the world. But I'm almost certainly the baddest motherfucker I know.

Oh, and one last thing, considering the day that it just ceased being a few hours ago. I'm totally in love with a girl, and it rocks.

Life's pretty good right now, which probably means that the ground is about to fall out from under me. I hope it happens after I get health insurance again.

Snow

More snow pics are here. Thanks to Anna and Chris who came out with me as I walked through a blizzard to take pictures of things made of steel. As I usually do.

The job hunt continues. Hire me.

Other than that, life continues unabated. I've been spending a shocking amount of time with M and loving every minute of it. The State of New York decided to pay me for my abortive Jury Duty after all. It's tax season. My roomate's leftover green bean casserole has started using simple tools, and with the alley out back full of snow, we might have to keep it until it discovers fire.

I'm poor and busy but happy. How are y'all?

Well, it's about damn time.

It snowed. Did you notice?

Developments

If it's been unseasonably warm in New York recently, it's because all that heat needed somewhere to go � hell just froze over.