peppering

Ice Cube + glass house

2011-12-09T11:42:00.000-08:00

This video of Ice Cube getting off on Eames absolutely made my day. Who says rappers don't care about intelligent design?

Before rapping, he studied architectural drafting where, "One thing I learned is that, you always gotta have a plan."

The spectacular house merges the outdoors with the indoors. "The Eames made structure and nature one. This is going green 1949 style, bitch. Believe that."

everybody stop crying

2011-10-15T11:08:00.000-07:00

Fortunately for me, I almost never blush. Or cry. These things happen only once in a great long while, and thank fuck, they are fleeting.

I also have no stomach for seeing people crying. Crying is ruining reality television. (Never mind that it was already pre-ruined just by being itself.)

Yet, tears came out at an Adele song on the radio. She's so young and so soulful, she just kills it. And then this morning, I cried upon hearing that my favorite band broke up. Rather, Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore broke up after 27 years.

Sonic Youth is now a very important archive. Fuck.

Kim and Thurston should cover Richard and Linda Thompson's Walking on a Wire. Shit, that could make me cry too.

Plaid cotton shirt, sprayed-on Levi's, flats

2011-10-08T08:24:00.000-07:00

We're going to Grueune and I'm dressed for it. There's a wine + food festival with a bunch of local purveyors and it's held at Texas' oldest dancehall. It'll be our first time there; firsts are always fun.

If you're going to move to Austin, there are things you're gonna hear

2011-09-25T16:24:00.000-07:00

To newcomers, everyone says, "Welcome to Austin" and now I'm saying it to others. Scientifically or otherwise, this place is warm.

We like it when people move in here. We need the bright smiles of people who've tasted a salty ocean breeze on their lips, who've had winters where salt dries in funny shapes on their boots. People who've felt the heartbeat of New York, if even once. I like them all.

When I meet someone from San Francisco, I will basically pounce, knowing that we have some of the same familiarities. The bracing, abrupt aroma of ammonia splashed onto the sidewalks and alleys of the Mission, where some bars so dark, you actually cannot see your feet in front of you.

Some of the language spoken here includes universally agreed-upon mispronunciations of certain towns, streets, and landmarks. "Manor" rhymes with Gloria "Gaynor." "Guadaloupe" ends with a "p," and an entire syllable is missing from the end of "Manchaca." It's even spelled "Manchack" on a new corner store sign.

This place is so agreeable that people will move here twice. You'll hear, "Well, when I lived here the second time" or "That used to be my place when I lived here before" And me, I'm on my first time.

Two years from now is too far away to know.

San Francisco doesn't get to 100 degrees

2011-08-07T15:46:00.000-07:00

This nice anomaly is a desktop screenshot with an actual time 'n' temperature stamped on it live from Austin last week. The boat is from 2,000 miles away -- and also two years ago.

It's the view from the yacht club in San Francisco. A place we've logged a lot of hours and even more laughs. It's where a lot of forgotten hoodies and peacoats live.