easter weekend

last weekend was punctuated with several major events... well, more than that.

my good friend darin was in town from michigan. lucky for us coloradoans, he is moving our way in june... which will make another rad addition to the colorado clan. darin spent the weekend in boulder and the weekend included:

incredible hulks (for those of you who don't know, this is a drink taught to me by money mark brown from harris teeter's in nashville, tennessee. combine hypnotiq and courvousier and please stand back. instant party.)

making easter dinner with darin and my sister. who can put together a full easter dinner in 3 hours? we can. garlic chive mashed potatoes, bacon and onion green beans, and a spiral sliced glazed ham.

drinking the champagne of beers in the middle of the street at midnight. yes, hmm, that was us. we were strolling through the neighborhood trying to go to laurie's birthday, and we happened to debate the whereabouts of her house while knocking back some high lifes in the middle of 19th & Grape St. It made complete sense at the time.

meeting rip van grizzle at the boulder farmers market. boulder is one of those places filled with epic locals. rip van grizzle (pictured above) is truly a boulder legend. check out the open collar shirt in the 40 degree weather.

there are too many other things to list... let's just say it was an epic weekend.

check out my photo album for more pix, link is at top right of page.

vultures of doom

my company was recently bought out by a rival tech company, and today happened to be the day we started learning the new quoting & booking sales tool. i started the day optimisticly... i really thought this new system was going to be a welcome change. but as the day went on, bad omens crossed my path. what looked like a bright future, a land of pristine beauty, turned into a dark ominous land on the brink of disaster. as my mind drifted away from the relevant training, i found myself sketching the situation. the land at the bottom of the sketch represents happiness and hope... mountains, streams, cliffsides, pine trees, and a moose enjoying his day. but above are vultures of doom getting ready to steal, kill, and destroy. rape and pillage is the name of their game. this is obviously seen with their sickles and masks. scary vultures, i tell you. behind them are dark clouds, lightning, and god knows what will come next. you could say it's the future of the company, or you could say i was bored out of my mind. you be the judge.

click to enlarge.

best rock album in the past 12 months?

Could it be The Slip? I believe it is... their album called Eisenhower. So, if you haven't heard this album and digested it, please go buy it.

Also, by best I am already ruling out bands that sound like Coldplay or Franz Ferdinand. This is best ORIGINAL sounding rock album.

Here are a couple reasons to buy this album:

1. It's the first creative rock album I've heard in a while... really fresh.
2. They write catchy well-crafted songs that range from modern influences to classic rock.
3. They meld Jazz and Rock. Jazz Rock Fusion, if you will.
4. They once were a jam band, now they are considered an indie band. Does it get any better? That means great songs and musicians that can really play. Speaking of that genre...
5. Jim James, from My Morning Jacket, thinks they are incredible. Even asked them on tour.

So, get off your uninspired arse and go buy this album. If you don't like it after 5 listens, I'll send you some of my latest homebrew... some hennajenna steam beer.

You can buy the album here.

Peace.
-jBR v

spring is nice

if it weren't for such a disastrous winter, spring wouldn't be so appreciated. here in boulder we now have had a taste of what is to come: sunny beautiful days in the 60's and 70's. i must say that i am completely stoked for the spring and summer in boulder. to be honest, i don't think you can beat colorado at this time of year anywhere else in america.

first off, the temp is usually perfect... almost always in the 70's and low 80's in the summer. it's perfect. sure, it might warm up to the nineties for a couple weeks in august, but you still have those cool evenings and nights.

second, there is no humidity to be found. this is no ohio or tennessee summertime. no days of 90% humidity where you can slice the air, forget about it!

thirdly, we get as many sunny days as southern california. however, we have no traffic problems, no overcrowding here on 9th street, and our roads and sidewalks aren't flooded with trash.

so there you go, spring and summer do not get better than when in boulder. this wonderful weather calls for some outdoor activities, so here is what i have going on right now:

i'm still training for the boulder bolder 10k run. running has been a good experience for me. i'm up to running 2 1/2 miles or so, and not feeling like death is imminent. I've also found that everytime jay-z's "show me what you got" comes on, i develop a running swagger and feel like i can go another mile... sometimes i swing my fists or move my head back and forth like muhammed ali... or at least i run with gusto until the song finishes. but then lupe fiasco, kanye, or keane comes on and i kick it in gear once again.

the other current activity is gardening at the community garden plot. i've already spent several evenings enjoying the sunset and working hard unloading compost, digging beds, and preparing to have one kick-ass organic garden. peppers, tomatoes, and other assorted veggies will once again be in abundance for summer '07. i could go on about the importance of peat moss, organic soil, compost, and sheep shit... but i will spare you.

there it is... going to call it a night early and rest up for the next couple days. tommorrow, dinner with jenna at frasca for her birthday, then to see raq at the fox theater with friends. on friday, jenna's birthday party at d'napoli's bar. should be an epic night. wait, definitely will be an epic night. no question.

peace
-rusty

southern cali trip

Until I write more about my trip to California,
here are a few pictures from the voyage.
-rusty

"a deceptive hue"
this was taken in manhattan beach as the sun set over the pacific ocean. the glow was magnificent, but notice the golden brownish color over the water. that's what you call smog, blown in from los angeles by the santa ana winds. how delicious.

"the dream"

a vw bus, parked at swami's self realization center (a center for eastern monks), and looking over the ocean. i can guarantee this is someone's dream and they are living it. notice the seahorse on the door. rad.

"the end is near"

as if you needed to know that the road ends here. but it's more than the road, it feels like the end of the world. it kind of is though, in a way. it's the end of america. that's what i loved about living on the coast, that feeling of being on the edge, perched west with nothing in sight except for the mighty ocean.

"encinitas 101"

southern cali has it's high points and low points, and i think encinitas is one of the best things around. it's like lemonade on a hot day. encintas embodies the socal beach town. yes, it's busy these days. but man is it chill. and the fish tacos at filibertos... don't get me started.

"the learner"
after all the scenery pix, i figured it would be best to show you one of our nights around 2 am. so, you say "learner" is not a word? well, the definition is above. i have a feeling this is going to be an album cover. just imagine "the learner" hand written in the top left hand corner. "the learner" might learn the hard way, but he learns in the process. sometimes the process is several pitchers of stella for two, sometimes it means scheduling a 7 am hike after a night on the town. both things "the learner" does and kicks ass doing them... even if it hurts. "the learner", don't forget it.

stanton avenue - albert olexia

Some of you know that my grandfather passed away in 2006, and that in his honor i wrote a folk song. I recorded it in early December in Nashville with Justin Loucks. My grandfather and I used to sing folk songs together, so it was a fitting tribute and a song that effortlessly came out on the day I heard of Grampy's passing. It's a sad story, but it's also a meaningful and joyful tribute to a man who lived until the ripe age of 87, went through a war, was the son of slovak immigrants, and who became the mayor of his town Mingo Junction, which he affectionately called the Queen of the Ohio Valley. It's called Stanton Avenue, the street where Grampy spent his first and last days. I think he would love it.

You can listen to it here.

denver OR what makes the world go round

we took the public transportation to denver.
you might say it looks like the future, or a great
album cover. ha, if you want to use it as your
album cover, let me know.

we're lucky to have an amazing bus system
in the front range area, so going to denver
is quite easy. and like all public transportation,
we are fortunate to have a nice colorful cast of
entertaining people. this time my sister and
i were accompanied by three alternative
college kids. not your frat stars, but rather
morepunk rock semi-hipster but not pretentious
type guys.oh, and they were wasted and standing
above jenna and i while we snapped pictures
and had a great time. so, through the adventure
of the bus system, we made some friends.
public transport might not give you lifelong
friends, but the joys of temporary friendships
are what make the world go round.

after going to brooklyn's in downtown and meeting
my co-workers, imbibing in some makers mark, and
noshing on some appetizers, we made our way over
to the denver nuggets game. in case you are
clueless about the nba, the nuggets have two of the
most entertaining and successful players in the
league: allen iverson and carmelo anthony.
and in a sports league built on entertainment,
we don't have to settle for second rate stars
in denver. we have a.i. and melo.
check out melo below, finishing up a dunk.
in the hype of the nba, it's nice to have guys who live up to it.
you could say they also make the world go round.

we made it back to boulder at 2:30 am and had some
delicious sandwiches at jimmy johns.
i swear the beach club on thick sliced wheat bread
could give a challenge to anything else
claiming to make the world go round.
even melo and a.i., even temporary friendships.

peace.

the melodica - reggae in your jeggae

to add to the many hobbies i already have going, i decided to purchase an old-school instrument used in dub reggae in the 60's and 70's. it's called a melodica and was popularized in reggae by an artist named augustus pablo. jump on itunes and check out his stuff if you haven't already. it's super relaxed dubby instrumental stuff. anyway, the melodica is a small keyboard with a mouthpiece on one end. so, you blow into it and play some notes and out comes the reggae.

with the melodica arriving shortly, and the arsenal of percussion and ukulele i already possess... i have a feeling there will be some rasta jam sessions in the near future.

here's a mini set list i'm thinking about (w/ some of my favorite songs... download on itunes at your own risk... but you will love them):

burning spear - slavery days
bob marley - stir it up
the abyssinians - satta massagana
augustus pablo - east of the nile river
danny livingston - reggae in your jeggae

also, check out the above video to see the melodica in action with the uke. my melodica is the exact same model, except it is green like jamaica.

peace.

the flatirons - winter oh seven

"winter's run"

"winter's glaze"

"winter's fog"

"just winter"

by rusty.



i promise i will post a proper blog sometime soon,
but here are some pictures i shot this afternoon.

whygo.com

If you need some inspiration to travel, check out whygo.com. Everyday they feature a travel-related quote or a picture of a far away land. They featured another one of my photos, seen above. It's nothing special, just a shot with the lomo fisheye. Scroll through the quotes, you'll be traveling before you know it.

"A man of ordinary talent will always be ordinary, whether he travels or not; but a man of superior talent (which I cannot deny myself to be without being impious) will go to pieces if he remains forever in the same place."
-Mozart

I.J.R.

Here's a portrait of I.J.R. that I took.

briguy, what do you think of the shots?
what can i do to make them better?

-r'fari

"yep" by thomas campbell

Above is a snapshot of my new painting. To say the least, I am completely stoked to have some original art by Thomas Campbell. The brownish sketches are a silkscreen on giclee paper, and all the color you see has been painted by the artist. I first discovered Thomas Campbell after watching a surfing documentary he directed called "Sprout". Sprout is an incredible movie that aims to show "how truly lucky we are to live in the lush life of the ocean experience, and to emphasize all the diverse possibilities we have in accessing this fountain of youth". He's a dreamer, surfer, and he has the best narration voice ever. Trust me, go find this movie, have some good beer, and totally veg out.

Thomas Campbell makes art that is dreamy, whimsical, and grateful... which is why I like it. In 2006 he was featured in the New York Times, and I am completely stoked to own a cool piece of art such as this. Check out the video on youtube for a bigger take on his work. Elements from my print/painting are seen in this overview of the exhibit "Beautiful Losers".