Archive for category personal
A Sunny day in Philadelphia
This past Sunday I was actually working. Luckily, I was working outside and it was a perfect weather day. The photos above were all taken around the Washington Square area in Philadelphia.
Things I Don’t Need: Part 4, eBay(ed)
Ok, so some of the stuff that I have is silly and I don’t mind just giving it away. There is more of that coming soon. But other things are worth a few bucks and eBay is a great place to “give away” some junk also. The Apple coasters are sold already (sorry), my old GameBoy pocket (also sold), a nice Beastie Boys poster, my old Tivo and lastly a Skype phone that never really got used too much. Some of this is still up, but it’s really still about getting rid of the random stuff that I’ve held onto for way too long. –>my eBay
Things I Don’t Need: Part 3, Eric Snow Bobble-head
Posted by jfx in basketball, personal on August 17th, 2009
My cleaning/organizing is still going on–I know you all though it was over. I may be slow but part 3 is here! My prized Eric Snow miniature bobble-head had been awarded to a co-worker who I knew would appreciate it. Mr. Aaron Horton, of LMBAO.org, is the winner and his reaction was just as I hoped–joy and confusion.
Eric Snow, as if you didn’t know, was the point guard for the 2000-01 76ers and helped lead the team with Allen Iverson’s help, to the NBA Finals. He is the epitome of hard working, solid, good-guy (aka not as talented) NBA players. He is one of my favorite players and yes, I do own an Eric Snow jersey. So does Aaron Horton. I knew I picked the right guy.
Montreal via NY Lakes
Last week I finally got some real time off and hit the road heading due north: Lake George, NY then Lake Placid, NY with the destination of Montreal, Canada. Montreal is an amazing city and if you haven’t been make the trip, it’s closer than Chicago (from Philly) and what they say is true – It’s like the Paris of this continent. We also happened to be in town during the Just for Laughs festival and I got to share an elevator with Jim Breuer and in a separate elevator ride, Alonzo Bodden past winner of Last Comic Standing. Most of our time was spent walking around, exploring the city. It’s a huge city and there’s a ton to see and do. One of the standout events was a free (2 nights) concert by an all women’s choir from Belguim called Scala and Kolacny Brothers. They had a huge video screen and performed behind it while lights, fireworks and a full orchestra went down. The first night they performed, it rained the whole way through and was still pretty great. We watched it again the next night (no rain) and it was a second great show. I will definitely go back to Montreal again someday (hopefully not in the Winter).
Damaged Pixels Zine
Some time ago I had a series of hard drive failures that forced me to do a lengthy overhaul of my digital archives. In the process many of my ‘recovered’ files showed up as strange versions of their previous selves. This zine is an attempt to make good from bad and move forward from the wreckage. Full color, 20 pages, limited edition of 25, signed and numbered. Buy here –> Damaged Pixels Zine
Things I Don’t Need: Part 2, TMNT Cards via 1990
I was always a TMNT fan. When I was in high school, I used to have a room full of skateboard magazine pages and posters covering my bedroom walls. There were a few band posters and a huge TMNT poster. It was a little out of place, but I liked it anyway. A few years back, I was asked to to a knock off of the turtles for a skateboard line that never saw the light of day. I bought these cards as research and then I obtained a full set, unwrapped, from a friend. So, these never were opened. These have moved with me for at least 7 years now, so I think it’s time that they found a new home. My buddy Ed was the one who loaned me the full set many moons ago. If he wants them–they are all his. Oh, and I will give you the full set back also. Ed?
Things I Don’t Need: Part 1, Next Generation Magazine collection
It’s been a little over a year since I had the pleasure of moving twice in three months time. That exercise showed me a few things, but it’s become very, very clear that I have too much stuff. Finally I’m starting to work through the chaos and I’m organizing and sorting through it all. Most of these things that I don’t need have sentimental value and/or a perceived value. I don’t just want to trash the stuff, or throw it up on eBay or Craig’s List. I want these items to have a good home, where they will be appreciated and taken care of. I don’t know how long this is gonna take, so this is part 1 of ?
The first item is my prized collection of Next Generation magazines. It’s almost every issue from the first few years of it’s existence. The magazine went from 1995 to 2002 and was unlike any video game magazine of the time. It was more grown-up, when video games were still just for kids. The paper was higher end and the design was smart and clean. Imagine if WIRED made a video game mag, that’s what it would be like, smart. They would often show detailed schematics of systems, talk about technology and its effects on people and they treated video games like an art. The rest of the world came around to this view, but it took years. Next Generation was ahead of its time. Read more at Wikipedia
Below you can see photos of a few from the collection. I really hate to give this away, but I know the perfect person to get it: Eric Smith of geekadelphia.com. When I asked Eric what he’d do if he won the lottery, his answer was flawless, “I’d smart a video game museum,” I hope that when this happens, my collection will take its place in that grand vision.
A Golden Bag
I kept this from a lunch many moons ago. I thought it was so funny at the time and I decided then to scan it for posterity. That scan finally took place today and here it is for public consumption. I’m not so sure it’s as funny as I thought it was, but hey.
New Years Road Trip: New Orleans, LA
Amy and I finally decided to take a real vacation. The plan came together very quickly and a destination was set. New Orleans, LA. The reasons were three fold. First, it is warm there. Most days the temp was around 68 degrees. Secondly, we wanted to go away, not somewhere just around the corner. Third, we wanted to be someplace new and interesting. Amy had never been to New Orleans, and I haven’t been in about 10 years.
I like to drive at night so we left late and made it through Baltimore, DC and Virginia in that first long drive. We ended up in Asheville, NC around breakfast time and found ourselves near the Biltmore Estate. The tour of the estate was too expensive for us, so we settled for the world’s nicest McDonalds, which is right outside the gates. This Mickey D’s had a fireplace, tin ceilings and a baby grand player piano (playing christmas music, of course).
Our next stop was just outside Nashville, Tennessee. We had driven quite a ways and needed a good nights rest. The next day we continued west towards Memphis. On the way Amy noticed signs for Loretta Lynn’s dude ranch. We took the excursion and explored the home of the famous country star. She had quite a spread, complete with a motocross course and much more.
We made it to Memphis around 11PM on Sunday night. This was poor planning on my part and the city was shutting down. The BBQ we wanted was closed, so we headed downtown to Beale Street. It was kind of quiet, and after a quick look around we decided to head south towards New Orleans.
The following day we rolled into New Orleans. The weather was amazing and after checking in to our hotel we started exploring. The made our way into the French Quarter for Cafe Du Monde and some beignets. A lot of walking took place. It’s just a fun city to walk and see. The architecture is unique (for the US at least) and a new place to be always feels good. The next day we got tickets for the Hornets vs. Wizards basketball game. We ate more good food, Cochon was a standout favorite. We learned out the biennial art expo Prospect 1, and just kept on going.
New Years eve was great. The city was filling up with party people and football folks in town for the Sugar Bowl. Bourbon Street was nuts. We watched the fireworks from the root of our hotel. There were fireworks in every direction, all around the city.
The next day we headed out of town. Before leaving we decided to drive to the 9th ward to see the state of things post Katrina. You hear a lot of stories about rebuilding, about Brad Pitt and Oprah but it’s hard to know what’s real. The reality is this – the 9th ward is still to this day a mess. Yes, there are some new houses and some recovery. Most of what you see is destruction and poverty. I immediately felt like someone who slows down on the highway when they see a car crash. My wife wanted to see the scope of the situation, and after some coaxing I agreed. It’s so much more complex when you see what’s really going on.
We took a slightly different route home, passing through Mississippi, Alabama, back to Nashville, and then home through Virginia. We headed straight to Lancaster county, where our hairy kids, Snoop Dogg and Punkass were staying. We really started to miss them on the journey. After picking up the boys we headed home for a 36 hour rest before I had to get back to work. This trip was much needed for Amy and I. I honestly feel very rested. Driving is a great peaceful time for me. I can’t check email, play web games, check Facebook, twitter, and check email again while driving. It gives me much needed time to think – and also, much needed time to not think.
The route, see my google map
The photos, Amy took almost 900 pictures – here is a small sample.
One video, Amy shot this at Cafe Du Monde – workers making beignets.
