Lightning History

room with a view.

2009-09-05T11:04:00.001-07:00

Our house was featured on Apartment Therapy. They made it look beautiful. Take a look.

lucy.

2009-08-28T12:55:00.000-07:00

waterfalls.

2009-08-08T22:20:00.000-07:00

Damn this video is amazing. Up yours, TLC.

1958-???

2009-06-25T14:53:00.000-07:00

d+d joke center.

2009-06-25T14:15:00.000-07:00

Doug and Denver's comedy night at Big Fish manages to be a hundred times more compelling on This American Life than it has ever been in person. I appreciate how the video acknowledges that they always seem embarrassed by the existence of the show, and yet continue to do it. Frankly though, I think that Billy Dilly (the inebriate seen in the last few moments of the clip) would have made just as interesting a segment.

recollection - the marks.

2009-06-24T11:09:00.000-07:00

When I was a man-cub of 17, I worked at the Blockbuster video in the Loehmann's mini-mall at roughly the corner of Tampa and Victory in Reseda. Of the myriad bizarre encounters I experienced there (which could easily justify their own blog, as justification for a blog amounts to nothing more than the Cartesian affirmation, "I think therefore...") none were more memorable than my daily interactions with Mark. Mark were identical twins, both named Mark, who were on a mission to write an everyman guide to 15,000 motion pictures, ironic since they weren't like anymen I had ever known. I never did establish why that 15,000 number was relevant, maybe that was how many movies blockbuster had available for rent at any given time. All I know is that they would occasionally spange at the Mobil station that sat catty-corner from my workplace, and would then bring their winnings to the video store and would rent at least one movie a day. It took me a while to figure out that there were two of them, since they didn't usually come in together. There was also a mystical third Mark (we never met), who was adopted and black, and whose affiliations were known only through his use of the same rental account (their mothers).

I left that job, and then left the valley, and as time wore on, the memory of the Marks drifted from my mind. But I was recently reintroduced to them via my friend and former co-worker Joe, who discovered Marks's youtube channel and forwarded it to me. It isn't totally clear to me if these videos consist of one or both Marks, but what is apparent is that Mark(s) is(/are) obsessed with Miley Cyrus, and all of the videos are shot at Burger King. Enjoy.

earotica.

2009-06-23T11:27:00.000-07:00

I kind of love cleaning my ears. If you don' know what I'm talking about, then earwax is gross and I'm totally just kidding. But if you get what I mean, then read on.

I don't know if Freud ever discussed an aural stage, but I definitely went through one and it has become a latent fixation of sorts. When I swab, I don't just tease the perimeter of the antihelix. I get deep into each ear canal, double penetrating my skull, and turn slowly, counterclockwise, so I can feel the little swab fibers dragging along the nerve endings there. The sensation is so orgasmic that the motion actually cranks my head upwards, and I stare at the drooping spots in the ceiling paint that have been caused by overflowing water from the bathroom in the upstairs unit. I've actually considered conducting this ritual outside, so that I could stare at the heavens while I work, and also to spare my girlfriend the jarring experience of stumbling into the bathroom in the morning to find me with my hands in my ears and my eyes rolled back in my head, jaw occasionally dangling.

The problem with this indulgence is that, like most things that make life worth living, it can kill you (see here). Enter United States Patent 5147288. The cotton swab with depth prevention mechanism:

A cotton swab, comprising: an ear canal engaging portion of a small enough diameter to fit within and clean the inside surface of an ear canal...the ear cavity enlarging portion serving to prevent depth penetration of the ear canal engaging portion beyond a predetermined length....

Registered in 1992, the seventeen year protection on this patent is about to expire, and I urge any and all producers of cotton swabs to take note. I will be the first in line at CVS to acquire these wonders, which I have not been able to find anywhere.

cute.

2009-06-22T11:00:00.001-07:00

Pink port-a-potty.

michel gondry portraits.

2009-06-17T10:04:00.000-07:00

A month or two ago, there was an option on Michel Gondry's web site that allowed you to send a photo and 20 dollars in exchange for a caricature of the photo, drawn by Gondry (It has now been raised to a $100 purchase with his new DVD compilation). I'm not a huge fan of his work, but I thought the idea was cute, so I sent in photos of Genevieve and myself. I thought we were going to receive simple pen and paper drawings, so when I got the watercolor and sharpie interpretations below I was able to forgive him for making me blond and bearded, and for making my girlfriend look like a man (sorry Gen, I'll take it down if you want). Besides, he nailed my pointy elf ear. Sorry for the crappy cell-phone pictures.

The originals:

and the drawings:

os mutantes.

2009-06-12T13:23:00.000-07:00

Performing at the Echoplex on August 28. Tickets here.

a brief conversation with the lunch lady about my necklace.

2009-06-12T11:56:00.000-07:00

"What is that?"

"It's an acorn. Part of a set. My girlfriend has the other one."

"Is hers an acorn too?"

"No, it's a thimble."

"Why?"

"It's a Peter Pan reference. Have you ever read the book?"

"No."

"Seen the movie?"

"No. Is it a porno?"

"...yes."

"What kind?"

"...With children."

"My favorite."

There was laughter while this was going on, but it reads better as a monotone dialogue, don't you think?

mega man 3 with vocal audio.

2009-06-11T12:11:00.000-07:00

The fastest catharsis I've ever experienced.

nature and infrastructure in san francisco.

2009-06-11T10:10:00.000-07:00

andy goldsworthy.

2009-06-10T12:46:00.000-07:00

Permanent work outside of the De Young museum in San Francisco.

meatball cupcakes.

2009-06-08T10:08:00.000-07:00

meatballs, mashed potatoes, chive sprinkles, and a cherry tomato on top.

wang dang doodle.

2009-06-04T14:51:00.000-07:00

Koko Taylor, 1928-2009.

Life Mask by Sharon McConnell.

david carradine, 1936-2009.

2009-06-04T11:20:00.001-07:00

hey girl.

2009-06-03T13:41:00.000-07:00

Small Faces, 1967 I believe.

whatcha see is whatcha get.

2009-06-02T14:42:00.000-07:00

The Dramatics. Soul Train, 1971.

for the meager price of a european vacation.

2009-06-02T10:31:00.000-07:00

Crocodile skin spanking paddle.

Luxury sex toys from Kiki de Montparnasse. I suppose in the right setting these could pass for Terence Koh pieces. My question is, who are you going to brag to about rubbing 18k gold on your cunt? No word back from the company on my idea, which is a rabbit filled with matched strand natural pearls, and diamond tipped clitoris stimulating ears.

Pearl Restraints

$2,400.00

Indulge in beauty, pleasure and play with harvested pearls, a classic erotic symbol. Adorn and restrain yourself or your lover in a luxurious ten feet of strung pearls. Enjoy a distinctive sensual experience with the smooth shape and organic textures of nature. Exclusive to Kiki de Montparnasse.

Each piece finished with rich metal signature loops.
Wear pearl strand as necklace or full body jewelry.
Pull strand through metal loops to create restraint cuffs.
Handmade by the renowned craftsmen of E.R. Butler & Co.

Intimacy Travel Wallet

$95.00

Always be prepared for an intimate endeavor with this beautiful leather condom and lubricant travel wallet. This on-the-go must-have comes with our Kiki select condoms and a mini personal lubricant.

Logo stamped on the inside.
Genuine leather.
Three select condoms included.
3 ml personal lubricant included.

Yva

$1,500.00

This petite luxury personal vibrator is designed for ultimate comfort. Available in 18K gold plate or stainless steel, this sensuously crafted vibe offers multiple speeds for pleasure options.

Shaped for clitoral stimulation with moderate vibrations.
Operates at discreet volume.
Rechargeable.
Comes with black silk pouch in elegant signature box.

Hammered Trilipse C-Ring

$1,225.00

Explore intimacy with these exquisitely crafted cock rings in rich hammered silver. Enjoy long, loving interludes and share a variety of sensual experiences in its unique texture and shape with your lover. Exclusive to Kiki de Montparnasse.

Available in different sizes and as a set to be worn on the penis from base to tip.
Each piece is handmade by the renowned craftsmen of E.R. Butler & Co.
Comes with a satin cord to wear as a necklace.

personalizing the cubicle.

2009-05-29T09:40:00.000-07:00

When I got to work, my coworker had hung this kindergarten triptych by push pins above my desk. Fantastic.

on not outshining my high school peers.

2009-05-28T10:36:00.000-07:00

me: jonah lehrer had an article in the new yorker. i think it was about making me feel unaccomplished.

Aron: haha

me: or thats what i took away from it at least.

Aron: hahaha
that man does not necessarily exist
if you examine his cheek glow, some inconsistencies like
the color of his skin + the color of his hair
there are definitely inconsistencies in the total picture

thanks, aron.

skimmy.

2009-05-28T09:32:00.000-07:00

I've had this wonderful cat since I was 8 years old.

brief interview with bless collaborator samuel de goede.

2009-05-27T09:39:00.000-07:00

All photos from Ooga Booga's web site.

"She also said she would give him a kiss if he liked, but Peter did not know what she meant, and held out his hand expectantly.
"Surely you know what a kiss is?" she asked, aghast.
"I shall know when you give it to me," he replied stiffly;
and not to hurt his feelings she gave him a thimble.
"Now," said he, "shall I give you a kiss?" and she replied with a slight primness,
"If you please." she made herself rather cheap by inclining her face toward him, but he merely dropped an acorn button into her hand; so she slowly returned her face to where it had been before, and said nicely that she would wear his kiss on the chain round her neck."

A few months ago, I stumbled upon a brilliant necklace set at Ooga Booga. Hidden inside small pockets that had been carved out of the Penguin edition of J.M.Barrie's Peter Pan, were a silver thimble and a silver acorn, a lover's take on the friendship necklace. The bit of information on the packaging explained that the set had been created as a collaboration between art-fashion group Bless and designer Samuel de Goede. Through the magic of internet stalking, I was able to contact de Goede, who, after I fanned out on him, agreed to answer a few questions for me via e-mail. Our brief conversation below:

-How did you become involved with BLESS? Were you already working for them? Or did they contact you?

My relationship with BLESS started with me modeling for them at an exhibition opening they did here in Amsterdam. Shortly after that I had the opportunity to go to Berlin for an internship with them, and out of that grew a friendship.
We've always stayed in contact and right from the start they have been nothing but super enthusiastic and supportive of me.

When I was visiting Berlin again and sat down for a coffee with them, they asked me whether I would be interested in coming up with something for BLESSadvanced.
I felt quite honored as they had only done a couple of "advanced's" before and I believe I was also the first intern to have done something with them beyond interning...

-What made you choose Peter Pan as a reference? Is there any significance to the use of silver?

I always liked the Peter Pan story, but I basically only knew the Disney version which I remembered from my childhood. At a certain point I got really curious about the original story by J.M. Barrie.

I'm really fond of books like Peter Pan that are written for children and thus kept reasonably simple but still manage to say a lot and in several layers.
Actually the moment I read that passage where Peter and Wendy exchange "kisses" it was all there, it felt as if the only thing I needed to do was to lift it off the pages and bring it to life.

It's such a simple idea, and I love it in all it's simplicity. That fact, that a kiss which is in its essence something fleeting, could become an object to hold and carry with you but still "magically" contain the energy that a kiss holds, is really beautiful in my opinion.
So I didn't so much pick Peter Pan as a reference. You could say the whole project would've never existed had I never read the book. That passage made the project come to life.

With regards to silver, it's a personal preference mainly, I myself really like silver and I felt that it fitted the idea more, with old thimbles traditionally being silver as well.
I also find that gold can easily be a little too "flashy" , and didn't find it suitable for the "intimacy" of the project. The actual thimble and acorn are fairly large and I thought that gold would make them far too much like big shiny object around ones neck.

Added to that I really like how silver ages, and darkens over time, it sort of "changes" along with you.

-Did you have to procure any rights in order to publish the book? or was it public domain?

We didn't actually publish the book ourselves, the original idea was always to somehow include the book as a part of the packaging and after looking at several different versions I chose this pocket edition from Penguin as I found it a very charming small publication.
I actually think they do an exceptionally good job with their pocket series in general. I contacted them to ask if I could use the book as a part of the packaging for a small art/design project and we took it from there.
J.M. Barrie handed over the actual rights to the Peter Pan story to the Great Ormond Street Hospital in London in 1929, but I believe the copyright status has since become a little complicated.

-What publisher did you use (if you were involved in that process)? Was it done in-house?

Penguin supplied me with as much of the finished books as we needed, I then brought them to a bookbinder here in Amsterdam (all production for the project has been done locally in Amsterdam) and had them cut open the book and insert blank pages of the same paper on the page before the passage (it is a little lighter than the paper that was in the book already but this is inevitable due to the printing process making the paper a little grey-ish), punch the holes out and put the book back together with a new spine.
After re-assembly I personally underlined the specific passage and numbered the books by hand with a blue fountain pen.

-What are you working on now?

I've recently been brought on board to do the creative direction for a new men's clothing store to be opened here in Amsterdam at the end of the summer, we're really doing some interesting stuff with that.
Next to that I do a small denim line called Wild Child & Co. together with Kiya Babzani from Self Edge, we've been working on some denim shirts/jackets and leather accessories so far.

I've also been busy thinking of what to do with my own website, as it currently only shows a one-off necklace project I did a little while ago (those are my own wisdom teeth).
The plan is to certainly keep working with jewelery, but for now it'll most likely only be little projects for myself and friends. Am actually waiting on the first sample for a bracelet I designed, see how that turns out and I'll take it from there...

Another thing I'm excited about working on is a a post-apocalyptic "Mood Blog" called "After The End". I do it together with Lars, a friend from Canada. We really only just started but it's going places!

And finally, I'm working on some other things that are probably better kept under wraps for a little longer...

black magic roller coaster.

2009-05-22T10:07:00.000-07:00

My pal Michael recently turned me on to this group. Obvious idea I suppose, but the staggering amount of work and love that went into these spoofs is motivating. Enjoy.