Doodles From A Dream

Wicked Site: Emitations.com

2009-11-30T12:28:00.000-05:00

Emitations.com has tons of fashionable jewelry at prices that won't make you cringe. And a decent selection that is more expensive but looks like the kind of stuff you'd wear to the Oscars. (And I'm guessing it's much cheaper than the stuff that's actually worn to the oscars.) They also have lots of celebrity inspired jewelry. It's the best site for glamours jewelry that doesn't have to cut into your shoe budget.

Pictured jewelry clockwise: Puglia Faux Pearl Dangle Drop Earrings about $21,Caressa's Heart Charm Necklace about $15, Inspired by Twilight: Bella's Turquoise Cuff Bracelet about $20, Rialto's CZ Amethyst Cocktail Ring about $25.

Thingy: Charlie Brown Christmas Tree

2009-11-29T00:27:00.001-05:00

Normal trees are overrated. And take up a ton of space - go Charlie Brown this christmas, for only $20.

Movement: The SOLD Project

2009-02-16T21:43:00.000-05:00

An estimated 2 million children, the majority of them girls, are sexually exploited in the multi billion dollar commercial sex industry. – UNICEF

Child prostitution is a huge problem. The Sold Project is aiming to stop it before it begins. They're doing just that by raising money to keep kids from Northern Thailand in school, so that they don't have to travel to the cities for work, where they'll most likely end up in the sex business. They're a small grassroots organization armed with statistics, a passionate crew, and a new film, The Sold Project Thailand. They haven't reached the size of one of my other favorite charities Invisible Children, but they're off to an amazing start, and I can tell they're going to be big. Change the world big.

The SOLD Project: Thailand trailer from The SOLD Project on Vimeo.

Random Links to A Not-So-Random News Story

2009-02-08T14:06:00.006-05:00

People are really backing up Phelps on this one. Maybe public opinion of marijuana is changing. Maybe people don't care because they're more concerned with the whole "Our Economy is in the Crapper" thing. Various Facebook groups and peti tions have popped up in support of Phelps, urging people to boycott Kellogg. It seems like supporters may be having an impact. When you call Kellogg's customer service, you get this message"Thank you for calling the Kellogg Company. If you would like to share your comments regarding our relationship with Michael Phelps, please press one to speak to a representative. If you're calling about the recent peanut butter recall, please press two now. Otherwise, press three or stay on the line. Thank you." Are more people calling about Michael Phelps than the peanut butter recall?

It's going to be interesting to see how the situation plays out.

What I Did In Algebra

2009-02-03T10:00:00.000-05:00

"Why don't you try reading the rules shankapotamous!"

2009-02-02T10:28:00.000-05:00

All over the blogosphere and media today, is the review of the Super Bowl. Or the Super Bowl commercials. I have 15 minute to kill before The Office comes on, so I though I'd get a post out of the way. There's no way in hell I'm actually going to provide any kind of insight or review of all of these commercials. To be honest I didn't see all of them. However I did pick a favorite. (Well of the ones I saw at least. I was making dinner, I didn't catch everything.) Here it is.

Golf Baby

Then I was googling it and found a reel of Outtakes that are priceless

Another Random Doodle

2009-02-01T15:00:00.003-05:00

Random Doodle

2009-01-29T16:35:00.004-05:00

Random Mini Happy News Story

2009-01-09T00:04:00.003-05:00

Invisible Children is planning a "Big Event"

My guess is it'll actually end up being huge given their last two events The Global Night Commute and Displace Me.

Wicked Site: Glogster

2009-01-08T18:14:00.009-05:00

So my guess is if you're reading this, you have a blog. Or at least you know what blogging is. Or you're Amish, 100 years old, or just now leaving Liveunderarock and staring at the screen and wondering what the hell this fancy contraption is. (If you really are that lost please click here to see a definition of blogging.)Glogging is like blogging with more Gs and less Bs. Alphabetically anyway. Really the two are very similar but glogging uses more pictures than words. It's like getting a virtual piece of paper and adding pictures, music, videos, and graphics to it. Sure you can do a bit of the same thing on your blog, but it's a heck of a lot easier on glogster. (See example in previous blog entry.)

The upsides.

+When you're done, your finished product sometimes looks like it could be in a magazine. Which I find kind of cool.

+You can easily share your glog with family and friends. (You can even post your glog to Blogger right after publishing it.)

+You can post just about any kind of media on your glog.

+It's really helpful if you want creative way to blog, but often have writers block, or words just don't seem to do your "genius" justice.

The downsides.

+There are a ton of graphics and fonts to choose from, but you can't really create your own on their site. (Though you might be able to upload them in the form of a picture.)

+You can't save your work as you go along. This can be really bad if you're like me and you always have a ton of windows open and accidently navigate away from pages a lot. (Thank you blogger for auto-saving for me!)

+There's a ridiculous G point system. It's basically just to motivate users to be active on their site. For the most part you can ignore it, but you won't be able to start new topics on Glogster's message boards if you don't have enough G points.

+Also whenever you go to the home page, you'll notice a lot of people just post a big photograph with depressing song lyrics and/or poetry. (Maybe because there's an entire category of graphics dedicated to "Emo." Can some one please explain this Emo trend to me?)

Check it out here.

Oh look, a Glog

2009-01-07T18:56:00.000-05:00

Podcast: The Midwest Teen Sex Show

2009-01-05T18:37:00.002-05:00

Sex Sells. It's also pretty damn funny. I'm talking about The Midwest Teen Sex Show the podcast about teen sexuality made from only the finest organic ingredients. They say that sex is happening, not all teens are doing it, and not all are abstaining either. The Midwest Teen Sex Show talks about a range of topics in a helpful yet snarky lingo (See quotes)It's been said that the podcast it to be used more as a conversation starter rather than an educational resource. They really only scratch the surface when it somes to some of the issues.

So why watch a podcast about sex? (And there's no porn, not even in the episode about porn,if you were wondering.) Sure there's some valuable information in it, but most of the podcast consists of tounge-in-cheek humor and various skits parodying teenagers and whatever topic they're covering this month.

The Midwest Teen Sex Show's audience reaches way beyond teens. They've reached 20 and 30 somethings and even parents. (I also remember hearing something about grandparents, you should really be monitoring their internet usage, they might spend your inheritance on internet poker if you're not careful. Or maybe internet bingo.) The parents episode is one of the best, even though "Madge the Vag" kind of gives me the creeps.

The only downside is that episodes are released monthly. They've got 21 out now, but depending on your level of boredom, you could get through all of those in one afternoon. On the upside they do have a live show on Tuesdays at 10 ET on their website. However I can't really vouch for the funniness or lack of funniness this may contain, because I haven't seen it yet. (There were kind of these holidays going on in the past two weeks, and you're supposed to hang with your family... and stuff.) Although if you're left wanting more, and it's not Tuesday, the whole "Take our Survey!" thing you might see on their website, is totally worth it, the bonus scenes are priceless.

You can subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, or find them on their website.

Random Happy News Stories

2009-01-04T18:16:00.006-05:00

The world sucks. In my attempt to be less pessimistic, (for the moment at least) here's some happy news.

+A lady in Connecticut won the lottery from a ticket her husband bought a few hours before he died.

+I always though algae was kind of gross, but if it's going to save us from global warming, I think it's pretty cool.

+Some scientists have found out that true love can last a lifetime.

+A brother and sister were reunited in England. Turns out they were living 300 yards away from each other. "I have walked past her house lots of times and I have even seen her in the garden. I have walked past her in the street and never realized it was my sister," he said. I guess there weren't any jokes about being poopy head exchanged, cause that would have been a dead giveaway.

+Here's an adorable video of Michelle Obama talking about when she first met Barack and their first date.

+And here are some cool benches. I'm slightly tempted to go to Istanbul just to sit on the one that looks like a book.

Kick Ass Program: Got Noise

2008-12-30T22:08:00.004-05:00

So I am a fan of filmmaking. I am also a fan of teenagers making films. (Well, most of them anyway.) So a few, or several, months ago, I posted an entry about Samsung Mobile Fresh Films. I also got to have the amazing experience of participating in their program last summer. Well they have a new sibling in the form of the Got Noise? program. (It's sponsored by milk.... get it yet?) If accepted into the Got Noise program they'll fly you out to L.A. for a week to make Usher's new music video with other teens from across the country. The coolest thing about the program? They give you the equipment, guidance and everything you need to make the music video, but you get to make a lot of the decisions. (AKA you might be able to work it in that Usher is shirtless in your general vicinity at some point. Possibly.) Now I leave you with a really cool promo video and a link. Oh, and did I mention you could win a MacBook?

Wicked Sites: Finding the Perfect Presents

2008-12-16T16:17:00.000-05:00

It's December. You can tell by all the chesnuts, Snowmen, Santas, Jesuses, and jewlery commercials that are blasted at you anytime you have contact with the outside world. The holidays are upon us, meaning we have to find presents for people. Here are a few sites I find really helpful for getting out of this conundrum.

Gifts.com has a personalit y profiler to help you find gifts for people. I've found it pretty handy, they give you a ton of options for each personality so there's bound to be something perfect in there. It's also very helpful for finding gifts to give yourself, and there's no harm in steering your friends and family to the site so they can be sure to find gifts to fit your personality. (Ok, sometimes I find myself pretend shopping for myself with my imaginary million dollars on here, it's just like they know me.)

Changing the Present is like a database for gifts that give back. I was surprised at how many small ones there were (six pages of gifts under $5!) Have a friend that's all for saving the environment? $11 reduces 2,000 pounds of carbon (or 6,000 miles of air travel) or $125 can adopt a Polar Bear from Defenders of Wildlife. There are also micro credit loans, (around $40 to $500 give loans to help small businesses in developing countries) education gifts, (everything from school supplies, tuition, and uniforms for students in need) and research (things like $67 for 1/2 and hour of Breast Cancer research or $100 for 300 DNA samples for the Strang Cancer Prevention Center.) There's something for everyone.

Uncommon Goods could be the solution for the person who has everything. Products range from funny, useful and even recycled. There's stuff like picture frames and bowls made from vinyl records and bags made from reclaimed billboards. Oh and if you need to furnish your home you could always get the rocking chair made of skies. Or if you have $3700 laying around you could get the Road Tested Chair made from "Walk/Don't Walk" signs from New York City. I could go on for a while, this site is packed with unusual stuff, and it can be addicting.

P.S. Sarah Haskins sums up the ridiculous-ness of all those annoying jewelry commercials.

"For once I'd love to drive down a road and actually get lost" Show I'd Love to Save

2008-12-14T22:03:00.003-05:00

So I seem to have a thing for cancelled TV shows. Or TV shows that get axed before they're even aired. We live in a world where there are more votes in most reality shows than elections and the People Choice awards have a category for youtube videos (actually more than one.) Quality TV, smart TV, and non-cheesy TV are rarely aired anymore.

So a few days ago I found a hidden gem in this world of mutilated quality TV. "What Goes On" is a drama about a bunch of kids living in the suburbs. There are a million ways this plot line could go wrong, but "What Goes On" has a surprisingly fresh air to it while still remaining realistic. The show was scheduled to air on The-N in 2007, until something happened and something else happened causing "What Goes On" to be axed into oblivion. (I have no idea what exactly went on behind the scenes, but given what that channel has turned into, it's not that surprising they discarded quality to restock tweeny-bopper rubbish.)

Head on over to the Sri & Company Website for a trailer (I can't link to it directly, click on "Our Work" at the bottom, the the "What Goes On" tape, make sure you let it load all the way)

Oh, and that amazing song in the trailer is called "Fireworks" by Threes and Nines.

Then I have youtube links (yay!)

Each episode is only a half hour long (Though the first two kind of go together) and they've got a bit of a "Skins" vibe to them, they alternate which character they follow in different episodes.

Here's the user page that has all the videos.

And the first part of the pilot.

Wicked Site: Post Secret

2008-10-16T17:03:00.003-04:00

Ever have a secret you wanted to get off your chest, but didn't want to tell anyone? Meet Post Secret, a blog/book/event/organization where people anonymously send in their secrets. There's an emotion for every secret, and every Sunday I find myself relating to a secret sent in by a stranger.

Read People's Secrets every Sunday

Watch Videos of Secrets

Send in a few of your own

Thingy: Cheesetastic TV

2008-10-04T17:00:00.004-04:00

You know what's fun? Cheesy TV. Seriously. Those after school special-esque melodramatic shows you'd never admit to watching because you love to complain about all the crap on TV these days. My recent cheesy obsession? Degrassi: The Next Generation

They may have dramatic moments like this, that can either be seen as dramatic or cheesy

but then they also have moments like this

I post this because it it Degrassi Spirit Week at the-n.com and I have been feeling very spirit-y. Plus I feel guilty that I spend more time there, than I do blogging here. I think I'll blame Canada.

Pictures from Chi-town

2008-09-13T02:20:00.007-04:00

So since I'm returning, again, and it's late, I'm at a loss of what to post, so how about some pictures?

Bad Ass Bloggers

2008-07-02T21:34:00.002-04:00

I saw this on Current. Blogging is Bad Ass.

P.S. I'm working on new blogs, but I'm having difficulty getting some stable internet connections,

I'll be back home July 10th so I should be fully back then, or around then.

Also, what's with airports charging for wifi?

I thought technology was supposed to make things more accessible.

Proof That America Is Crazy

2008-06-24T22:46:00.004-04:00

Legally Blonde.... the Musical. Yeah. Oh and they have a reality show too. I think Joel McHale's comments sum it up best.

The Great Computer Crash of June 2008

2008-06-23T01:15:00.004-04:00

So I've come to the conclusion that I have put off posting again for long enough. I hate how I can't seem to get some kind of regularity here. This time it wasn't entirely my fault though, my computer died. I had to back up my stuff, and then get the hard drive replaced. Unfortunately I have yet to figure out if I can retrieve my bookmarks for my back-up drive (or if they're even on there.) So I have to work on building that back up, and I'm afraid my blog may suffer a bit as I don't have all my links committed to memory. Among them I also lost the links to some of the blogs I read, which bums me out a bit. Thankfully I can still get to the cool ones since those people have left me comments ;)

Storm Pictures

2008-06-03T19:45:00.003-04:00

Some pictures from the storm that knocked out the power. It's finally back on.

Rain Drops.
Probably as close as I got to actually capturing a bolt of lightning, the camera was too slow, my brother got some pictures that turned out ok, but he has a super nice camera and wasn't willing to share.
Sometimes the lightning was so bright and constant it also seemed like daylight.
This was actually taken around 11pm (I'm guessing) It was surreal.

Thingy: Blue for Roseline Bracelet

2008-06-02T18:05:00.005-04:00

An accessory that helps save the world! Well maybe not, but it makes a difference, plus they're uber-cool.

If you don't know about Invisible Children, 1) Where have you been? 2) Prepare to be amazed, inspired, shocked, uplifted, and empowered. 3) Here's a video to explain it

And here's the Roseline Video

"Hiatus"

2008-06-02T13:18:00.002-04:00

My power has been out since Friday, and it might not be back on until next Friday. Until then...

A Clip From My Favorite "That 70's Show" Episode

2008-05-30T15:55:00.002-04:00

Let's go to Canada!

Link to second blog

2008-05-30T10:35:00.002-04:00

Well, I have no patience when it comes to creating these things apparently. I fell I should forewarn you, it's a bit orangey, as I also ran out of patience searching for template. Perhaps I shouldn't be getting on the internet late at night. I finally decided to call it "Three Flights Down" though the url has to have "-"s in-between the words cause some loser already took the normal url and then never even posted anything. Oh, well. Now I can get back to making this blog somewhat cool. Oh, right, here's the link. Though I'm sure it's on my profile by now.

Experiencing a Shortage of Title Names Currently

2008-05-30T00:04:00.004-04:00

So I've decided to make another blog where I can post all the icky personal drama in my life. That way I can still you this one to write about cool stuff, and I won't feel like I'm coming off as an angsty person, cause I'll have this blog to redeem myself. I think this means I won't be able to post everyday, I'm aiming more towards the 5-4 days every week range. I just have to come up with a name for my second blog... this is where I get stuck. Doodles from A Dream was the name of a mix CD a made back in middle school and lost before I could listen to it. So I've had the awesome cover art (awesome by my middle school standards) sitting around (somewhere) with no CD to go with it for years. I think I google the phrase and nothing else really seemed to have the name, so thats how I came up with it. I'm thinking the next name should come from music, and I've got some ideas, but I have to think it over for a little while. Or at least until I get spontaneous.

Band I Dig: Acid Eyeliner

2008-05-28T08:54:00.001-04:00

I found out about Acid Eyeliner from the flyer for the Come Together Festival. This flyer has essentially be my guide to some of Australia's awesome rock/indie rock/whatever rock bands. I don't know why it didn't occur to me earlier to look to Australia for new music, needless to say

my music taste has grown and my ears are happy. So anyways I was going through the list and I got to Acid Eyeliner and I was thinking they were probably going to be this really hard rock metal band with a whole lot of screaming going on. I go to their myspace page and the first song

I hear is called "Kissing You In The Driveway". Not what I expected. They may have a badass name that'll make your mom nervous, but they're actually a little teddy bear-like. They've still had their share of heartbreak and life though, which makes their album Future Lies quite appealing. I finally go a hold of their album a couple of days ago, which was quite satisfying since I had really only been able to listen to their new stuff via their myspace page. I was doing some searching on them, (though I can't remember why, given that I was searching at two in the morning) and found this interview with the lead singer/Guitarist Lukey Lukess. It kinda makes me like them even more. Here's a link to their site.

Thingy: Alice in Wonderland Accessories

2008-05-27T13:45:00.005-04:00

I've been on an Alice in Wonderland kick lately so I thought it would be interesting to find so accessories to go with my addiction. I found a cool Charm Bracelet. It costs $60.

If that's too busy and too expensive I found a necklace made out of a scrabble tile for $9.

Plus, I don't know about you, but I'm always finding curiosities and not being able to write them down. Viola! Problem solved for $10.

And I am regrettably not British, so I couldn't tell you when tea time is, so I will sport this in the meantime ($14).

And for the truly devoted, shoes ($55).

Success!

2008-05-27T13:14:00.004-04:00

I finally figured out the template thing, though it was quite confusing for a while there. Although my link lists are gone, But luckily I saved my counter. I'm thinking I'll be going back to posting cool stuff I find and random doodles. I'm thinking of getting another blog and making it more of a personal thing, of course that would mean then having to up date two blogs (technically three, though the last one is super easy) This one could be the cool one... Maybe that'll happen this weekend... or during the week if I can't sleep. On the upside, (though I don't think I was on the downside) I found a bunch of new sites this long weekend so I have a fresh list of cool things to write about. I feel like saying kowabunga but that would make no sense at all, plus I don't even think that's spelled correctly. Oh well, why start making sense now? Kowabunga.

Construction-ness

2008-05-26T20:14:00.003-04:00

Hopefully I'll be getting a new template soon... despite following directions that the site had instead of a template I got gibberish. I posted in the help group forum so hopefully I'll get it sorted out. Until then if something looks funny thats why.

2008-05-25T15:39:00.007-04:00

I figure since my blog is called "Doodles from a Dream" I should probably post some doodles. I went the safe route with this one though, cause I couldn't remember if I would need to censor anything on the other ones I've scanned in. I'm thinking I should become more visual. Sometimes I think I'd communicate better if I drew pictures of what I was trying to say. Oh, and lets make the text purple, just for fun. In other good news I got a siggy for the message boards (signature that you put at the bottom of you posts) of one of the websites I'm on. It's a Jimmy Eat World quote. See it below. Perhaps I should try to fade my postings... Just to jazz it up a bit.

Lie, lie better next time,

stay on my side tonight

..................***********

My Favorite News Channel

2008-05-24T18:07:00.003-04:00

Current TV is a cable/satellite news station that is somewhat run by it's viewers. You can vote on what gets put on the channel. Plus there's always tons of different stories playing 24/7. Every time I turn the channel on I learn something new. For those of you that don't get current you can watch pretty much everything they have on their channel and more on their website. You can also create content and submit it for review (if they like it they put it on tv) through pods and viewer created ad messages.

My favorite features include infoMania: (sorry about the butt picture! It really is good I promise)

and the movie reviews complete with viewer commentary

A Picture is Worth A 1000 Words

2008-05-23T14:52:00.001-04:00

Here's a link to a story I saw on AOL where a wedding photographer captured some pictures of the earthquake that happened in China.

Random Stuff

2008-05-22T11:52:00.005-04:00

Hmm.. I'm a neglectful blogger. I'm thinking of going with a different angle. I don't think that made sense. It's really annoying how I keep getting busy. Hmm I post an old collage. I made this one on an environmental kick over a year ago.

Cool Movie: Dear Jack

2008-05-15T18:11:00.003-04:00

If your know of the bands Jack's Mannequin or Something Corporate you might be familiar with this story. (And if you have know idea who I'm talking about you might want to try listening to a thing called music. Seriously though, check them out I really doubt you won't like them if you give them a chance.) The release date has yet to be announced, but it's said to be coming out sometime this year. Here's the synopsis from the website.

With his debut solo album on the horizon, 22-year old Something Corporate singer Andrew McMahon expected big things in 2005.

Leukemia wasn't one of them.

"Dear Jack" chronicles McMahon on a rollercoaster year, through the highs of recording and releasing a solo album (under the name Jack's Mannequin) and the lows of being diagnosed with leukemia and breaking up with the love of his life.

Using a DV camera Maverick Records bought him to capture the making of his album, Andrew shot everything before and after the crucial day in May of 2005 when he both finished the project and was diagnosed with cancer. The documentary is a raw look at the battle that is leukemia, from spinal taps to radiation, from using a lint brush to remove your hair to infusing your body with someone else's stem cells ( in the case, Andrew's sister Kate, coincidently on the exact date his album was released).

The film opens on the day Andrew is diagnosed and follows him through every scary, life-changing and intensely personal event that follows. It also flashes back to this childhood, the making of the Jack's Mannequin album and his collaboration with Tommy Lee, one of the last concerts he played before becoming ill, and his relationships with the two most crucial woman in his life, his sister and her best friends.

"Dear Jack" is a breathtakingly emotional film, as well as a testament to family, friends and, perhaps more than anyone will ever know, a love of making music.

Wicked Site: Cafe Press

2008-05-10T12:29:00.001-04:00

Cafe Press Get awesome tv shirts that look like they could have come from your favorite tv show here also looks like a pretty good way to start designing stuff if you've ever wanted to get into that.

Thingy: Random Object Necklaces

2008-05-09T12:00:00.000-04:00

Anyone else want a necklace that says something? I've fond some pretty intersting ones. From top to bottom:

Lightning Bolt Necklace - Perhaps for the Harry Potter fan who doesn't want to wear their lightning bolt on their forehead? from Girl Props get it for about $8.

Scissors Necklace - I'm always losing my scissors! from Mod Cloth get it for about $10

Unlock Heart Necklace - Comes with a key attached to the clasp, but you can remove it and give it to the person of your choosing, or if you want to kick it fairy-tale style, hide it in a castle guarded by a dragon. from fredflare get it for $35

Jesus' Face Necklace - If the classic cross doesn't do it for you, or to go with your "Jesus is my homeboy" tee. From Girl Props get it for about $7

Protect the Planet Necklace - Speak without uttering a word from alltherageonline get it for about $8

Pegasus Necklace - Can't promise it will make you fly, from alltherageonline get it for about $29

Red 1970's Rollerskate Necklace - Just add disco ball and big hair from Girl Props get it for about $5

KABOOM Necklace - When BOOM just isn't enough from Girl Props get it for about $6

Santa Maria Necklace - Some times I wish I could sail away... Especially if Johnny Depp is on the ship from fredflare for about $10

Event: Pangea Day

2008-05-08T12:59:00.005-04:00

Here's how to watch If you're interested in seeing some famous people talk about it click here.

There are also going to be musical performances, including some by the band Iranian Hypernova,

it's illegal in Iran to listen to Western music, or play it, needless to say that didn't stop them.

Can you get anymore rock n roll than that?

Thingy: Hamburger Phone

2008-05-06T11:43:00.003-04:00

Seriously, Who doesn't want one? And They're only $16. Get them here.

(OK, with schoolwork and well, I'll just say "other drama" I've fallen a bit behind. I'm hoping I''l be able to spend one day a week and type up all of my posts, then use the spiffy new timing post feature thing to post them on a daily basis)

Cool Movie: One Nine Nine Four

2008-05-01T17:41:00.004-04:00

One Nine Nine Four is an upcoming documentary exploring the birth growth and eventual tipping point of punk rock during the 90s. They talk to tons of musicians from the nineties from bands like Green Day, The Offspring, NOFX, Bad Religion, and more. The whole thing seems pretty awesome, I'm only bummed that I wasn't paying more attention to this stuff when it was going on.

Here's a teaser for it.

Wicked Site: Soundgirl

2008-04-30T17:37:00.008-04:00

Everyone loves free indie music right? After creating an account on Soundgirl (which is completely pain free) you can download all of their mixes of indie music for free. If you want to check out some of the music they offer you can stream their "mp3" player without creating an account. They've also interviewed just about every artist they feature on their site. Though technically they design clothes inspired by music, Soundgirl has become one of my favorite music resources. Happy listening!

Band I Dig: The Getaway Plan

2008-04-29T12:10:00.005-04:00

The Getaway Plan is an awesome band from Australia, they put out a new album recently, although I'm currently blanking on when it was (agh, I'm such a bad blogger!) Wikipedia describes them as combining pop and screamo rock -- the result is pretty darn addicting if you ask me. I'm ususaly not all that into bands that do the whole "screaming" thing, but The Getaway Plan does it in a way so that doesn't really take away anything from the music itself. But as usual there music speaks to what they sound like way better than I can describe it. There new album is called Other Voices, Other Rooms most of the song below are from that album except for "If The Suspense Doesn't Kill Us..." (from their album Hold Conversation) and "Strings" (from their Demo.) Here's a link to their Myspace, and their website (is it just me or doesn't it totally look like they use blogger too?)

Cool Movie: GO: The Schools for Schools Movie

2008-04-28T11:42:00.007-04:00

I don't have much time, but Invisible Children has a trailer out for a new movie that looks pretty intense. For more Videos from Invisible Children click here. I recommend "Displace Me 2007" and "I Got Soul", they're the most spine tingling.

Here's a brief history of Invisible Children:

Trailer for film GO: The Schools for Schools Movie

Kick Ass Program: Samsung Mobile Fresh Films

2008-04-26T20:53:00.004-04:00

Since my passion is film I concluded I had to to a post about film since almost everything else so far has been about music, ( though music is my second favorite thing.) Fresh Films is a film program exclusively for teens. For one week teens work to make a film, taking over everything from casting, shooting, and editing. The best part is they don't charge tuition, you just have to provide your own housing and transportation. This year they're expanding, calling out for teen writers and musicians as well as designers for a tee shirt contest along with their traditional filmmaking. After the films are made, they're scored and critiqued by a panel of industry pros and fans can vote for their favorite online. Some even make to film festivals.

I really think this is an amazing program since it's pretty hard for teens to gain access to professional equipment and resources (unless you're the child of Steven Spielberg.) The deadline to apply for filmmaking roles is May 5.

(Thank you to every one who left me comments! I promise to return the favor, I'll probably be a little busy trying to submit some assignment in the next few days, but I'm pretty sure I bookmarked you blogs so I can keep reading about all of the interesting things you have to say. :)

Wicked Site: RCRD LBL

2008-04-25T13:36:00.005-04:00

RCRD LBL (which is "Record Label" without the vowels) is an online record label that releases "exclusive and completely free music from emerging and established artists." They offer free MP3s from indie artists from independent record labels. They're a gold mine for finding new artists. All of their artist profiles include a bio, a link to the artist's website and the option to stream (listen to online) or download a song (sometimes more.) If you click on the "genres" tab, you can see there's something for everyone. Different "genres" you can click on include "nerd," "Jungle," and "ghostly" in addition to many others you would expect to find. They also put out podcasts, (looks like their aiming for weekly updates) where they talk about songs they've recently posted. Although I can't really vouch for the podcast because I haven't listed to on e in a long time to to the busy-ness that is my life. The definitely seem cool though, and there are links to download the songs featured in the podcast conveniently below the link to the podcast itself. If you're confused or wary of the whole "free music downloads" thing their FAQ does a great job of explaining the whole thing. Including that they're cool with you mashing up or remixing tracks you got from them, and they'd love to hear them. Plus, if you're an unsigned artist you can send them a link to your music so they can check it out. Happy Music Hunting!

Thingy: Delicate Tomboy Tees

2008-04-24T13:56:00.005-04:00

Delicate Tomboy makes shirts that caution us to never date guys with certain qualities. The designer became inspired after breaking up with a boyfriend.

You can also see their never ending list of lessons here, they range from "doesn't eat chocolate" to "has a hotter roommate" to"wears ugly shoes." The lessons on Delicate Tomboy's Shirts range from silly, to serious,

to political. You can also create your own on their site, if you have your own idea. The prices are a little high, but you can be pretty detailed in what you want on your shirt.

They also have a line for infants with phrases like "I can't wait for my first cupcake" "Hi, I'm New Here" and "My daddy is smarter than your Daddy."

Right now junior tees are $25, custom tees & hoodies range from $78 -$85. Most infant things seem to range from $28-$35. Click here to start shopping.

Thingy: The Modern Mixtape

2008-04-23T11:52:00.005-04:00

In the days of mp3s the mix cd is rare enough, and the mixtape was banished into oblivian many years ago. What to do? Behold the modern mixtape. A USB stick nestled in retro cassette tape packaging. It holds 64 MB which equals about an hour of music. Best price found at Insound where it's on sale for $16.49 (reg. $16.99) however fredflare offers a "Surprise assortment of mixtape styles" for $22. Don't forget to cover in doodles before giving to the lucky recipient.

Band I Dig: The Spill Canvas

2008-04-22T16:09:00.007-04:00

I first found out about The Spill Canvas when I saw their video "All Over You" during a commercial break while I was watching Radio Free Roscoe (cool Canadian show with decent music from early 2000s, a little cheesy now, but I still love it.) That's actually saying a lot because I was really hungry at the time and I was going to go get some food but I had to stop and watch the video. Not too long later I had developed a full blown addiction. The Spill Canvas hails from South Dakota, and from what I've read they're definitely making it in the music industry the old-fashioned way (recording, touring, and working your but off, which seems to be less common with Nickelodeon and The Disney Channel building disturbingly popular tween empires)

Below are some of The Spill Canvas's songs to make your ears happy.

"All Over You" oozes emotion and basically says everything you wish you could say to the person of your unrequited affection.

"Staplegunned" I think is summed up in the line "The chemistry between us could destroy this place" (I know!)

"All Hail the Heartbreaker" Obsessing over someone, especially in the unrequited sense (What!? I'm not obsessing, I just... am thinking. Thinking. No obsession here. Nope.)

"Polygraph, Right Now" Technically I think there's many different emotions crammed into this one, take the lines "Fate is an elegant, cold-hearted whore" and "I'm scared to death to know what you think of me" as examples. This will probably get stuck in your head for awhile.

"Lust A Prima Vista" Title describes this one more eloquently than I can.

"The Tide" One of The Spill Canvas' many songs that tell a story, this is my favorite though.

"Saved" This song is on the Sounds of Superman album (random album featuring songs that could be associated with Superman) I've also seen it used in some fan videos of various shows. It'd be nice if life was like the movies.

"Low Fidelity" Distance. It's a bummer.

"Hush Hush" Ah, why must we sometimes fall for the, er, loose people? Oh and I always remember the meaning of the word "nonchalant" because of this song.

"Sunsets and Car Crashes" Maybe a little bit of nostalgia. Paints pictures.

"Lullaby" Probably the sweetest song, come on "Just let me sing you to sleep" there's really no surpassing that in my book.

Music Map

2008-04-21T19:13:00.002-04:00

I thought I'd try to make a map of where all the bands I listen to are from, it turned out to be a pretty big task, this is probably only half of them.

16 Things to do to find new music that will make your ears all kinds of happy

2008-04-20T01:59:00.001-04:00

1 Go through your music collection

Is there anything in there you've forgotten about? Did you get a [insert band name here] Album but then [insert name of band you go koo-koo bananas for] had a new album out and you kinda forgot about the other cd?

2 Go through you parents/siblings/cousins/friends music collection

You obviously like (at least some of) these people, who's to say you wouldn't like the music they listen to? your parents may have even influenced your music tastes. My mom was always playing stuff like: Dave Matthews, Van Morrison, Stevie Ray Vaughn, U2, when I was little, so now I listen to lots of music typically classified as 'rock' or 'alternative.'

3 Know what you don't like

On the other hand, if your parent's music makes you want to gag at least you know what you don't like in your music. It's important to figure out why you don't like certain things about music. Don't tell some one their taste in music is stupid (even if it is). Maybe you just don't like music that doesn't have words, or sounds whiney, or goes too slow, or you can't dance to, or that has screaming. If you figure out what you don't like, it makes it easier to block that stuff out and zero in on stuff you do like.

4 Find out who influenced/inspires the bands/artists you like

Think about it. In a way it's like having this artist you adore come up to you and say "OMG I absolutely LOOOOOVE this band, you should check them out!" or like going through their ipod, without having to deal with sneaking onto their tour bus , going through their stuff, and being chased by security guards. And chances are something about band A's music will be similar to Band B's music since Band A was inspired by Band B. I kinda experience this when I was listening to some of The Smiths, I swear parts of it sound like some of today's punk/pop/rock bands' music, I got chills. Sometimes bands might thank influences in the liner notes of their CDs, so it doesn't hurt to check there.

5 Email bands and ask them about music they like

Now, obviously Mick Jagger and P. Diddy aren't going to respond to you, but lesser know artists or some indie bands (like The Spill Canvas!) might respond. If most of the bands you like seems to busy to deal with fan email you can always look for interviews where they might have talked about their influences, or do a little googling.

6 Who are your faves top friends?

Myspace has really taken over the band website. Who are in some your favorite bands' top 8? These are artists you favorite bands like enough to put them in their top 8, they must be pretty good.

7 Check record labels

Small Record labels will often sing artists that fit a certain "something" Basically, artists with the same label may be similar.

8 Who have your faves toured with?

Bands tour with bands that have similar sound, think of it as your favorite bands giving other bands their seal of approval.

9 Yay music festivals!

Music festivals generally cater to a specific genre (Ex. Bamboozled typically aimed at teens & young adult into rock/punk kind of music). Even if you can't go to one, check out who played/is playing. This is a great way to discover up and coming bands. Or sometimes it can help you discover new bands even if they're thousands of miles away. For example, I stumble across a flyer for the " Come Together" Festival in Australia on the site of an Australian rock band I like, I looked up some of the other bands playing and probably ended up adding a couple hundred new songs to my music collection.

10 Scour music stores

Walk around the artsy part of a nearby city, you'll probably find a music store that has stuff you haven't heard of. Don't be afraid to ask the people who work there for help, they're there because they love music, they can probably help you in your search.

11 Check the Movies

Want to add some 80s music to your collection? Try renting some classic 80s movies, this way you get to 1) See a movie 2) Pick up on some new tunes and 3) Gain a greater understanding of the music you're liking. Music can play such a huge role in movies! Imagine Dirty Dancing without (I've Had) The Time of My Life or The Breakfast Club without Don't you Forget About Me or Juno without Anyone Else but You. They wouldn't be the same.

12 Random google searches

I can't really vouch for the accuracy of this one, but hey if you're bored and you've got time to kill, it couldn't hurt.

13 Lists

VH1 makes lots of tv specials of the "100 greatest metal bands" or "top 50 songs of the 80s" almost all of the lists are available online. Other websites put out lists too.

14 Find some Press

There's a magazine out there for every kind of music try looking in a big bookstore (Barnes &Noble, Boarders ect.) or googling example: 'alternative rock magazines' or check out music stores.

15 "Listeners Also Bought"

That category on the artist's page on itunes can be pretty handy sometimes, it's not always effective for more popular music though.

16 Keep an Open mind

Tis is probably the most important, it's ok to not be into certain sounds, personally I'm not into rap, but I try to keep the philosophy that I'll listen to any song once. I don't promise to like it, I don't promise to hate it. Now obviously, if someone sits me down and tells me to listen to the latest single by [insert name of rapper here] I'm going to have some preconceived notions about it, (I'm human, I judge stuff, I know I shouldn't but I do anyway) but I'll listen to it once. If I don't like it I can say "Eh, it's not really my thing." As hard as it is sometimes I really think we shouldn't criticize music as crappy as it may come. Your music kinda represents you in a way, it grows with you, you have songs that remind you of certain events in your life, no matter what happens you've got your music. It shows all of your sides. It's your story. A little bit of your soul.

Spring Photos! Part 2

2008-04-18T11:50:00.006-04:00

Looking up.

I tried to take a Picture of the wind cause there was a really nice breeze.

Close Up!

This is my favorite, it took about a dozen shots to get it right.

Spring Photos!

2008-04-17T14:45:00.009-04:00

I could only upload three before the thing stopped working. I'll try again tomorrow. Maybe.

The Cat likes to sit under all the Forsythia. I have some really cool pictures of it, but I couldn't up load them :(

Dandilions I didn't get why people didn't like them when I was little, they're technically flowers. I tried to make them look pretty. The grass smelled good, It was cut yesterday.

Daffodil. Though I'm not sure what's going on with the bush next to it. I think the sprinkler in the background is a nice touch. :)

My Brain is a Blackhole of Ideas

2008-04-17T12:08:00.002-04:00

I keep having tons of ideas of things to do. The problem is I have a tendency to not get them done, or forget about them all together. Or sometimes I can't even get my ideas out. It's like there's so much spewing out of my head I can't find the idea I need. Lots of times when I have some sort of creative project to do, I have this totally awesome idea of something to do, but I don't know what it is yet. If that makes sense.

I'm also in the middle of making some really cool mix CDs. There for my sister, even though her birthday was almost a month ago, she lives kinda far away so I get away with not really being gift-prepared cause I can say "I'll give it to you when I see you next." I like them, I still need to add more songs, but I'm trying to make them for different emotions/events. Here's an example: This one is called Bummer (I use the word all the time for some reason) this is the playlist of songs for the melancholy day, you're not super upset or sad or happy. Just kinda bummed, the day wasn't perfect, things could have gone better, but then again, it could have been worse. So here's some of the songs (keep in mind this is a rough draft of sorts, I started picking out songs last night, they're not in the right order yet either)

Bruised-Jack's Mannequin

Back in Your Head-Tegan and Sara

All Hail the Heartbreaker-The Spill Canvas

Melt Into the Walls-Pilate

If I Could Write-Sam Phillips

If You're Up Late-In Fiction

How Soon Is Now?-The Smiths

Lost & Found-Addrine Pierce

Ocean City Girl-Ivy

Liar Liar-In Fiction

Under the Weather-KT Tunstall

Other stuff to do:

Write letter to Yellowcard (long story, perhaps I'll explain later)

find more stuff for "life" collage

watch 2001: A Space Odyssey, and the Asphalt Jungle

Finish going through all the special features on Juno

Do some work in my classes

Write stuff for Light&Sounds, Film Noir and OnTheRadio projects (story/movie ideas, I can never come up with titles so I just named them after songs that kinda influence them)

Work on Music Mixes

Finish how to find cool mixes entry

Watch more "Arrested Development" (can't get enough)

See if there's any kind of occupation involving following around my favorite bands

I don't know what it is about you but you always leave me shaking/ Yes I'm a trainwreck in the making - "Wasted" by The Donnas on the album Bitchin'

Update-ness -ish

2008-04-02T18:28:00.003-04:00

So I pulled my blog from being viewable to the public for awhile... it's a long story. It wasn't really up for long anyway. I really don't know that anyone's going to read what I write, but I feel like writing it like someone's reading this. I keep finding all of these cool new things and I've finally decided to put them here. I've also decided to try to make more collages (collages seem to be the type of art I make the most of), I might put some of them up here, though, I'm not sure how I'd scan in some of the bigger ones. I don't know.. I'll have to see how stuff works out, sometimes stuff happens and I forget about posting things or whatever.

Confessions from the Middle of Nowhere

2008-01-27T03:47:00.000-05:00

Change is a funny word.
To make or become different--definition according to my dictionary

But are people really people capable of change? Society seems to be split on the concept of change. Some people see change as an opportunity to make things better. Others, a disastrous force trying to corrupt their way of life.

People in themselves do change overtime, but do we really change in any way that profoundly affect our personalities? Change is more than saying you'll do something. It's following through with things. The word "change" is habitually passed around. People seem to have forgotten the meaning.

I need to find a place where weird people go to be normal. Maybe I should rephrase that, I need to go somewhere where weird is normal. Everyone I live near is extremely cautious about everything. They talk about big ideas and big dreams, but they'll never try to do anything about them. They're set in their cookie-cutter ways, never once thinking of anything else. It's all very Agrestic or Wisteria Lane-esque. Everyone's obsessed with their reputations and never breaking the mold, meanwhile they're all stabbing their friends in the back and gossiping like lunatics. They are also very uncomfortable with uncertainty. Grey areas scare them, they'll either make them black and white or ignore them completely. Not having your life figured our is not an option. I suppose they like their simple ways of life, not tainted by things like cultural diversity. The weird thing is, every now and then, I start to get sucked into it. Thinking maybe I could live like this. Then I realize I've been living here way too long, and I need to get out as soon as possible.

This Song Is For The Rats...

2008-01-02T22:15:00.000-05:00

This song is for the soil/That's toxic clear down to the bedrock/Where no thing of consequence can grow/Drop your seeds there, let them go/Let them go

My family doesn't really go on vacations anymore. We're a big southern family. Think "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" minus 80% of the comedy. When ever we have time off from work or school we go help each other out. It's nice I guess but after awhile you start to wish you life were less like a soap opera. The chaos is normal.

I think I might try to go into a profession where you make lots of money, because the people I know who "are doing what they love" don't seem very happy to me. Money's not supposed to buy happiness but why are so many people unhappy unhappy because they don't have money?

I'm a fan of the show Weeds. I think it's one of the most realistic (In some ways) things I've seen on TV. It rips off all the sugar-coated bullshit we seem to place on suburban America. That and they say fuck a lot. Who decided that we'd have words that were 'bad in the English language? Don't you think it's a bit absurd?

I;m trying to write this story. It's not really a story. I never really like coming up with dialogue because I can never seem to make it sound right. It's more of a note book with doodles and other stuff that will hopefully get the story out. It's like I never really have time to finish any thoughts about it, but I think I have more time on my hands now than I've had in a while. The problem is everyone else has they're own idea of what I should do with this time. I read an interview with Alicia Keys awhile ago. In it she talked about how she was kind of breaking down so she went and spent a month in Egypt. Non-celebrity people should be able to do that. The world needs to slow down. Or another generation of hippies that believe that all you need is love.

Current Music Addictions:
Jimmy Eat World
Yellowcard
Anything from the TV show Weeds
The Donnas
Anything from the movie Juno

This song is for the people/Who tell their families that they're sorry/For things they can't and won't feel sorry for /span>

Things to do:
Work on that friggin' scrapbook for mom
Find more "Epic" songs, seach google & itunes maybe?
Work on Lights and Sounds story
Work on Film noir project
Buy new clothes
Stop feeling guilty about buying new clothes
Go see the movie Juno Again
Find some way to watch season 3 of Weeds
Not yell, roll eyes, or throw things at the stupid kids that will most likely be in my English & History classes next semester

I wanna sing one for the cars/That are right now headed silent down the highway/And it's dark and there is nobody driving/And something has got to give