a couple of more from last week

Posted on April 21, 2012October 10, 2013 by Jake

These are a couple of additional images from last week that I liked. Also, these were published on Friday.

I’m really enjoying the weekend so far. I had a lot of fun on Friday night, and the weather on Saturday was gorgeous. I know it is a long shot, but if the rain can just hold off until after the race Sunday morning I would basically be completely content.

I have been doing a lot more writing with pen and paper, these days. Although I don’t ride the subway nearly as much as I used to, I have two long rides on the weekends now since a few weeks ago. It is easy to get a seat on the weekend. So Instead of reading mags or whatever, I have been bleeding out ink while sitting on the train. It turns out that I have a lot to say when I know that no one will ever read it. Since the time that I started writing this post, a monsoon has begun outside my window. So much for no rain at the race, hehe.

giving up something i love

Posted on January 24, 2012January 24, 2012 by Jake

Okay, the title of this post is a bit dramatic when compared to the content. I mean, who writes about retiring a wallet, anyway? But for some strange reason, saying goodbye to this old boy feels like losing a part of me. I bought this wallet when I first moved to NY (when I still shopped at Guess, hahahah). It was the perfect NY wallet. It folded on the long edge of two credit card sized halves, which made it perfect for carrying in the front pocket (to deter against pickpocketing). It had card pockets on both sides, one vertically stacked with a bifurcated window (super easy to get the ID out for bouncers and TSA), and one horizontally stacked set of pockets (perfect for taking out a metrocard without having to take off your gloves). The finest feature of all, was the stainless external bill clip (below). This feature also turned out to be its downfall.

This wallet came with me to Brazil and Europe. It has spent more time on my person than probably any other non-body-part item that I own.

I noticed about a week ago, that the bills were not as tot as they usually were after closing the clip. If you look closely at the image above, you can see the hairline crack that the clip developed along its spine. I can’t just go around dropping cash all over the floor.

So, tonight I switched over to a nondescript black number by Coach. It doesn’t have nearly as much character, and is not nearly as utilitarian. RIP, my absolute favorite accessory…. ever.

pretty stoked about this

Posted on January 20, 2012January 19, 2012 by Jake

i want this– skateboard mirror

Posted on December 11, 2011December 11, 2011 by Jake

Came across this mirror yesterday on Complex. I think it is a great idea, well executed. I totally want one.

hola, wednesday. stoked to see you.

Posted on November 16, 2011November 15, 2011 by Jake

At the risk of sounding melodramatic, I’m going to say that it feels like it has already been kind of a long week. I had a bit of a reprieve last night as I attended an event at the BLK Denim Store in SoHo, NYC. The space is absolutely dope (above). Not to brag about my lineage, but if it is Scandinavian, you know it’s good. I wound up with a new pair of jeans. I rarely wear jeans, so I have never been able to justify buying a new pair. All of the jeans that I owned before last night are spill over from the late 90’s/early 2000’s. They don’t really fly for going to social events. Anyway, I love my new BLKs. Here are a few more shots that I liked from last night.

what i’m working with these days

Posted on November 15, 2011November 14, 2011 by Jake

The tower that I built 5ish years ago finally died when we were out of town over the weekend. I never shut it down. I have fixed it/upgraded it on more occasions than I would like to admit. When I say that it died, I mean that the mother board is toast. At first I thought it was an HD issue. But when I tried to reset the BIOS, and change the boot order, so that I could attempt to restore the windows installation, I was getting gibberish on the BIOS screen. Not awesome.

Redeeming factor: I was planning on buying a new comp this week anyway. I have had it picked out for a few weeks. Just waiting for some overdue funding to come through. In the mean time, I’m using the lappy on the bamboo keyboard setup. If I could just get a pair of bamboo monitors (as Kari and Rae suggested), I would be good for another 5 to 10.

On days like this, I just have to remind myself that there are plenty of people out there who are starving, let alone under-computered. I can deal.

bamboo in the house

Posted on November 9, 2011November 9, 2011 by Jake

So stoked about this new keyboard/mouse combo. I came across the setup last week, and immediate ordered 2 sets. They arrived today. I immediately swapped out the oem parts at my work desk for the bamboo goods and thoroughly test drove the bamboo for the rest of the afternoon. I have been very pleased, so far.

The tricky thing about seeing something that looks really awesome online, is that there is always a risk it won’t be as awesome as it looks in the photos, when it actually arrives. I’m very pleased to report that there were no such unpleasant surprises, here. The quality appears to be pretty top notch. The only thing that I would change about the keyboard, is that it doesn’t have the little flip-down feet underneath. I’m sure that If I really needed to angle the keyboard, I could rig something up.

The mouse actually had an added bonus. The scroll wheel is back-lit by a blue LED. I love that detail. It has some small metal glide plates on the bottom. They slide perfectly on my formica desk at work. But I may have to get a mouse pad at home. The wood surface of my keyboard tray isn’t quite as smooth. Anyway, for the price, I think that this combo is totally a value. I would definitely recommend picking one up, to anyone who is considering it. You can order them over here, and they ship from California. I also might be giving one away in the near future or offering a promo code (or both). I’ll get back to you as soon as I work out the details. More images below.

fruit fly saga continues

Posted on October 17, 2011April 24, 2018 by Jake

By Friday night, we had successfully trapped hundreds of fruit flies in mason jars. I came up with the idea below, and it seemed to work pretty well.

good things appear to be happening

Posted on October 5, 2011October 5, 2011 by Jake

I like it when good things happen. It puts me in a good mood and makes it easy to stay motivated. On a completely unrelated note, I was sitting at my desk last night, and I couldn’t help but appreciate the way that my desk lamp was reflected in a different color from each of the elements in the lens above. Kind of cool, no?

Bell & Ross X Harley Davidson

Posted on September 28, 2011September 28, 2011 by Jake

Finally, something made by Harley that I can get into. Don’t get me wrong. I have a lot of respect for the company. But when it comes to motorcycles, there are two camps– sport bikes and cruisers. I fall on the sport bike side of the fence. I love MotoGP, and anything with fairings. That’s not to say that I don’t like naked bikes. I’m totally into cafe racers and street fighters too. I actually owned a Ducati Monster for a while. Generally, I like bikes that go fast and get low in the corners. I have never been a Harley guy. At all. But check out this collaboration.

Harley-Davidson. UK dealer Shaw Harley-Davidson approached Bell & Ross regarding the bike design which was “inspired” by the watchmaker’s vision on “performance, precision and engineering.” Using the Harley-Davidson FXSTB Softail Nightrain base, they worked together in developing a housing for the Bell & Ross BR 01-92 Carbon watch. “The watch mounting positioned the timepiece in an ideal place for its primary function as a professional tool for the rider.”

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i want this– led surfboard

Posted on September 22, 2011September 22, 2011 by Jake

My first few surf sessions that I ever had were at night. Night surfing is like a different world. I remember paddling out in Waikiki as a youngster, watching the reflection of the moon on the incoming sets. I would have killed to have a board like this. I’m not sure which idea I think is cooler. LED bike rims, or this surfboard. I guess I’ll take one of each, please. Check out the video below.

MUNDAKA 24H from aritzaranburu.com on Vimeo.

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Ode to the A train

Posted on September 21, 2011September 30, 2011 by Jake

As great as public transportation is, the MTA is seriously messed up. Sometimes the glaring deficiencies are maddening. Other times, their efforts to restore service, or prevent interruptions are something that the Army corps of engineers would be proud of. One example of this was on Monday. A broken water main on the UWS caused the ABC and D tunnels to become totally full of water in certain sections. The MTA spent all night pumping it out and replacing signals and switches ruined by the flooding. Even though afternoon commute that day was hellish, having those lines out of service, the MTA had everything back in working order in time for the morning commute. Way to go, guys. In honor of their hard work, I would like to debut a little poem that I wrote about the A train. Hahahaha.

I have actually now written several of these. I thought that it would be hilarious to start writing poems while either waiting for, or riding the train late at night. This particular poem was one of the first. I thought that in light of recent events, it was appropriate to publish it this week.

On the platform, probably staring at the texturized yellow line. Maybe sane, maybe paralyzed. On my retinas flash the reflection of incandescent light on the tracks. It’s that ghetto incandescent light of a city that hasn’t been updated in much too, too long. The tracks have been worn smooth, shinier than mirrors. Two parallel mirrors in the sooty rat pen. Optics strain, pupils dial down. There is a disgustingly un-royal, royal blue circle with the English equivalent of Alpha marking the center. On my way home, at last. At last what? I don’t know. Nothing significant, because I’ll do it again tomorrow and again. I’m bad at poems.

So there you have it. Happy Wednesday.

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Hola, September

Posted on September 1, 2011August 31, 2011 by Jake

I sort of can’t believe that September is here. I’m so glad that Sept. 11 falls on a weekend this year. Because historically, getting to work on that day has been a joke. I suppose that it wouldn’t matter much this year anyway, since it is smack in the middle of fashion week. I’m getting pretty stoked about FW. My calendar is getting more and more packed by the day. During ’11 spring FW I turned over the 7D’s clicker. In those few days I snapped close to 4000 images, and loved every second of it. The in between shows is what stresses me out.

Anyway, the screen shot above is of part of my August image folder. Yes… I’m a windows nerd. I also still rock a blackberry. Now that Steve Jobs has stepped down, I may venture over to the Mac (dark) side. Only if Mac decides to open up their gigantic tight fist a bit, when it comes to creating/servicing your own builds and custom software/apps. Otherwise, I will most likely continue to be a stick in the microsoft mud.

Back to the matter at hand. Did anyone else* who reads this stuff (besides Bob, Zach and Tammy) shoot anything cool in August? Hit me with links please!

*I’m sure that I left some ppl out. Please forgive.

Get ready for aperture basics, as a part of the photog series, on Monday (probably).

Watch me now.

Posted on August 31, 2011August 31, 2011 by Jake

I have a small collection of watches that I like to rotate. I have a few sportier/chunkier designs for the weekend, and others that are a bit less casual looking. The less casual looking are the only ones that really jive with the getup that I normally wear into the office. So, when the batteries started dying off about 8 months ago, I was eventually relegated to a solitary black chronograph. A million times, I thought to myself “I should drop off those watches for service.” But I perpetually put it off. Yesterday, the battery finally gave way on black chrono piece, as well. So, I packed up all three of the watches above and dropped them off for service today. I will be retrieving them in the morning. Until then, my wrist will just have to remain naked during business hours. It’s like the macro drawn-out version of putting off laundry until you finally have to throw on a pair of board shorts (since your skivvies are all in the hamper), and a musty seldom worn t-shirt, then do the march of shame to the laundromat.

This concludes another lesson on procrastination.

Summer is fading

Posted on August 24, 2011June 20, 2021 by Jake

A great sign that summer is on it’s way out is when hurricane season arrives. I wouldn’t say that we are already in hurricane season. But, apparently Irene is coming through this weekend. As a side note: the young and impressionable Jake was always curious about how the names of hurricanes were chosen. This was one of scads of technical questions that I was able to ask my dad and receive a true and accurate answer about. In the pre-Google days, I feel bad for people who didn’t have a certified genius for a dad, like I do.

Back on topic, the days are shorter, etc.. I certainly hope that Irene turns out to be all media hype, like every other hurricane that has made it’s way in our direction since I have been a New Yorker. Why? I have some good stuff planned for the next few days. I’m not just talking about my boring old running. I’m supposed to be shooting something tomorrow morning that I’m pretty stoked about. Aside from that, a DC road trip is on the calendar for this weekend. More outdoor activities are slated for DC.

So, I can deal with the fact that the sun is no longer making itself seen until after 6 AM. But Irene, please girl, leave us alone this weekend. Ok? Go ahead and send your siblings through in a couple weeks, so that we have some real waves for NYC’s first real surf competition. But, I know that I’m not just speaking for myself when I plead with you to just turn yourself around and head back out to sea. k, thx.

[photo: shot on my way out the door to make the first video tutorial for the photo series]

In my mailbox this evening

Posted on August 17, 2011August 17, 2011 by Jake

I can’t believe that summer is almost over and Fashion Week is almost here. I’m equal parts elated and stressed. As much as I love covering the shows, my stress levels tend to be off the charts during the entire ordeal. At least I have all of the super thick September issues of my favorite mags rolling in, to keep me distracted in the mean time.

New York Street Art

Posted on August 12, 2011August 12, 2011 by Jake

I don’t mean to write two “I heart NY” posts in a row. But, I really enjoy the non-stop visual stimulation that occurs just walking around the City. Today I was on the way to shoot this, and I happened upon the scene pictured above (and below). I don’t know what I like more about what is going on here– several dozen trampled roses on the sidewalk, or a dog that looks like a baby deer. I think it is going to be a good weekend.

I want this– Yosemite Paddle Board

Posted on August 8, 2011August 8, 2011 by Jake

I have always wanted a paddle board. My very first surfboard probably could have doubled as paddle board, since it was almost 12′ long. It was just lacking the thickness to have the requisite buoyancy. When I was learning how to surf, I used to watch the old guys out at Waikiki Beach use a canoe paddle to paddle out through the ankle slappers, while standing up. I always wondered what it would be like. But I never actually spent any time on a board that was designed for paddling. Lately I have noticed the sport becoming wildly popular in NYC. There is an organized paddle every year from the downtown boathouse, out and around the Statue of Liberty. Laird Hamilton comes out for that one. Last Friday when I was leaving work, I saw a dude strapping a 13′ paddle board onto the top of his Mini Cooper, parked on West St., just north of Battery Park. I wish that I would has snapped a photo of that one.

Anyway, check out these super styley new paddle boards by James Perse. I like pretty much all of the different colorways. I would seriously love to pick one up. If only I had somewhere to store it *sigh*. Hopefully some day.

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I want this– Officine Milani Firenze wooden handlebars

Posted on August 3, 2011August 3, 2011 by Jake

Two posts about Italian bikes in one day!? I guess so. Check out these ridiculously hot wooden handlebars made by Officine Milani Firenze. If the bars themselves weren’t cool enough, OMF also offers custom refurbished bicycles with original salvaged parts. I wonder if they have any rebuilt G. Bianchis for sale. A couple more looks at the bars–

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You know hyundais tricked out in Christmas in July

Posted on August 3, 2011August 3, 2011 by Jake

This is kind of a random post, that will probably only be interesting to me. But, here goes anyway. Some may recall that that one of my good friends moved to Florence fairly recently. It is the same dude that I went on the “man trip” with earlier this year. Anyway, he recently sent me some pretty interesting (if you are e nerd like us) shots from his observations in Florence. The first set is of the tricked out Hyundai pictured above (extra points if you know where the title of this post comes from). When he first sent over the images of the Fiorucci Hyundai, I thought it was a joke. I thought it was like all of those minivans that I see driving around my neighborhood with NoS stickers and fake intake ducts glued onto the hood. But, when I looked into it a little further, Fiorucci really did team up with Hyundai on a model called the i10. How funny is that? …an iconic Italian fashion label choosing a Korean built joke of an automobile to collaborate with. It’s like if Toyota released a Fendi trimmed Prius. Except, not even, because Toyota is more reputable than Hyundai. Anyway, I’m not trying to trash talk those automakers, I’m just trying to highlight the irony of the fact that a designer based in the same country that produces Lamborghini and Ferrari, chose to team up with Hyundai. Bold move. And, super entertaining (if you are a nerd).

Next, we turn to “G. Bianchi” bicycles (not be [although hard not to be] confused with Bianchi). Mike said that he has seen several of these bikes around Florence. When he and I looked into it, we discovered that G. Bianchi is a now defunct brand of bikes that was founded in the 60’s by Giuseppe Bianchi, out of Florence. I doubt that the dude even meant to have his brand confused with the Cycle giant Bianchi (or did he), since it was the guy’s name. Anyway, as most people probably know, “bianchi” just means “white.” It isn’t like the word is super uncommon in Italy (I’m assuming). But, now I kind of want to try to get one of these G. Bianchi bikes, just for novelty’s sake. I really like the quarter length chrome fenders.

The end.

Photography: M. Cuomo