Cranky since 1979

Fender Lunch

2010-04-01T10:54:00.001-07:00

Fender Lunch
Originally uploaded by Mike McCurry

I downloaded the Hispstamatic app for my iPhone and get good looking digital photos.

Freshly Squeezed

2010-03-24T09:46:00.001-07:00

Freshly Squeezed
Originally uploaded by Mike McCurry

Christinas new apron. I think she did a wonderful job making it. So talented.

Christina in Red

2010-03-16T11:03:00.001-07:00

Christina in Red
Originally uploaded by Michael Shawn79

Trying a few Photoshop edits.

Civet

2010-01-15T18:58:00.001-07:00

Civet
Originally uploaded by Michael Shawn79

Watch Civet play the Gretsch booth today. Young, loud and pretty. Nothing better then that.

NAMM 2010 Preshow

2010-01-14T00:00:00.001-07:00

NAMM 2010 Preshow
Originally uploaded by Michael Shawn79

Loving this Gretsch custom shop guitar. check out the rest of my NAMM 2010 photographs. i'll try to update em every day.

ENJOY!

Singing to Friends and Family

2009-11-12T11:34:00.012-07:00

Will Modified ever get AC? Those were my first thoughts as I waited for Bishop Allen to finish their sound check. Once that was out of the way they took the stage in what I heard from a young girl behind me say, "See! Look how cool they look. They look like everyday people." And yes, they did. Very modest looking band. The two creators, Justin (lead singer) and Christian (lead guitarist), stood side by side up on stage. You get a sense of comfort from them. Felt like I could walk right up to Justin or Christian, shake their hand and ask them if they wanted to grab a drink after the show. More or less like a friend would.

At the first song the crowd was instantly enthralled. Feet moving, hands clapping, people singing along. That night inside Modified everyone was truly Bishop Allen fans. Justin has these gestures of a southern gospel preacher. Parts of his songs he would let his guitar hang around his neck and point to the sky or hold his palms out like what he was saying was a message to his fans. Along side of that was the sheer interaction of the crowd. Click, Click, Click was a collaboration of half the crowd clapping all in sync (clap clap clap). Empire City, everyone threw out a WAAY-OH! on mark. That is just a fraction of it all. Lets not forget about the sweet voice of Darbie Rice singing Butterfly Nets. It was a nice way to slow things down during the set.

This was a perfect example of a intimate show. Small venue, check. Engaging crowd, check. A fun band, check. All the elements were there. One interesting thought crossed my mind as I stood there waiting for the crowd to herd themselves out the door was the crowd didn't feel like a crowd at all. It felt like Bishop Allen was signing to friends and family. I don't know if you get what I'm saying but It was one of those nights where everyone shared one common interest, the love for Bishop Allen.

www.bishopallen.com
www.modified.org

My First HDR Photograph

2009-10-27T13:49:00.001-07:00

My First HDR Photograph
Originally uploaded by Michael Shawn79

So I gave HDR a try when I was in Sedona for my birthday. Much harder then I imagine. It's easy to over do it.

Mad Men Dinners

2009-08-31T12:57:00.003-07:00

I haven't wrote an entry for a long time so what better entry to write then Mad Men Dinners. Christina and I have been dressing up, cooking dinner and watching Mad Men on Wednesday. Yes Mad Men are on Sundays but work has been pretty busy and Wednesdays have been my only free time. So here are the pictures I have been taking of the night.

See Pictures Here.

Kings of Last Call

2009-05-19T10:37:00.005-07:00

Couple of my Fender buddies play in a band called Kings of Last Call. This past weekend they played a benefit show at Hard Rock Cafe in Phoenix for Ear Candy. Guess what part of the line up they were? I bought myself a new lens so this was a perfect time to try it out. It's a Canon 50mm 1.4. I love it! Shoots pretty well in low light. I still don't have the focusing down in low light. Auto does not work very fast with my 20D so I try manual. Anyways I was pretty satisfied with my pictures. You can take a look at them on my flickr account. Kings of Last Call photos

Chihuly Exhibit at the Desert Botanical Garden

2009-04-22T09:57:00.004-07:00

This was so very unreal looking. My friend Angela came down from Flagstaff for the weekend and we decided to go see the Chihuly exhibit. Here are pictures I took of the experience.
Chihuly Exhibit

My Yawning Series.

2009-03-17T00:02:00.003-07:00

I thought I lost these pictures years ago due to a hard drive crash. Well I found 'em. Did a little editing to them. The people in these images are very good friends of mine. Good friends I have to let me take ridiculous pictures of them yawning.

The Yawning Series

$60.60 at Stinkweeds

2009-03-04T09:47:00.020-07:00

Since I was sick for two weeks I saved up some extra spending money. So what did I do with it? I spent it at Stinkweeds. What else would I do with extra spending money? So here is what I bought. This time around I am going to try to give a little review. Not very good a reviewing but I'm going to give it a shot. Very brief review.

M Ward - Hold Time
Yeah, this is a M Ward album. Even when produced this big he still keeps his voice lo-fi. Few covers in here including Rave On (nicely done) and Oh Lonsome Me with Lucinda Williams, witch felt a little out of placed. Overall it's a solid album. Still does not compare to Transfiguration Of Vincent but I like it for the most part. Found my self keep going back to the song Epistemology. Such a great song.

Neko Case - Middle Cyclone
This album seemed to have sneaked up on most of my friends. I was real excited for this album. I felt like all her other albums she took her voice as far as she could go so this one would be different and it is. It feels like she started to experiment with her voice more with Middle Cyclone in how she sings her songs. This album features a great group of musicians and signers including Jon Rauhouse, Joey Burns, Kelly Hogan Carl Newman and M Ward.

Beirut - March of the Zapotec and Realpeople Holland
I don't really know much about Beirut but this album made me very intrigued. A 19-piece band performing Mexican funeral marches on the first disk and then odd synths on the other. The first disk sounded like it was unfinished but I did really enjoyed the second disk.

Vetiver - Tight Knit
I'm fairly new to Vetiver but I really enjoyed their last album, To Find Me Gone. Vetiver has a dream-like indie tast to them with some folk in the mix. This is one of those "Best band you never heard" bands. Remeber Mission of Burma? Yeah a lot of people don't and if you do it's a lot like that. This album just sounds so, well so nicely tight knitted. I can't say anything bad about this albums. It can be on of those albums you just play in the background or play it for friends while drinking a few beers.

So there it is, my first quick reviews. Hope it was not too painful.

NAMM 2009

2009-01-28T19:11:00.003-07:00

It was the best of times and the worst of times. Well it was mostly worst of times but I did have fun blogging about on the fender blog. I'm pretty sure we all wanted to strangle eachothers throats at the end of it all. I uploaded some pictures of the trade show onto my flickr page. Check it out here. NAMM 2009 I meet a few interesting people while I was there but none more interesting then Cory Feldman. Yeah freakin Cory Feldman stopped by the Fender booth.

$60.00 somthing at Stinkweeds

2009-01-28T10:09:00.008-07:00

So I have not posted in a while or bought music in a while. So I'm killing two birds with one stone. Speaking of birds I will be seeing Andrew Bird at the Rialto in Tucson on Valentines Day. No I don't have a date unless you consider Greg to be my date but I don't think he will appreciate that. Here are some of the most recent albums I bought.

The one album I am really into on this list is The Budos Band. Brooklyn band with a 1970 funk TV show sound to them. Fantastic horn section and great keyboard. I suggest the song Ride Or Die. Really good saxophone solo about 3/4 of the way in. Got to love the pauses in the song too.

These are all really great buys. I suggest any one of these. One of these days I'll find time to write reviews. Untill then, google it.

Soy Un Caballo - Les Heures de Raison

The Budos Band - II

Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago

Andrew Bird - Noble Beast/Useless Creatures

Scratch and a diabetic coma

2008-12-08T15:54:00.004-07:00

So my co-workers and I frequent a little french bakery in Scottsdale next to work called Scratch. I'm not sure if it's the food or the cute waitress but we go all the time. Here are a few pictures of me and Rick sharing the 3 chocolate mousses. It was really, really, incredibly delicious. I nearly went into a diabetic coma. Very rich and very good. If you are ever in the neighborhood check this place out. I suggest the Lorraine quiche and a cup of coffee.

Táin Bó Cúailnge

2008-11-19T16:25:00.003-07:00

Behind in my music post

2008-11-13T10:41:00.004-07:00

I have been lazy and haven't been posting my Stinkweeds purchases. Sorry readers (Andrew). I have bought close to 15 CDs and vinyl since my last purchase so I'm just going to post one that I have been hooked on for a very long time. I bought France Gall - Poupée de son. I'm totally in love with this woman, well just French pop singers in general. You might recognize a song on this album. The English version was featured in Quentin Teritinos Death Proof at the end credits. The band is April March. Here is a small list of some French music I have been listening too. Enjoy. Oh and if anyone has any suggestions throw them my way. Thanks. My FaveFrench

I'm Voting Republican ...

2008-11-03T17:13:00.001-07:00

because I need the government to tell me what to do.

These are a few of my favorite things

2008-10-31T14:20:00.003-07:00

I freaked when my friend Angie sent me this link on instant messenger. I love zombies and I adore pinups. So what can be better then zombie pinups? NOTHING, that's what.

I voted early at the circus

2008-10-30T10:30:00.003-07:00

So I went downtown with my friend Emily to vote early. What I thought was going to be a normal day turned out to be a circus. First Emily had her box cutter in her purse. Wups. She had to leave that outside. Then as I was waiting in line a ex girlfriend was working the voting poll. I always seem to bump into ex girlfriends around town but this one was pregnant. No, it's not mine. Following that I hear this guy up at the counter saying that he will not fill anything out that has Spanish on it. What a weird thing to say. So I thought I was home free as I was walking out the doo but nope, guess again. This guy walked right into me and called me names as I was walking out the door. But I think Obama was worth all that crazieness.

Don't forget to vote Nov. 4th!

Venting some steam

2008-10-22T14:19:00.004-07:00

For 3 months now I have been helping my co-worker build the new Jackson Guitars website. I mostly have been populating pages and supporting images (buttons, headers, tiling backgrounds etc). About a week ago he left to Illinois for a wedding. The due date is Halloween (typical) and he will not be back till the 27th. So now all the work is dumped on my lap and it's up to me to fix all the little problems that have been springing up. It's a little frustrating but I'm getting it done.

The most recent frustrating thing is translations. I can speak a little spanish and a little french but not enough. So Google translator has been my best friend these last couple days. We get translations for the Europe office but no key to what that it says in english. Just a Word doc with French, Italian, Spanish and so on.

So as soon as he gets back I am handing him a list of need to do and getting back to my work load witch is growing larger and larger by the day because Jackson is "top priority".

That's my ranting today. It's been long days and sleepless nights for a couple weeks now and it's taking its toll.

Here is the old Jackson Guitars for you guys. The new one will soon fallow.

$43.22 at Stinkweeds

2008-10-08T11:01:00.003-07:00

Swan Lake - Beast Moans

Brendan Canning - Something For All Of Us

OH NO! OH MY! - Between the Devil and the Sea

Tilt-shift video

2008-10-07T16:01:00.002-07:00

I have always been a fan of tilt-shift photography but when I watched this video, seeing it in motion, simply stunning.

Beached from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.

Can you survive the outbreak?

2008-10-01T10:00:00.003-07:00

A lot of you know that I am a BIG zombie fan so you can imagine how excited I was when I found this website. After reading the zombie survival guide my friend Andrew gave me I don't agree with some of the choices you die in but then again situations can be unpredictable when zombies are around. :)

Enjoy this choose your own adventure style website.
http://www.survivetheoutbreak.com/

Happy talk like a pirate day.

2008-09-19T10:14:00.001-07:00

If you are having trouble speaking today check out this instructional video.

That's What She Said

2008-09-16T13:40:00.001-07:00

Dog and cats living together.

2008-09-15T09:55:00.003-07:00

Since I moved away from home I missed our cat Sneakers. Living in a small apartment I never really thought a cat was a good idea, or a dog for that matter too. Money was kind of an issue too. Since I stopped going out so much and started to become a home body getting a cat or dog is becoming more and more appealing. So I am going out this weekend and check out some animals. Maybe a snake? or a pig?

France Gall "Laisse tomber les filles"

2008-09-11T15:20:00.001-07:00

Indian Thriller

2008-09-09T15:29:00.000-07:00

Seinfeld and Gates Commercial

2008-09-05T10:26:00.006-07:00

When I first watched this commercial I was very uncomfortable watching it. Seinfeld felt fake and Gates look even more uncomfortable then me. But after reading this article on cnet.com about why that ad was superb I realized, yes, yes it was superb. One paragraph stood out.

"Instead of looking at Bill Gates and using that as the vehicle for contempt, maybe everyone should step back for a moment and realize that the Seinfeld ad did exactly what it needed to do: it took the focus off Bill Gates' money, Vista's problems, and Microsoft's poor public image, and started erecting a more positive image of the company, which will eventually allow it to promote its products."

After reading that I did step back and thought about the big picture. I guess it's hard for me to get the concept of commercials because I work in marketing and I analyze things like crazy. To get your opinion here is the video and a link to the article.

(ARTICLE) Reality Check: The Seinfeld ad was superb

A Call To Heal - The Baghdad Rain Project

2008-09-04T16:49:00.003-07:00

My brother-in-law, Jim, released a new album last month called The Baghdad Rain Project. For not playing music full time it sounds pretty good. That guy is very talented. It's different then his last band, J-45 witch is the name of a Gibson acoustic guitar. I forgive you Jim. J-45 had kind of a country mixed with rockabilly truckin on sound to it. kind of. The Baghdad Rain Project kind of steers away from that and has a country/world music sound.

I built their website witch hopefully does it's job and sales albums or mp3's or whatever kids like these days. Anyways would like you guys to stop in and check it out and see what you think. The Baghdad Rain Project

$43.89 at Stinkweeds

2008-09-04T13:34:00.004-07:00

Secret Shine - All of The Stars

Inara George with Van Dyke Parks - An Invitation

Mark Lanegan - Scraps At Midnight

Lomography

2008-09-04T13:22:00.002-07:00

Here are a few shots I took with a Holga.

Gremlins in my D.O.V.

2008-09-02T14:15:00.002-07:00

Friend of a friend who is a pilot.

2008-08-27T10:12:00.004-07:00

My friend at work has this long time buddy that was a pilot up in Alaska. He compiled all his video from Alaska into a pretty damn good video. Very well edited for just a pilot. ;) Anyways I believe the song is a Chemical Brothers song. Enjoy.

$40 somethin at Stinkweeds

2008-08-26T13:35:00.003-07:00

Don Caballero - Punkgasm
(NO ARTWORK!!!)

Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan - Sunday at Devil Dirt

Blitzen Trapper - Wild Mountain Nation

Sukiyaki Western Django

2008-08-25T10:30:00.000-07:00

Manga Mike!

2008-08-15T09:31:00.002-07:00

This was pretty fun.

Fender Employee Meeting

2008-08-10T11:11:00.003-07:00

Once a year we have this corporate meeting. This years meeting was at the Tempe Center For The Arts. Really nice building. It was almost like buildings within buildings. We had displays for Jackons, Fender, Fender Custom Shop, SWR and our new family member Kaman. Also Toyota gave us this pretty sweet Martix with a PS3 and plasma screen built into it. Check out the pictures from the meeting here.

$22.18 at Stinkweeds

2008-08-07T09:42:00.004-07:00

Dr. Dog - Fate (really like this album cover)

Bonnie 'Prince' Billy - Sings No More Workhourse Blues

$24.85 at Stinkweeds

2008-08-01T09:29:00.003-07:00

Okkervil River - Sleep and Wake-Up Songs

Daedelus - Love To Make Music To

The Website is Down

2008-07-31T10:10:00.001-07:00

This goes out to all my IT buddies.
http://www.thewebsiteisdown.com/

Automan

2008-07-30T09:10:00.000-07:00

Riptide!

2008-07-30T09:08:00.000-07:00

Fleet Foxes - White Winter Hymnal

2008-07-24T09:07:00.001-07:00

I have been hooked on this album and possibly the best album of the year.

$28.20 at Stinkweeds

2008-07-23T19:33:00.004-07:00

I am going to be poor but at leas I'll have one hell of a music collection. :)

Mirah - The Old Days Feeling

Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes (best album of the year)

Habanera

2008-07-22T14:32:00.000-07:00

Dinosaur Egg

2008-07-21T14:02:00.001-07:00

wow. simply wow.

50.67 at Stinkweeds

2008-07-18T09:08:00.006-07:00

Bought a few things off my wish list.

Bowerbirds - Hymns for a Dark Horse

Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan - Ballad of the Broken Seas

Vetiver - To Find Me Gone

Angles of Light - We Are Him
(could not find album artwork, huh)

My Wish List

2008-07-16T14:38:00.002-07:00

Vetiver - To Find Me Gone
Bowerbirds - Hymns For a Dark Horse
Fleet Foxes - Ragged Wood
Port'o Brien - All We Do Was Sing
Isobel Campbell / Mark Lanegan - Sunday at Devil Dirt
Woods - At Rear House
Cave Singers - Invitation Songs

thanks for turning me onto these bands, em.

Everyone Count to 4

2008-07-16T09:33:00.000-07:00

$66.02 at Stinkweeds

2008-07-12T17:41:00.008-07:00

Bought some new music today.

Low - Drums And Guns (LP)

Jose Gonzalez - Veneer

Alejandro Escovedo - Real Animal

The Raconteurs - Consolers of the Lonely

Sigur Ros

2008-07-11T11:47:00.003-07:00

So I have been obsessing over Sigur Ros because they are coming to town on September 30th. I have been racking my brain over the Song Starálfur (incredible song) because I heard it in a movie. Well I found the movie and to my surprise it's a movie I absolutely love! Completely forgot it was in Life Aquatic.

Jazzmaster Photoshoot FINAL POSTER

2008-07-09T11:57:00.006-07:00

So Connie finished this poster last week. I couldn't post it because we have not announced the show yet. Well it's official now so here is the final project from the Jazzmaster Photoshoot I did. Thanks to Connie Herron for helping out with the shoot and a really hip poster design. Also thanks to Brian Leach for putting the box on his head :) you can see the shoot here

Give me A.C. or give me death.

2008-07-07T12:17:00.003-07:00

So my AC went out on July 4th. I came back from a hiking trip and it was 94 degrees in my apartment. So I called my landlord and he said they A.C. guys can come out on Monday, today. No call from him yet. :( I have been staying over at my friends house for the last couple days. Last night I manned up slept in my apartment. I have a window unit that helps a little. I moved my couch directly in front of it and slept nice and cool. I walk six feet away from the window unit and it's 93 degrees. So I don't venture far from my couch. I am crossing my figures hoping they fixed it today or I will be spending the night in Hell again tonight.

Cat Stevens - Wild World

2008-06-27T11:04:00.001-07:00

Been hooked on Cat Stevens for a while. So what the hell I'll blog a live performance.

Jazzmaster Photoshoot

2008-06-25T10:46:00.003-07:00

I did this quick photoshoot with my co-worker yesterday for the Jazzmaster 50th anniversary concert in New York poster. We had way too much fun on this shoot. Not sure why a box but it works out really well in the final poster. As soon as she gets the concert poster done i'll bost that as well. Until then you can see some more pictures on my flickr account.

$80.09 at Stinkweeds

2008-06-17T10:51:00.008-07:00

So I bought new music yesterday. Didn't do too bad. I forgot my list so I couldn't remember what I needed. So this is what I ended up with.

1. Osorezan - Mimidokodesuka (A Jim O'rourke project)

2. My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges (Not impressed with this album. Still think Z is their best album)

3. Mudhoney - The Lucky Ones (Love this album. Always been a fan of theirs)

4. Plants And Animals - Parc Avenue (This one was suggested by Emily. Good choice.)

4. Retribution Gospel Choir - Retribution Gospel Choir LP (Produced by Mark Kozelek.)

Brilliant Ad from Cadbury

2008-06-10T16:29:00.000-07:00

David Byrne Uses An Entire Building as a Giant Instrument

2008-06-10T15:24:00.002-07:00

I have now words to explain how awesome this is. I couldn't get the player embed so enjoy this video on Gizmodo.

Best Moment In Cinema History (Part 1)

2008-06-09T16:25:00.001-07:00

Leaving Myspace Vegas.

2008-06-09T15:34:00.004-07:00

So I deleted my myspace account yesterday. (It created some ripple effect across my friends lists.) I don't really use it. Plus I am kind of tired of messaging "friends" and no one messaging me back. How hard is it to write a email. I mean we don't have the Pony Express anymore. So I thought to myself all my good friends have my email or my phone number. So I got rid of all my "friends" and decided to just stick with my friends.

iPhone 3G!

2008-06-09T12:00:00.002-07:00

So I was watching the live feed of WWDC on MacRumors.com and the new iPhone is amazing. Two things jumped out at me when I was watching the live feed. One is the new GPS service. freaking awesome. Two, you can get a 8G one for $199! Much cheaper then before. My Verison plan is up in December of this year so looks like I am swtiching cell phone providers. :) You hear that parents? Just in time for Christmas.

NASA Scientists Make Magnetic Fields Visible, Beautiful

2008-06-02T13:51:00.005-07:00

Unfortunately this is not real. :( But what an amazing art film.

A Hawk and A Hacksaw

2008-05-29T10:04:00.002-07:00

This band is growing more and more on me. Didn't really think too much of them before but now i can't stop listening to them. Enjoy this video I found of theirs.

Rent Roman

2008-05-27T10:57:00.002-07:00

So I have been playing a little of Grand Theft Auto 4 lately. Well if I can get away from Call of Duty. For all you GTA4 fans you might like this little video.

Mom, I want this for Christmas.

2008-05-22T15:11:00.003-07:00

Honda Super Cub

Muxtape 5-21-2008

2008-05-21T11:30:00.000-07:00

My first Muxtape. Enjoy mccurry.muxtape

Green Dinning Room

2008-05-21T11:23:00.004-07:00

I painted my dinning room over the weekend. At first I didn't like the color but eating breakfast is kind of pleasing now. I heard somewhere that green stimulates the hungry nerve. It's not really working for me. I uploaded some pictures of me and my friend Emily slaving away on painting. See Photos Here

Fender University Up And Running!

2008-05-08T15:19:00.005-07:00

So here is my latests website I built for Fender. I tell you what I was not happy where this website was headed in the beginning. Ideas were all over the place and it was just dropped in my lap from another designer without any information about it. I had no idea what I was doing. Took me two meetings to finally grasp what was going on. Communication is key in all projects, thats what I always say. Anyways, enough ranting. You can see the site at www.fender.com/university/. Enjoy ya'll. Oh and sign up if you can afford it. This looks like it will be real fun.

Battles - Atlas

2008-05-08T09:55:00.001-07:00

I have been hooked on this song for a while. Didn't think a chipmunk voice could work so well.

Tenacious D - Inward Singing Typography Experiment

2008-05-06T13:45:00.001-07:00

Botanical Garden Photographs

2008-05-01T11:03:00.005-07:00

So my parents came into town last weekend and on Sunday my mother wanted to go out to the Botanical Garden in Phoenix. So, we went. Beautiful day to take pictures. I have not taken pictures in months and I miss it. They turned out really good for no editing whats so ever. They were all taken on a Canon PowerShot SD1000. Love that camera. You can see the pictures here.

UT LOOP

2008-04-29T10:08:00.001-07:00

Dateing Services

2008-04-22T15:22:00.004-07:00

I was on match.com for about 6 months and this was kind of how it was like making my profile.

An Engineer's Guide to Kittehs

2008-04-21T21:48:00.001-07:00

Ghostbusters Ecto-1 restoration / recreation

2008-04-17T11:50:00.005-07:00

"So ... shes a dog." The second sequel to Ghostbusters is going to be a videogame, written by Harold Ramis and Dan Aykroyd and voiced by the entire original cast, including Bill Murray. Totally stoked. To get you people amped up here are a few pictures of the Ecto-1 restoration/recreation. Enjoy ...

Gnarls Barkley Crazy Theremin Jam

2008-04-15T10:15:00.000-07:00

Jon Spencer Playing a Theremin

2008-04-14T13:15:00.001-07:00

Jon Spencer is a genius!

Cat Playing a Theremin

2008-04-14T13:08:00.001-07:00

Protest April 1st

2008-04-01T16:02:00.003-07:00

I HATE April Fools Day. Stop with all the fake news will ya! Here is a little history on this God forsaken day.

The origins of this custom are complex and a matter of much debate. It is likely a relic of the once common festivities held on the vernal equinox, which began on 25 March, old New Year's Day, and ended on 2 April.

Though 1 April appears to have been observed as a general festival in Great Britain in antiquity, it was apparently not until the beginning of the 18th century that the making of April-fools was a common custom. In Scotland the custom was known as "hunting the gawk," i.e. the cuckoo, and April-fools were "April-gawks," the cuckoo being a term of contempt, as it is in many countries.

One of the earliest connections of the day with fools is Chaucer's story the Nun's Priest's Tale (c.1400), which concerns two fools and takes place "thirty dayes and two" from the beginning of March, which is April 1. The significance of this is difficult to determine.

Europe may have derived its April-fooling from the French.^[1] French and Dutch references from 1508 and 1539 respectively describe April Fools' Day jokes and the custom of making them on the first of April. France was one of the first nations to make January 1 officially New Year's Day (which was already celebrated by many), by decree of Charles IX. This was in 1564, even before the 1582 adoption of the Gregorian calendar (See Julian start of the year). Thus the New Year's gifts and visits of felicitation which had been the feature of 1 April became associated with the first day of January, and those who disliked or did not hear about the change were fair game for those wits who amused themselves by sending mock presents and paying calls of pretended ceremony on 1 April. In France the person fooled is known as poisson d'avril (April fish). This has been explained as arising from the fact that in April the sun quits the zodiacal sign of the fish. The French traditionally celebrated this holiday by placing dead fish on the backs of friends. Today, real fish have been replaced with sticky, fish-shaped paper cut-outs that children try to sneak onto the back of their friends' shirts. Candy shops and bakeries also offer fish-shaped sweets for the holiday.

Some Dutch also celebrate the 1st of April for other reasons. In 1572, the Netherlands were ruled by Spain's King Philip II. Roaming the region were Dutch rebels who called themselves Geuzen, after the French "gueux," meaning beggars. On April 1, 1572, the Geuzen seized the small coastal town of Den Briel. This event was also the start of the general civil rising against the Spanish in other cities in the Netherlands. The Duke of Alba, commander of the Spanish army could not prevent the uprising. Bril is the Dutch word for glasses, so on April 1, 1572, "Alba lost his glasses." The Dutch commemorate this with humor on the first of April.

Thanks Wiki

Oh man, I got Mike on my shirt.

2008-03-28T15:39:00.001-07:00

"Run these guys into your jet walls."

2008-03-28T09:21:00.002-07:00

Tron
by freres-hueon

What did the five fingers say to the face?

2008-03-27T14:52:00.004-07:00

Johnny Cash Does Elvis

2008-03-24T09:52:00.001-07:00

'Creepy gnome' terrorises town

2008-03-11T16:05:00.005-07:00

I had to post this. Best thing all day. Reminds me of that move Signs where Joaquin Phoenix was watching the news air a home video of the alien. Be sure the watch the video footage.
Who gnomes? ... creature

My Kid Could Paint That

2008-03-11T14:19:00.005-07:00

So I watched this movie on Sunday with my friends called My Kid Could Paint That and I really really liked this documentary. It's about this 4 year old girl that paints so well that people are buying her paintings around $12,000. Then started a big conspiracy that the child did not paint these paintings. What I liked about it is that it was not about the girl but it was more about the family. 5 stars all around. Here is a full synopsis on the documentary.

Amir Bar-Lev directs this thought-provoking documentary about a precocious 4-year-old artist whose abstract works have drawn critical comparisons with modernist greats such as Kandinsky, Picasso and Pollack -- and whose talents have already profited her more than $300,000. Is her gift with a paintbrush just an illusion, or is she truly an artistic visionary trapped in the body of a child?

view the trailer

I'm a Rocketman

2008-03-05T17:03:00.001-07:00

Pug Monitor Cleaner

2008-03-05T11:36:00.003-07:00

http://www.chunkysalsa.net/screenclean.swf

Star Wars vs. Saul Bass

2008-03-04T15:30:00.000-07:00

female musician's that I have a crush on part 2.

2008-03-01T14:31:00.012-07:00

My friend Andrew listed some female musician's thats he has a crush on. Well I agree 100% on all those girls (specially Weta from Boris) here are a few more I would like to add.

Joanna Newsom

Leona Marrs from Pretty Girls Make Graves

Adele Bethel from Sons and Daughters

Scout Niblett

More Then Meets the Eye

2008-02-29T13:35:00.003-07:00

Optimus Prime shows us the history of dance.

One November night at Casey Moore's

2008-02-28T15:15:00.004-07:00

Back in November Emily and I went out to Casey Moore's to celebrate her 21st birthday. I was kind of bummed because none of her friends showed up but Jeff. Well Jeff writes comics and he happened to write one from that night at Casey Moore's. Tells the story perfectly! You can read his other stuff at screwjeffowens.com

New Music: Boris "Statement"

2008-02-27T10:37:00.002-07:00

I am pretty stoked about this album. Not to mention a big crush on Wata (lead guitarist).

Wilco Limited Edition Six Figure Set

2008-02-20T23:39:00.011-07:00

So I was sitting at work slaving away when our mail room guy brought me one of the best packages I have ever received at Fender. When I saw the Insound address I was stoked. There, neatly packed away in this brown box is my vinyl figures of the best band in the world, Wilco. Now I get to hang out with Jeff Tweedy and Nels Cline all day! I would like to thank Unkl for making this possible. Thanks guys. Here are a few pictures of the packaging and the vinyl figures.

Killers Kill, Dead Men Die

2008-02-08T15:19:00.001-07:00

Annie Leibovitz is a genius!

Skating in a war zone.

2008-02-08T09:51:00.001-07:00

Brilliantly done into by Spike Jones.

Super Tuesday Of The Crystal Skull

2008-02-05T21:56:00.000-07:00

Ok so I love Indiana Jones, shoot me. In fact for the last three days I have been watching the trilogy. Just finish The Last Crusade and totally forgot that his real name is Henry Jones, Jr. How could I forget about that! Indiana was the dog.

Anyways the real reason why I am in this Indiana Jones fix is because of the new movie Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Super excited for this film but deep down inside I fear that it is going to be terrible. I think it's because Shia LaBeouf is staring in it. Not much of a fan because he always act the same in every movie he does. Well today they just released a picture of the Crystal Skull. Don't know if I like the fact that it is a alien skull but hey, I'm still totally stoked. This is were I would put a picture of the Crystal Skull but the studio asked everyone to take down the picture. So here is a picture of our lovable E.T. enjoy.

Indiana Jones And The First Blog

2008-02-04T22:59:00.000-07:00

So I was sitting down on my Ikea couch watching Indiana Jones and The Temple Of Doom when I thought to myself, "I want to start a blog." Not sure why I thought that as I watch Dr. Jones jump out of a plane with nothing but a inflatable boat for a parachute. So here I am half way through The Temple of Doom and writing my first blog. I hope you all that read this enjoy it. Here is were I spend most of my time at home if not watching a movie on my couch. This is a picture of my bloodline, my MacBook. I do everything on this little laptop. Cook, eat, even a little web design.