Still here...

I haven't posted in months, but I am still here...swamped with work, but also scheming for what this site and blog need to be. I love sharing cool stuff I find online, but there is purpose...direction...an identity that has been nagging at me. This blog is more than just clever quips and shots at cool tech...there is soul behind it. I'm still figuring out what exactly that is.

OMG Lebron James Just Got Dunked On!!!!!!

You must wonder what evil genius is working at Nike/Wieden&Kennedy to create such a stir about nothing...or if it was planned at all. This video surfaced a few weeks ago, but was "pulled down" reportedly by Nike because LeBron gets dunked on by a kid at his basketball camp. Conspiracy theories started to run about why Nike would do this...are they protecting LeBron's image, the face of their brand, er, one face of their brand? Was it because Jordan Crawford was wearing an Adidas jersey? Does it matter? But this is the off season. And we're still talking about it. ESPN reported on it. News articles are surfacing asking "What's the big deal?" So, Nike, you're welcome. We're still talking about you. And Lebron, man, tighten up the D.

Going Viral and Being Grateful :: Kuroshio Video and Barcelona

An incredible video shot with a Canon 5D MKII has surfaced of the Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium's Kuroshio Sea, the 2nd largest aquarium tank in the world.



This video was viewed over 1 million times in a week. As the video went viral, people began asking about the music which so perfectly fits the scene. The band, Barcelona, was used without their knowledge...a nice little piece of music supervision by the director. This week the band's single, "Please Don't Go" gained traction at iTunes and the band released this video response, which, if you can appreciate their humility, gratitude, and genuine surprise at their good fortune, makes you like them even more. If you like the song, go support these guys.



More at myspace.com/barcelona

Follow director Jon Rawlinson on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jonrawlinson

Star Wars Uncut :: Claim a Scene and Film 15 Seconds

Cool idea. Claim a 15 second scene of Starwars, then the owners of the site will stich them together to make a full-length version. All the scenes have been claimed, so now we wait and watch!

http://starwarsuncut.com

The Plug :: I Tied a Camera to a Bench

Fun idea - ThePlug.com tied a camera to a bench with a note:

Good afternoon,
I attached this camera to the bench so you could take pictures. Seriously. So have fun. I'll be back later this evening to pick it up.
Love, Jay / The Plug

Check out the photos HERE >>

Steve McNair :: A Farewell

I was a huge sports fan throughout my childhood. Somewhere in highschool I took a turn for the arts and left sports behind. I focused on music and writing throughout college, and once I graduate from Belmont I stayed in Nashville. We were getting a football team, the former Houston Oilers, and they were to be named the Tennessee Titans. My dad, who was a huge football fan, kept asking me about the Titans...how are they doing, who are they playing, etc. I didn't know or really care to know. But as the season went a long and my dad kept asking me about the Titans, I began to pay attention. He was a big fan of the St. Louis Rams and brought up the prospect of the Rams vs. Titans in the Super Bowl. He had my attention.

For the next several months we knocked on each other's team in good fun. He would call me anytime the Rams made a great play and I would call him when the Titans did the same. Then this happened:



The Titans had stayed alive and eventually made it to the Super Bowl. It was a hell of a game. My dad called me every time the Titans screwed up or the Rams made a great play. We loved the ribbing. He was great at it. On the final play of the game I called him while the play unfolded..."McNair throws...caught!!! TOUCHD....NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" The other end of the phone distorted with celebration that the Rams won.



I lost my dad in 2003. I am forever grateful to that group of Titans for such a memorable season that brought dad and I closer. Without Steve McNair, I don't think we would have been there. Rest in Peace, Steve, and thank you for the memories that inspired the city of Nashville.

White Glove Tracking :: A Nerd Tribute to Michael Jackson

Tributes for Michael Jackson are showing up everywhere since his untimely death a few weeks ago. Some of the brightest are user-generated and open source. Here are two that I love.

WHITE GLOVE TRACKING
White Glove Tracking is an open source project initiated by Evan Roth and Ben Engebreth with support from the Rhizome Commissions Program and the Eyebeam OpenLab. A description of the project from the website www.whiteglovetracking.com:

On May 4th, 2007, we asked internet users to help isolate Michael Jackson's white glove in all 10,060 frames of his nationally televised landmark performance of Billy Jean. 72 hours later 125,000 gloves had been located. wgt_data_v1.txt is the culmination of data collected.

Users may download this data set and use it to manipulate the video, specifically, MJ's white glove. The nerd herd is in full song with the King of Pop. My favorite is the Giant Glove by Tim Knapen



Be sure to check out the gallery for some really great applications! www.whiteglovetracking.com

ETERNAL MOONWALK
You may have seen this but it's worth mentioning and you don't have to be quite as geeky to participate. The site invites users to upload a video of themselves doing the moonwalk. Once uploaded, it cycles through the submissions as if the moonwalk were being passed on through each window. It's really ingenious. One feature that takes it to the next level is that each participant's name, location, and social contacts are displayed beneath each video. Hit the user up via facebook, twitter, or email. Quite cool.

www.eternalmoonwalk.com

GET MICHAEL JACKSON MUSIC ON iTUNES >>