I am very excited about this. Go LA!

Gehry Sees His Glass Towers Transforming Downtown L.A. – Los Angeles Times

Flickr: Photos from benchristen

Your photostream has been viewed 10025 times.

granted, over half of the views are on one photo, but still, I’m stoked!

I was lucky enough to go to SXSW this last weekend and I had BBQ for every meal!

• meal 1 – BBQ Brisket at Iron Works BBQ
• meal 2 – Major Plate at Stubbs BBQ (Brisket, Pork Ribs, Pulled Pork)
• meal 3 – BBQ Brisket and Pork Ribs at Ben’s BBQ Long Branch (pictured)
• meal 4 – Minor Plate at Stubbs BBQ (Brisket, Pulled Pork)
• meal 5 – Chopped Brisket Sandwich at the Salt Lick (the airport location, next time I’ll go to the real location)

And thus was my BBQ Odyssey. I had Shiner Bock and Iced Tea with most meals, except at Ben’s Long Branch I had Grape Kool-Aid. On my BBQ Odyssey I saw Ahmir ?uestlove (drummer for the Roots) THREE times. Ahmir is awesome (a hip hop legend) and clearly also loves BBQ.

• ear plugs are the best things EVAR for concerts, they’re now a must for any show I attend. same great concert experience (sure, i feel a bit dorkier), but no ringing ears afterwards! rock! (ben and amanda and any friends I have in bands are already hip to this, sorry I didn’t take heed sooner, ya’ll)
• brushing my teeth and being ready for bed before it’s actually bed time is awesome. this way, I get to watch tv or whatever and when i’m tired, I just go to sleep. versus, not being ready for bed, I’m too tired to brush my teeth and i have to fight my desire to slumber (which, why would you ever do that? it’s not fun, so much better to fall asleep the moment your body goes into shutdown phase)
• i want to get a heart-rate monitor and get all OC Disorder (don’t call it that) about running, track my stats and chart my heart rate over time! If ely gets the same one we can compare stats. We might not be able to run at the same time or place, but we could encourage each other to keep pace and update our stats on a training blog! (best training blog evar)
• i got a new coffee thermos . . . I love it
• this list is a <ul> due to it’s random nature, there’s no order to this nonsense

Wow! These are fantastic. Cowscapes, by Rachael Sudlow. Great idea for a photo series. And, if anyone wants to buy one of these for me, please do! I may even get one for myself, they’re just that cool.

via la.apartmenttherapy.com – Cowscapes by Rachel Sudlow

One of my favorite blog genres is “gossip blogs.” They’re tons of fun. They’re like all the mags you see waiting in line at the grocery store checkout line, but you don’t have to be annoyed with the people in line next to you and that guy yelling “this is not a library!” and the news is always fresh and the pics are usually nice and high res. Here are my favorites:

subvert society – Sparking the minds that will give you the finger
The Superficial | Because You’re Ugly
Yeeeah!

Such great guilty pleasures!

Check out this very funny video by jonathan coulton (thanks to fling for the link) – Flickr.mov (video/quicktime Object).

This is a great example of why Creative Commons is so awesome. Someone can put this together using other people’s flickr photos underneath a free and flexible legal framework that protects all our copyrights but still allows for sharing! Hooray internet!

Yes! Two Nous Non Plus shows in LA this month. Double the standing in the audience looking dreamily at Céline Dijon for me!

Upcoming.org: Nous Non Plus, Vagenius at El Cid (Friday, January 20, 2006)

Upcoming.org: Nous Non Plus at Tangier (Sunday, January 29, 2006)

Come and join in the fun!

Here are two interesting quotes that I’ve come across lately . . .

Argue with idiots, and you become an idiot – Paul Graham, Hackers and Painters

You can’t plant an acorn in the morning and expect an oak in the afternoon

The first certainly resonates with some of the situations I find myself in . . . (and if you’re reading this, I probably don’t mean you, the second quote applies more 🙂 ).

The second is in reference to old friends and I don’t know where to attribute it to, but it’s nice to reflect on the importance of old friends and realize the effort it does take to build these relationships.

First Cup of the New Year!
Originally uploaded by benchristen.

Happy New Year! I’m having my first cup of coffee for 2006. And, what better than my new french press (thanks, Ellen!) and one of my new Guinness mugs (thanks, mom!). I don’t have any particular resolutions this year — in that, we should be constantly reviewing our personal goals and keeping on track. I think my only resolution this year is to be better at my weekly gtd reviews — taking time each week to review what projects I’m working on (both at home and at work) and also take time to review my 1 year goals and other, more long-term goals. The new year is a great reminder to do this, but I think doing it every week will help bring a better focus to my life. (and of course, all the standard things are on my goal lists, i.e. go to the gym, do good things with my life, get out of debt, etc.) So, with a most delicious cup of coffee, I toast you all – Here’s to the new year! May it be strong, bold and go down smooth!