Jim in Real Life

A post of a poster for Obama

OK, so I'm a huge fan of Shepard Fairey and Obey, and it kills me that I can't buy a print of this incredible Obama poster, so I made a high-resolution mosaic version out of images from Flickr and Google keyworded "Obama"....

If you'd like the high resolution (6mb JPEG), feel free to download and print it from here.

A headaching post of staggering randomness

This particular post is a consummate exercise in arrogance, as if someone out there would wish to read something I wrote without original substance.

Think of this as a shout out to some people who matter. They may or may not recognize themselves, but sometimes the point of putting thoughts into text is not to be read but simply to create.

1) The Writer

I am hoarding your book, doling out my tastes like an addict watching his stash dwindle. I am afraid on some level of the moment when reading turns into re-reading. So I feed my hunger in tiny tastes.

"They need fierce angels to swoop in and save them from the adults." - Though you, dear author (oh so clever, turning the tables on the oh-so-obvious "dear reader") have likely never read my Facebook page, my "religious views" now reads "believes in fierce angels."

"The car rockets forward, and you close your eyes so you won't know when you're about to die." - I don't even have the words for this one. This might be the most beautiful single sentence I've ever read.

"It's like you met your twin sister, only she's better and different." - How does someone I've never met describe the person I always wanted to meet?

2) The Marketer

Click here. Non illegitmiti carborundum (Wikipedia it). You are a fierce angel, so believe in that no matter what.

3) The Candidate

I have a special little treat tomorrow for Obama supporters... (it's rendering now...) but for tonight, I will simply share the most profound words I have heard that great man speak, delivered to a crowd of 74,999 people and me on the waterfront of Portland, Oregon on 18 May 2008.

"It is important to focus not just on how we win, but why we should."

I have never heard a phrase (save perhaps those above) that has resonated with me in so many ways.

And so, my own dear reader... I will freely admit to bringing nothing original to this post, and close by plagiarizing the ultimate good night:

Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow,
That I shall say good night till it be morrow.

The best book I've read in a really long time

Sometimes when you least expect it, fate steps in and hands you a gift. I had that experience yesterday when, during a shopping trip at Urban Outfitters, I picked up Pretty Little Mistakes, simply to give myself something to read while I ate lunch.

The premise of the book was intriguing, especially for those of us of a certain age demographic who grew up devouring "Choose Your Own Adventure" books. The basic idea was that genre... for grownups.

It's a clever trick, and the book is quite entertaining on that level. But the real magic of Heather McElhatton's writing is that you forget that you're reading a "clever" book. Each time your story "ends" the protagonist (of course) dies, and almost every one of the final threads ends with heart-wrenching poignancy. I found myself dog-earring page after page to remind myself of phrases that were razor sharp reminders of how tragic, comic, happy, sad... emotional... life is.

The best way I can describe the book is that it is like watching the finale of "Six Feet Under" as Claire drives away... only over and over, imagining what is, was, and might have been. It's a beautiful book, and one that you'll likely never "finish" (the joy and ache of CYOA) but return to again and again, threading through an imagined life that somehow becomes everyone.

(And for anyone who needs just a touch of heartache to start out their day, here's the finale of "Six Feet Under" including the haunting "Breathe Me" by Sia... don't say I didn't warn you.)

RECIPE: Vegetable Tartare

I was utterly blown away by the tuna tartare served at Hiroshi that I had last week, and it inspired me to create a vegetable side dish to serve alongside an asparagus/leek risotto and filet mignon with smoked pork belly. What I wanted was the flavor of a "traditional" tartare, with a bit of an Asian twist, combined with the multiple textures of the vegetables. The tartare turned out rather well, so I decided it would be the first recipe I share here.

Vegetable Tartare
Serves 2

Ingredients

5 artichoke bottoms (canned)
2 "sticks" heart of palm (canned), sliced into 3/8" slices
1/2 medium yellow tomato, seeded and sliced into 1/4" dice
1/2 medium orange tomato, seeded and sliced into 1/4" dice
1/4 avocado, chopped into 1/4" dice
Watercress leaves
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tbs capers (in brine, not salted)
1/2 tsp caper brine
Pink or black salt (preferably a rough flake)

Directions

Reserve two of the artichoke bottoms. Chop the remaining three into roughly 1/4" dice. Combine chopped artichoke bottoms, hearts of palm, tomatoes, avocado, and capers in a small bowl. Drizzle the sesame oil and brine and toss to coat.

Slice off the bottom of the two reserved artichoke bottoms to make a stable base. Put a few watercress leaves on the plate and set one artichoke bottom in each "nest" of watercress. Mound the tartare onto the artichoke bottoms and top with a small pinch of volcanic salt.

The raw power of the interwebs

So, here I am sitting at the bar of a noodle restaurant reading a book when it occurs to me that I really should test out the awesome power of mobile blogging technology. So I did.

Posted: a few good books on divorce

As some of you are no doubt aware, I'm in the midst of a divorce. People had you reading lists... literally HUNDREDS of books you can read on every aspect. I'm sharing a few I actually found useful. I hope no one out there has to read any of these because, let's face it... divorce sucks big time. But if you're one of the 62% of Oregonians whose marriage will end in divorce, maybe one of these will save you some time, pain, or anguish.

An incredibly beautiful and elegant waste of time

I came across this on Reddit and thought it was an incredible example of how a simple interface and idea could end up creating a game that's both addictive to play, but also beautiful and oddly poignant.

It's a simple Flash game where you catch shapes. Oh hells, just go play it.

My current design crush: Part the Second

OK, so I'm not that hip yet about fashion. But I'm a firm believer in the power of coincidence (or dare I call it fate?) when it comes to the convergence of design and ideas.

I'm a big Obama supporter. And when I saw this poster, it struck me as possibly the most beautiful campaign poster I'd ever seen. I did a little digging and found out that, lo and behold, it was created by Obey, who happen to make my current favorite line of t-shirts.

Funny how that works.

UPDATE: You can get the Obama "Progress" poster design on a t-shirt from Urban Outfitters. Going down to the store to see if they have 'em in stock. ZOMG, I'll twitter about it!

My current design crush: Part the First

So I have this new favorite magazine, called Antenna.

It's sort of a future-facing design magazine, filled with everything from blazers and shorts to cheeseburgers and glue.

It's elegant and inspiring. Even the glue.