BABY GOT BACK

"Hamilton and McLaren take shock win in Hungary": It finally feels like 2008 again. As I have said before it really is worth it to stick around for those who you really believe in. GO HAMILTON. I'm frankly content with this win for the year- the MP-24 has certainly done it's best today. But as Farmer Hoggett said to Babe at the end of the movie, 'That will do Pig, that will do'.

Now if only they will stop showing Nicole Scherzinger prancing up and down everytime Lewis overtakes somebody- I've seriously had it up to here with that- she's pretty much laughing stock. How i miss ITV coverage!

Didn't your Mum ever tell you never to be greedy?

Good one Olly and Phil

When I grow up

I want to be grumpily sitting in a cafe 10pm with friends and loved ones, gasbagging about nothing, fumbling with my latte. Having difficulty reading the little words in the menu.

Wait, I'm doing that already...

Happy Snaps

simply good vibes.

"My artwork is motivated by a fascination of people and animals: friends, family, foes; as well as domestic and wild creatures — an interest in capturing personality. I make portraits (1) sometimes with a focus on the face, which I isolate against minimal backgrounds, (2) other times by placing the subjects in environments which, themselves, reveal character, and (3) when I am most interested in concept, often depict the subject as a stand-alone."

It's Amore

Phoenix' 1901

España's humble pie

Spain gets their dose of reality check from a very unlikely team!

This morning when I flipped onto IHT the headline story was about how awesome the Spanish midfielder Xavi is, and he's ability to 'play the game like puppets', as a precursor I suppose to what they would anticipate as an inevitable thrashing in their semifinal against America. Slightly curious about this pocket rocket (there were way too many hobbit references in the article to count) I tuned in just then to watch the match.

Thankfully I was not at the pub.

The score ended up 2-0 alright, but it was to America!
yeh what the!














believe it!
The broadcast was in Hebrew from what I can gather so I was not able to decipher one word, but America most definitely gave Spain, the world #1 team who has been undefeated in 36 matches a good run for its money. The stats all pointed Spain's way but somehow USA were simply able to convert the few shots they were given.

It'd be interesting to see what USA can do come the actual tournament in SA next year. America, the country where it is pretty much good at every sport under the sun except for rugby and football, has now just beaten the world #1 team. Yes they deserve to gloat, if only for a few minutes and one news cycle (doubt). I will also accredit this perhaps to the power of Obama, because it is to me, otherwise inexplicable.

Which is also why, I'm SO EXCITED about USF1 starting on the grid next year!

Merci Beaucoup Phoenix

vous êtes phénoménal.

Hunting and Gathering for inspiration

I have begun my painstaking research for my summer project, which is to make samples and a website for my idea called hunt+gather industries. Merely choosing the font type has taken me a lot of time, and I am still mulling over it.

I am now doing a lot of research on competitor brands, currently looking at:

• Brooks Bros
  
• Turnbull & Asser
  
• J. Press
• Ralph

I've also been reading up on a few magazines:

• Interiors (Fashion special)
  
• Wallpaper*
  
• Fast Company
  

Something I found inspiring:




















Vintage monogrammed undergarment courtesy of WGSN
Although much of the material I am looking at is not directly related to my project I feel that looking at unrelated objects can bring about unexpected inspiration.
I put together an inspiration board that had a lot from the Sartorialist, magazines like Bazaar, FT, GQ. I found I gravitated to images that were more subtle in message; I especially liked grainy black and whites; you can never have too much of Grace Kelly.


















I have yet to open my Steve McQueen book, which I got from Taschen the other day. Currently he is mischievously grinning at me from my bookshelf.

When complete domination becomes boring

Slow down Brawn!

How beautiful and humble is Lewis Hamilton, almost on the brink of tears. His MP24 is quite simply too slow to be competitive on any level at the moment. But as he says, keep pushing. I can't wait for the day he will be on top again, and I know it won't be in the far future!!!

Naysayers

I would like to draw attention to that I shouldn't laugh but laugh anyway clip of one Alexsey Vayner and his video resume, and Michael Cera's spoof succeeding it, "Impossible is the opposite of Possible":





As cringefully bad as both these are (but Cera's acutely entertaining) I think what to take from this is there are some people who just put themselves out there, and that is okay, and I admire them for it. They may be ridiculed (Susan Boyle), laughed at (remember William Hung?), criticised (Sarah Palin) and verbally stoned at, but I think it can give them all the more great motivation and fuel to go out and prove them wrong.

Uplifting

I have just returned from watching Pixar's latest offering, Up.























I have always been a fan of pixar movies; I must have seen the original Toy Story a dozen times, on good old VHS. Nemo has a soft place in me because of it's Sydney setting, while I found wall-e to be intelligent and thought provoking (the end credits were especially beautifully hand made). Up, meanwhile, resonated with me in a different way.

Something about the theme of growing out with your significant other, losing him/her and then having to cope and continue to live life alone without your better half is something harrowingly saddening for me. Up explores this idea under the guise of a funny and beautifully narrated story, and every single time it touched on the topic it bought a tear to my eye; Maddie thought I was a nut.

Up is certainly not the most heroic (Incredibles), cerebral (Wall-E) or characteristically far fetching (Monsters, Inc.) of all the Pixar movies that have come before it- but something about it; the earthy theme, the scout in us we can all relate to, the grumpy old man we all know and love- makes it all the more endearing and original. Naysayers such as bankers who predicted that Up would have difficulty lifting off because of " its geriatric action hero"can stuff themselves; "wall street analyists" haven't gotten much right lately now, have they? We might as well stop listening to what they are charged to say.

I can see the influence of Miyazaki's studio Ghibli work slowly proliferating into Disney (which now owns Ghibli); the entire premise of a floating house exploring unknown land was previously probed by Howl's moving castle, and it also had other elements of previous disney movies in it too; you will catch references to the Lion King, Toy Story and probably more my slow eye (distracted by the 3D glasses) cannot see. I say this cross polination of ideas and creativity is an awesome breath of fresh air. The Japanese simply don't think like anybody else on this planet.

Here's to you, my two amazing widowed Grandmas currently living a life as if it were always lifted by a houseful of colourful helium balloons.

Weekend of the Triumphant Underdog

First Susan Boyle loses Britain's got talent.
And now Nadal has lost for the first time in five years on his turf that is French clay!

Just goes to show that there is hope yet for anyone who regards themselves as anybody but number one.
Here's looking at you, anyone apart from Kanye West.

Fathers be good to your Daughters

A new life goal slowly dawned on me over the last year.

I don't know if it was from watching too much Grey's Anatomy, Baby Momma or just the adorable kiddies I find myself hanging with, but I really want a baby. The goal is by the time I am 25.

Certainly will be a good weapon in my arsenal when on a date I want to get out of, aye? I don't know by what method or channel I will make this happen, but it will be interesting to check back in 4 years to see how I have fared with this goal. I realise with this goal in place a lot of other goals are set in motion too.

In the meantime, for the mothers who are mothers, Happy Mothers Day Mum!

It hasn't been until I've moved out that I appreciate completely the holistic greatness of Mothers! Cheers to you all.





















photo courtesy of The Sartorialist

sometimes natasha bedingfeld's 'i wanna have your babies' is exactly my sentiment!

Too Awesome

I have just discovered the official flickr feed for the White House (just in time for procrastinating for my studies)- cannot help but trawl through with the West Wing theme song playing on loop in my head.


Just how can you not adore this president?

Inspiring!

a doubt/devil reunion i see. love cooking love meryl streep love stanley tucci love decadent fatty food

so

cannot wait, is all!


and while i'm at it as one does go astray on their youtube meanderings i had a peek at the real julia child to compare with streep's uncanny likeliness, in her uppity accented splendor:



then again really, is there anything meryl streep can't be? for all i know tomorrow she can convince me as margaret thatcher. come to think of it, that's not a long stretch at all!

A FLASH!

itching to start.




company. idea. begin. young. inexperienced. need. want. bursting!