So today is my last day at Schipul. After almost 6 years, leaving is NOT easy. Some of you will be asking why? I don’t have a good answer but mostly to have a little time with my baby girl and to see what’s next. I am not on a quest to find happiness. Happiness is having a my health, being married to a rock solid MAN, seeing a smile on my girl’s face, and spending the last 69 months of my life with a group of amazing people that have lifted me through a few dark times and escalated the happiest times.
Dear Schipulites’ I am so grateful for all the knowledge you talented, moving people have sent my way. You had made my 20’s unforgettable. For so long, this has been my safe haven where I was not afraid to leap because I know you always had my back. I have worked some of the best clients any company could ever have. Each and every person has touched my life in unimaginable ways.
I will never forget many deep conversations with @longstation, sharing an office with @deneyterrio (WOW, lol), and my Friday afternoon heart to heart chats with a STRONG and FEARLESS CEO. Ed’ your efforts are amazing and I am honored to call Schipul my second family.
Enough already! You all know how amazing Schipulites are. I am excited about the future for you guys! I won’t be far.
Thank you 157,456,000 times for everything you have taught me.
It should come as no surprise that my first post for the Schipul Blog would be related to the arts. This weekend is the 13th Annual Bayou City Arts Festival Memorial Park (a Schipul client). The Bayou City Arts Festival is one of the premiere visual arts events to occur in Houston every year. The Festival features artwork from over 300 artists in 17 artistic media. Oh, and our CEO, Ed, was one of the jurors for this year’s festival!
We hope you can make it out this weekend. Note there is no parking available in Memorial Park for the event. You will need to catch the shuttle at the Northwest Mall or Downtown. Shuttles run from 9:30AM to 7:00PM Friday, March 27 through Sunday, March 28. I advise taking the Downtown shuttle, that way you can grab a bit to eat Downtown before heading home.
In any case, it’s not like you’re not going to be outside in the beautiful weather this weekend. Why don’t to take in a little art with all that fresh air?
How do you spend your weekend? Relaxing? Watching TV? Well your missing out because you could be experiencing the 48 Hour Film festival. What is it exactly? One weekend every year, 40+ teams of (crazy) filmmaker join together to achieve one common goal: To produce a short film, in a specific genre (comedy, superhero, even musical western!) in less than 48 hours. Starting Friday night, every team gathers at a local restaurant to pick a genre, afterwords the teams discover the character name, line of dialog and prop that they all have to use. For example: last year all the movies had to have the character name “Jarod Puller”, use a “bouncy ball” as a prop, and must use the line “I’m just not sure about that” in the movie. Now go watch my movie to see if you can find them!
I first entered the 48 Hour Film Fest. 2 years ago with two of my friends. We now call ourselves “The Posse” and continue to do projects together. We were featured in the River Oaks examiner last year, so be sure to check out our press! This year the 48 Hour Film Festival will be in June (exact time not known yet) but if you would like to find out more information, visit http://www.48hourfilm.com/
Well, just so happens there is something pretty dang cool to do this Saturday afternoon… The Live Oak Friends Meeting Peace Festival. Think music, art, dancing, fun and food… Quaker Style.
Peace Festival: March 6, 2010
A day of celebration and networking with local and national organizations working to improve our community!
Who knew that boxes could be so artsy? Step aside moving, Crayola and donut boxes – the Art Box Show is here!
Join Schipulite Ben Gillin and his lovely bride Maria Navarro for this fundraising art event at Bering and James Gallery this Friday, December 4th (12 – 10pm) and Saturday, December 5th (12-6pm). Each artist was given a wooden box to decorate and manipulate however they saw fit.
The Art Boxes will be for sale at a flat rate of $125, with proceeds going to the artists and DePelchin Children’s Center. Fun, great art, super artists — all for a good cause.
Thanksgiving is coming up which means the famous Black Friday will follow. Some of you might have gaming consoles or know somebody with them but don’t know what games to get. This blog post is here to help you make the right choice this fall. 2009 happens to be a hot year for video game sequels so here is an overview of the really good ones.
The first game which came out last week is called Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. This has been the most highly anticipated game since the original came out in 2007. The online game play is the games major features. Girls if you have boyfriends you need to get them this game immediately if they haven’t bought it already. This game is available for the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC.
Another game that is on multiply platforms is DJ Hero. The makers of Guitar Hero are bringing the DJ element into people’s home. Players well be available to play DJ and spin over 100 tracks from Jay-Z to the Foo-Fighters. This should provide hours of fun and will make you the life of the party. You might even be able to get gigs on the side too.
This next game is probably one of the best games ever made!!! Unchared 2: Among Thieves puts you as Nathan Drake, (imagine Indiana Jones, James Bond, and Jason Bourne all wrapped into one person) as a treasure hunter trying to figure out the mysteries of a Marco Polo voyage. The game play in this game is so ahead of its time that this title might single handily save the PS3 console. This game will make an avid 360 user want to buy a PS3 console.
The last game is for the Wii lovers who are looking for a more mature game on the console. No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle follows the unlikely hero Travis in his quest to become the top hitman in fictional Santa Destroy, California. In this game you will be able to wield a beam two katanas (think Star Wars light saber) with the Wii controller. This has a January 2010 release.
If you haven’t played the originals to these sequels I encourage to go play them because they are equally fun. No you don’t have to play the original titles to understand and enjoy the sequels. Other honorable mentions are Assassins Creed 2, and Mass Effect 2.
The silent auction was full of great items like this authentic game worn jersey
This morning, I woke up in Houston. But last Friday morning I woke up in N. Salt Lake City, Utah.
My longtime friend Ronnie Price and his wife Jenni decided to start The Ronnie Price Foundation this year as a way to make a difference in the lives of less fortunate children by providing educational and recreational resources, opportunities and mentoring.
Last Friday night the Foundation held its first fund-raising event at Donovan’s Steak House in downtown Salt Lake City, and I was fortunate enough to be in attendance.
For the past two months I had been working closely with Jenni Price on the official Ronnie Price website, so I was very familiar with the Foundation and knew the hard work Jenni had put into the event.
The event was hosted by the voice of the Utah Jazz, Craig Bolerjack, who did a great job telling the Ronnie Price story and getting attendees to participate in fund-raising activities, like ‘Raise The Paddleâ€.
I volunteered to run the computer for the Ronnie Price Foundation PowerPoint presentation, but before we got that started, I spent a lot of time clicking through http://ronnieprice.net , trying to make him dunk on the home page, looking at photos, watching highlight videos, and eating lobster tail.
The Foundation and Website made the local News
The media was up in the building as both the Fox and NBC local news channels were at the event to provide coverage.
Overall, the event was a total success and the Foundation was able to raise a good amount of money. The Foundation will be able to make an immediate impact on children by providing basketball shoes to the Desire Street Academy basketball team in New Orleans, starting and funding an after school program at two elementary schools in the Salt Lake City area as well as purchasing basketball balls for other under funded youth sports programs in the area.
To round out the weekend I was able to do a few other fun things on Saturday including…
Ate at really good bacon and cheese Burger at Squatters in downtown SLC
Lone Star Beer - What might be considered the greatest beer of all time
If I were alive on October 29, 1929, I can pretty much guarantee you I would have grabbed a beer. If I were alive on July 20, 1969, I can also pretty much guarantee you I’d be grabbing a beer. On October 3, 2008, I did grab a beer. And yesterday, November 12, 2009, I also grabbed a beer.
I don’t know who it was, but someone in the course of human history once told someone who told someone who told someone to invest in the manufacturers of alcoholic beverages—we drink when we’re happy, we drink when we’re sad, we drink when it’s a Tuesday.
On October 29, 1929, I would have drank because the stock market would have just crashed and I’d be wanting to spend the immediately dwindling money on something to sooth my sorrow.
On July 20, 1969, I would have popped a cold Pabst Blue Ribbon and chugged it the second Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon to the tune of a 500 million person audience on televsion over 200,000 miles away.
On October 3, 2008, I grabbed a beer because it was my only sister’s wedding. The groomsmen all shared a beer before the ceremony to celebrate the bride and groom’s union. (The first of many. Beers. Not unions.)
And yesterday, Novermber 12, 2009, I grabbed a beer because I went to play trivia at a bar, and trivia is always a little more fun (and the answers more creative) after a few rounds.
Ever since we as humans learned that sugar and starch can ferment, we’ve been drinking. That’s literally, like, millions of years. If longevity is any form of legitimacy, beer is the veteran on the block, a legitimate powerhouse that has ascended beyond the phrase “trend,” cemented as fact. Beer is the Simpsons of sitcoms. Beer is the Ray Lewis of the NFL. Beer is the Godfather of film.
And when we drink, we usually drink beer. According to a Harris Poll (reported by Wine & Spirits Daily), out of the Americans who say they drink several times a year, two-thirds drink beer*. So for every person drinking on any given night, two out of every three are sipping (or slamming) a cold one. Personally, I’d say that roughly nine out of every ten alcoholic drinks I have is a beer. I think that’s easily grounds enough to say to Mr. Beer, “Thank you for your service. I’m going to drink you now.”
A Beer-Related Anecdote
On one episode of Cheers, postman Cliff Clavin divulged what might be the best supporting argument for drinking to his buddy Norm (played by George Wendt):
Well ya see, Norm, it’s like this. A herd of buffalo can only move as fast as the slowest buffalo. And when the herd is hunted, it is the slowest and weakest ones at the back that are killed first. This natural selection is good for the herd as a whole, because the general speed and health of the whole group keeps improving by the regular killing of the weakest members. In much the same way, the human brain can only operate as fast as the slowest brain cells. Excessive intake of alcohol, as we know, kills brain cells. But naturally, it attacks the slowest and weakest brain cells first. In this way, regular consumption of beer eliminates the weaker brain cells, making the brain a faster and more efficient machine! That’s why you always feel smarter after a few beers.
The Schipulites’ Favorite Beers
The Schipulites out for a drink at Next Door Bar
It wouldn’t be right to have a beer post without listing our employees’ favorite beers. So I took my little roster, walked to every person in the company, and made them pick a beer—even if they claimed, “I don’t drink beer!”
There was no absolute criteria for determining favorite beer; some went with, “If I only had one beer left to drink,” others jumped on, “This is the beer I drink the most of, day in, day out.” For some of us, such as myself, those are one in the same.
So without further ado, here they are in absolutely zero premeditated order whatsoever:
If you work hard, we do too. And when we get off, we usually grab a drink. So if you see one of us out, let’s be thankful for beer together. Now, at the very least, you know what to buy us. Let us know what to buy you.
*And out of all males, four out of five guys say they drink beer.
Back in the old internet days, and I mean waaaaay back. I’m talking ancient history here, folks. I mean waaaaaaay, waaaaaaaay back on September 9th 2009 I installed the latest version of iTunes. It seems so long ago now but I can remember waiting with bated breath as news surrounding the latest release of the new iTunes would come with a much needed iPhone App organizer that would allow people the ability to organize their Apps on their computer. This is a great addition, it lets me move my App icons using my computer and a mouse rather than holding down an icon on the phone with my meaty fingers and moving them around. I always seem to mess up the order of the icons and drives me a little crazy. If you are an iPhone user you know what I’m talking about.
Below is a screenshot of the App Organizer in action
If you have an iPhone and haven’t installed the latest version of iTunes you should, the new updates are great but not all of them. More on that in a minute, first lets talk about Fonts
To Serif or not to Serif, that is the question
There are so many fonts out there. Just look around you. I can count over 20 different fonts on all the stuff around my area here at Schipul. Some serif, some sans serif. Some are hand drawn and some are works of art.
As a designer I have found and collected many fonts that I use in my concert posters. I have thousands of fonts now, so many that sometimes I go into ‘font paralysis’ trying to find that perfect font for a poster. I usually end up with some variation on what some people would call the perfect font’ Helvetica.
Helvetica is probably, if not THE, mostly widely used font in the world. Even if you do not know Helvetica by name you know it by site. Ever been to Crate & Barrell, seen a Jeep or Toyota ad? Then you’ve seen Helvetica. Here is a list of 40 companies that use the Helvetica. The font is loved by so many people it has it’s own documentary(which is AWESOME btw)
Comic Sans, why can’t they quit you?
I first started at Schipul on the graphics team as a layout designer. I had been designing for a few years before joining this great company. Since I started designing I’ll admit I have developed some design snobbery that comes out at times but one thing I can say that has been burning inside of me before I even wanted to be a designer’ my hatred for the font Comic Sans
I’m not going to get into why this font is so ugly, it should be abundantly clear. If you should get the desire to use it please reference this chart first
iTunes Store Bug Commits Biggest Design Foul
So, back to iTunes and how this all fits in. Well, after installing the newest version the language in the iTunes store instantly changed to some strange new language as seen below. I checked my language preferences and USA was chosen. The rest of iTunes worked perfectly, it was only the store section that was messed up.
I contacted Apple by email many times and never received a follow up. I searched for forums but nothing was showing up either. Defeated I let it go, if I can’t buy anything from iTunes and Apple won’t help than why lose sleep. I eventually called Apple and was told that I might be charged for support to help them help me to easily buy stuff from them. I might be charged to find out why I can’t buy something from them, just thought I would repeat that. Well, their free support didn’t help and I wasn’t about to pay. I searched again for forum posts to see if I wasn’t the only one with this problem. Turns out I wasn’t anymore.
Ban Helvetica? Say it ain’t so!
Yes, it turns out that by having Helvetica in my fonts folder is the cause of iTunes error. In order for me to be able to buy anything from Apple using iTunes I would have to erase the Holy Font. It couldn’t have been Comic Sans or some random font? No, it seems I had to commit the hardest font murder of all time, I would have to erase Helvetica from my system, which by the way is NOT free, although you can find it everywhere.
So long Comic Sans
As an act of both defiance and devotion I have uninstalled Comic Sans as well, although that one felt good
Penny Lane...rockstar puppy and supporter of Houston Humane Society.
I know…
I know the heartache…
The agony of racing to Ticketmaster only to find out that Lollapalooza 2009 was not only sold out, but that Joe Wilson had bought the last 3-day pass…
No, this was not a cruel joke…and no, Ashton Kutcher was not waiting in the neighbor’s double wide. You simply came to the realization that you just didn’t make the cut. You weren’t fast enough…the endurance wasn’t there…in a nutshell; your Gatorade Glacier Freeze failed you.
So what does one do when they find themselves lying in the fetal position wishing for some ‘palooza†in their lives?
Here are the Top 5 Reasons Why Petapalooza will kill your Palooza Blues:
I am aware that Lollapallooza is in Chicago. I’m sure Grant Park is a beautiful place and I’m pretty sure it would be quite a delight to meet Oprah…I guess. But let’s be honest people. Who really needs Oprah when you have Debra Duncan in the great city of Houston? I’ll ‘raise the roof†for that bit of knowledge.*Disclaimer* Debra Duncan will not be at Petapalooza. But she lives in Houston…so who really knows?
Sure you can go to Lollapallooza and have Cold War Kids entice your inner dance revolution while you ninja kick to Portugal The Man…and as night falls, The Decemberists sing you the sweetest lullaby you’ve heard since childbirth. Or you can bring your mobiles to Petapalooza while The Jud Johnson Band serenade you with roses and sparkles. Trust me folks, they are very easy on the eyes. That’s all I really got for that one.
Yes it’s true. There are art exhibits and what not at Lollapalooza. But do they have dog caricatures? Perhaps doggy massages? How about adoptables? The answer is no, no they do not. Petapalooza will. Period.
Whole Foods sponsored Lollapalooza. Great. Fantastic. Whole Foods ANDSchipul is sponsoring Petapalooza. I rest my case.
This girl and this girl did not judge an Idol Doggy Trick competition at Lollapalooza. However, they will be in their rarest Paula Abdul form at Discovery Green on September 12, 2009 for Petapalooza. I’m just sayin’…
Let it marinate for awhile. And if all else fails…do it for the dogs.
A little side note – Come by the Schipul booth for your chance to win a Flip Camera!
