Balloon Bass Quartet

A couple of weeks ago I posted video of a guy playing a balloon and his buddy playing a box. I really loved it. So i managed to find more on this balloon playing guy and came across this video right here. I love the violin, but really, they're all pretty cool.

Awesomeness 2

Awesomeness

Its Been Long

Been away for a long time, haven't had much time to thinkm let alone create new posts on the blog. Its been a pretty intense six months.

In that time, I've managed to reach a goal I set for myself a very long time agao, that was to create a company. Its official, my company is registered and is a fully functioning web design studio.

Dramatic Look

John Frusciante Doing What He Does

James Brown and Pavarotti

Anyone Heard Of Banyan?

Its been a long time, a real long time. Things have been all over the place, what with ex girlfriends in and out of my life and work flowing like water, time has been pretty tight. But I'm drifting away from the reason I decided to return to posting on this blog.

As anyone who's met me knows, I'm crazy about music. It might just be my favourite thing on Earth. So I was browsing the net, searching for something new to listen and came across Banyan. They're so cool. This track in particular, featuring one of my favourite musicians, John Frusciante of the awesome Red Hot Chili Peppers. Banyan, to my knowledge and don't quote me on this, was formed by Stephen Perkins of the the now defunct band Jane's Addiction with Mike Watt, someone I'm not familiar with but will be in the near future. Anyway, like I said, Info on these guys is hard to come by so if you know where I can buy some of their records, please let me know.

Heres a track I found on YouTube, its really great. These guys are so cool. its called La Sirena.

Thinking about your muscles can make you stronger.

This is just one of the little factoids I found while browsing the The list of 100 things we didn't know last year. Go through it if you have a few minutes to spare, there are a few interesting ones.

Nintendo Wii Is Incredible

I received the awesome Nintendo Wii from my brilliant family for Xmas. In the short time I have owned this ground-shattering, earth-rumbling, truly exceptional piece of technology I haven't been able to put my trusted wii-mote down for a second. I currently only have the Wii Sports disc that comes with the console, but you can be sure I'll be stocking up on some awesome games in the near future. I hereby swear to become a game-addicted screen cowboy.

The game I have my eye on is Call Of Duty 3, if anybody can recommend anything cool for a game newbie, it would be much appreciated.

Andy McKee Is The Guitar Master

This guy is really impressive on the guitar. I don't know how he pulls it off, its great how he manages to play percussion part of the song while playing the guitar in that weird style of his. Very impressive indeed.

Great track too.

Kid Koala Video

'Tis The Season

Working in the creative part of the internet development industry, I am often tasked with the end of year Christmas cards for the clients. Its great coming across great work like this to help with the creative process. I particularly enjoyed this one and this one.

An excellent way to get your name out by OfficeMax. Nice one. For the full list of their innovative christmas campaigns, click here.

The Simpsons Movie On Its Way

The Trainrider

This is sad. A german guy dying from Leukemia spent the last year of his life surfing the top of moving high speed trains all over Europe. watch this great video which includes footage of him surfing Germany's fastest high speed ICE bullet Train, top speed 330 km/h. He was just twenty one years old when he died.

Next Stop, Amsterdam

I will be on my way to glorious Amsterdam, Netherlands for a few days this Saturday. I have to say, I'm very excited indeed. Yes, I'll be visiting the Van Gogh Museum, perhaps taking in a live act, apparently Juliette Lewis' new band will be performing at the time I'll be there, they seem pretty cool. Yes, its going to be fun.

Another Reason To Support Apple

Apple has shown once again why it has to be one the coolest brands in town. Not only does it create fantastic products known for their quality and innovation, but it is also a company which is proving to help people who need it. A great example for other massive corporations indeed.

Apple will donate $10 to the Global Fund to fight AIDS in Africa with every purchase of the new Special Edition Nano, which comes in a symbolic red colour.

Forty's Site Of The Week

Great colour scheme matched with excellent typography with added technical know-how not to mention fantastic design make Gazmetro's Live The Blue this week's site of the week.

A Little Too Sensitive Perhaps?

Religion could very well be the root of everything thats wrong with world today. Now before you all label me all sorts of terrible things, I'm talking about when it is taken too literally. Religion in essence can be a good thing as it can help people get through painful, difficult times. But when people become over sensitive about it, and use it as a means of casuing harm, suffering and censorship among other things, I think most tolerant people will agree it has gone too far.

The question then is when does it go too far exactly? Let it be noted that I am not speaking about one particular religion right now, but all of them in general terms.

While reading daily news/site browsing this morning I came across an article about the new Apple store on Fifth Avenue in New York City. A very stylish building shaped like a cube.

Now the problem some in the Muslim community have with it is that it "Constitutes a blatant insult to Islam", according to a survey by a Middle East research organization.

What are the reasons you might ask? Well, the building resembles the Ka'ba in Mecca and is open 24 hours a day, much like the Ka'ba. Now if this article is true, its beyond words. What will be the next target of over-sensitive religious types, the rubix cube? Read the article.

If you think it is only parts of the Muslim community who are unreasonable, I assure you Christians are no different. Click here to view the trailor for a new documentary titled Jesus Camp. This is about, you guessed it, a camp where Jesus is the main focus for little kids.

I think the best thing would be moderation from each all sides, but what do I know?

And The Award Goes To...

Leica's annual Leica Oskar Barnack Prize for 2006 was won by Chilean photographer Tomas Munita this year. I can see why. His pictures completely blew me away, my favourite has to be the one of the hand holding three bullets.

I was quite happy to see fellow South African Guy Tillim won the award for 2005 with his stunning Johannesburg Story.

The Musical Connie

Have you and your lover ever wanted to make sweet music together? Now is your chance. A Ukranian scientist by the name of Grigoriy Chausovsky has created the first musical condom.

The tune is determined by the position the couple chooses. It is designed to play louder and faster the closer lovers get to climax. They come fitted with a special sensor that registers when the condom is put on which transmits a signal to a miniature speaker in the base of the condom which plays the melody.

Luckily the creative Dr Chausovskiy said: "There is no danger of being electrocuted."

Rodrigo & Gabriela

This video is fantastic. Definitely some of the best classical guitar I have ever seen. What really got me excited watching this was the way the beat and everything was handled by just two guitars. The speed at which they play is also something to behold. Im a big fan!

The Most Beautiful

I was reading Chumpstyle this morning and found the most incredible link there. Thanks for that one!

Dirty Politicians Make Me Sick

"Tony Yengeni is us and we are Tony Yengeni" is what the African National Congress' chief whip in parliament, Mbulelo Goniwe had to say on the day that Tony Yengeni, the former chief whip who was convicted of fraud on the day he was to head of to the slammer.

Maybe I'm wrong, but isn't saying something like this the same as saying Mr. Goniwe is as corrupt as Mr Yengeni?

I'm really getting tired of how top ministers and politicians in South Africa who have been found guilty of corruption like mr Tony Yengeni, or are awaiting trial like Mr Jacob Zuma, get the unfaltering support of ANC officials. At a time when South Africa should be doing all it can to stamp out corruption, the powers that be are nothing but supportive of these convicts.

By the way, unlike other prisoners, Yengeni got to keep his cellphone. Why should he get to keep his cell phone? He also said: "A citizen of the country should not be easily removed from society and put into a cage." Does anybody else find this insane?

This man was found guilty of fraud or in other words, he got caught ripping the tax payers off but instead of severing ties with him the most-influential members of the ANC, greeted Tony Yengeni with the slogan: "Tony' you're a hero" when he arrived at Pollsmoor Prison on Thursday.

Happy Birthday R2

We here at the office were a little shocked, and amused to find out that inside R2D2, the efficient little droid from Star Wars, WAS A MAN!

This man was, and still is, Kenny Baker. We all just assumed that the little robot was in fact a little robot. So R2, all the best from Forty In The Shade

Super Vector Art

Being the vector art fan that I am, I stumbled upon this fantastic link which showcases probably the most realistic of its kind that I have seen. The amount of work that goes into each of these is incredible.

Cast Your Vote, It Counts

So The FWA along with Adobe has launched a poll to decide which is the most influential Flash website in the last ten years to clelebrate the tenth anniversary of Flash on the web, its been ten years already? How time flies.

I have been looking through some of the earlier site up for awards and it sure does bring back many memories. Some of the sites listed there were reasons I decided to get into Flash and made me want to carry on in web design, some truly groundbreaking stuff I tell you.

So if web design is what you do, have been doing or you just appreciate how far the internet has come, Visit this site and vote.

Gangsters And Terrorists

I have just finished watching one of the cinematic masterpieces of the twentieth century, Goodfellas. Definitely one of the greatest films ever made. Ray Liotta was brilliant, as was the rest of the cast and Mr Scorcese really hit the nail on the hammer with that one.

On a different note I was reading an article related to the alleged terrorist plot which was thwarted earlier this week. It seems to me that the terrorists are achieving some of their goals despite western governments attempts to give the greater public the sense that the War On Terror is going well...

British Airways has warned that the current searches being carried out which have led to long delays and cancellations at Heathrow airport will not be sustainable. Thousands of passengers have had their flights cancelled and the effects are being felt globally.

A brief definition of the term Terrorism from Wikipedia:

[1] Terrorism is the systematic use or threatened use of violence to intimidate a population or government and thereby effect political, religious, or ideological change.

[2] Terrorist attacks are designed to influence the broader society to which those killed, injured, or taken hostage belong. The dramatic focus of mass media is often ascribed as amplifying and broadcasting feelings of intense fear and anger that make terrorism more effective in the modern world. As a type of unconventional warfare, terrorism is designed to weaken or supplant existing political landscapes through capitulation or acquiescence as opposed to subversion or direct military action.

So it would seem that the "Failed Attacks" of this week were not such a huge failure after all.

Friday's Site Of The Week

So Fake, one of my favourite web shops created by Jordan Stone, has gone and created something very special for the American band The Dixie Chicks.

This guy never disappoints, his work, while not for everybody, is always of the highest standard and has a certain style which I love. Also take a look at We Fail's site, which is Jordan Stone's and Martin Hughe's company.

I figure as long as these guys keep churning them out, the internet is in good shape.

How Much Work Do You Need To Do For A Big Mac?

This is just one of the questions answered in the latest Big Mac Index, a survey aimed at finding which county's citizens have the most purchasing power. On a global average, 35 minutes of work buys a Big Mac however in Tokyo, which tops the list, it just takes ten minutes.

Oslo was rated as the most expensive city based on the cost of a basket of 122 goods and services, excluding rent. It was followed by London, Copenhagen, Zurich, Tokyo, Geneva, New York, Dublin, Stockholm and Helsinki.

The least expensive were Manila, Delhi, Buenos Aires, Bombay and Kuala Lumpur.

Read the article

The Happiness Map

An Analytic Social Psychologist from the University of Leicester, Adrian White, has compiled a survey which lists countries according to how happy the people living there are by analysing various pools of data published by the New Economics Foundation, UNESCO, the WHO and the CIA.

He then performed new analysis with this data to come to a unique set of results and the variable of happiness and then presented the data on happiness in the form of a global projection, the "World Map of Happiness".

According to the survey Denmark is first on the list(Scandinavians always seem to be at the top of these lists) while Burundi is last.

Big thanks to Cherry Flava for the link.

A Place To Blow Off Steam

Everybody needs a place to go to to let off steam. Some find the gym a suitable place. Others find a trip to the local pub a good enough way to unwind after a long day at the office.

A Chinese bar, The Rising Sun Anger Release Bar, has come up with a way of attracting clients looking to release some stress in quite a strange way: They are allowed to beat up the staff.

The best part is that clients can ask the staff to dress up as the character they wish to attack which could your boss, your spouse, your employee and so on. The owner says he was inspired to open the bar by his experiences as a migrant labourer. For those who say that violence is not the answer the bar also offers counselling from psychology students recruited from local universities.

Some Great Street Art

Graffiti, vandalism or art? This is the question we've all been subjected to in the past and quite recently more than ever. I am of the opinion that if done correctly, graffiti is fantastic. Something that breathes life into cities which may be dull and boring otherwise.

Banksy, a British street artist is one of the best I've seen. His work is art and no other word may be used to describe it. He comments on social issues in a way that forces the viewer into thought, not to mention his work is beautiful to look at.