Fun with Landscapes...

Went down to the lake this weekend to take in some fresh air and have some fun with the camera. You don't need to go at all art with goal of creating a masterpiece...sometimes the best creation is effortless, stress-free and far from perfect; simply allowing yourself to make something new with no preconceptions attached...

One great way to accomplish this is to change up your medium...I'd never claim to be a photographer, but sometimes getting out and taking some pictures can get the ol' painting gears churning. You don't need to be a master at something to enjoy it and, sometimes, being a novice can actually free you to try things you'd never think of before.

SOLD! Let Us Toast...

Let us toast to Let Us Toast to Our Animal Desires, my most recent sale and a long-time piece that's been a solid starting point for various shows over the last year or so...

Hop On It Homebrewing.

Check out my good friend's new business, Hop On It Homebrewing LLC, and their brand new logo, designed by me!

So if you're down in Rochester and itchin' for something to do, something to learn, or just itchin' for some good beer, give Tyler Busey or Matt Oles a call and they'll hook you up with a personal brew...

Hollywood Tax: The Side They Don't Tell

While celebrities largely appear to support the plight of the working man, many even publicly calling for higher taxes on the wealthy, the industry itself reaps more state tax benefits than you'd ever expect...

It's easy to demand higher levies on the 'rich' when your own industry gets $1.5 billion in government handouts.

Barret's State of the City. The Rundown.

Take a look at the rundown of topics covered in this mornings "State of the City" address..
http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/news/citylimits.html

I'm still reading through these but there's one thing that jumps out to me...The streetcar is going to cost something like 60million no matter what...more if we are saddled with moving utilities. Just last week, Barrett promoted his solution for the "Bloomberg Mayor Challenge", urban farms, which, if chosen, would bring 5 million to the city to enact these changes. These changes, according to Barrett, would greatly affect and benefit the city....

If $5 million from a contest can change the city so much, why are we spending upwards of $60 million on a streetcar that doesn't touch the large majority of Milwaukee businesses?

Washington's Temper Tantrum.

Both parties agreed to the sequester, yet we now find each side slinging mud, blaming the other, and see leaders in Washington preaching the end of days if the cuts manage to go through rather than putting forth ANY solutions...Are you buying into the Washington temper tantrum?
http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/24/opinion/castellanos-government-tantrum/index.html?hpt=po_c1

And, if they actually happen, what do the cuts actually mean, outside the whole "world will end" fanaticism...
http://news.yahoo.com/u-spending-ax-set-fall-then-155731852.html

On The Shapes of Brains...

Ever wonder if those grey aliens with giant brains would actually be smarter? Ever wonder why our brain looks shriveled and grey? Ever wonder why brains are how they are? Well, it turns out scientists wonder these things as well...take a look at this article on the possible shapes of brains...and why.
http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/2013/02/22/on-the-possible-shapes-of-the-brain/