A Journey Back To Innocence

No, not another work trip to Amsterdam. Instead it was another awesome visit to the International London Tattoo Convention. I already posted up some bits, so I'll just say a few words and leave you to watch the video and see the photos. I planned to go all out and snap happy, but really it just doesn't seem to be my thing. I got a couple photos and a few poses with people I admire. You really just need to get up off your ass and come to next year's weekend and catch it for yourself. The weather was glorious. Each year the venue seems to open up space wise a little bit more. The food court was much much better (photo of wifey chomping on a burrito is proof). The merchants stalls are pretty much the same, some nice bits and pieces. With regards to tees, as you'd expect there was Sullen and Rebel 8 all over the place. Footwear of choice for the punters seemed to be Vans, Cons, DMs and surprisingly Nike Air Max 1s. Go figure. I didn't catch any of the entertainm

"An intense anticipation itself transforms possibility into reality; our desires being often but precursors of the things which we are capable of performing." Samuel Smiles   I often use google searches to come up with my random blog post titles. I have a vague idea in my head then see what I can come up with. Tonight's search has lead me to read about Samuel Smiles. I'm actually quite interested to read his book 'Self Help'.     Now to completely dumb this down.   Anticipation #1     Yeah this looks like sh1tty weather to my American pals but trust me this is as close to glorious as we can expect on these shores in September.     Anticipation #2       Getting to see the great  Chuey Quintanar who is flying in from Long Beach for the ILTC2011 this weekend. Wonder if Edgar Hoill has brought some cigars with him?     And heck, for the fun of it I just might Self Help myself to a pair of these.       It's almost the end of a

It's time to get ILL ! erm I meant INKED ! Well almost anyway. Wifey bought the tickets to this years International London Tattoo Convention 2011 (ball ache to type) and we're all set! We'll head over on Friday the 23rd to experience Day One like usual. It's always good to see the artists arriving (fresh faced and not yet hungover) and getting to say 'Hi' before it gets manic. We expect big things from the stalls and hope to catch some of the entertainment before we head home. The plan is as usual to take as many photographs as possible, make sure we're in a few of them too as that's usually lacking. Then once again I'll head over on the Sunday as I have the absolute honour of sitting with Chuey Quintanar . Although I originally planned to go into this sitting with an open mind, something has sparked an idea in my head after all. We'll have to wait and see. We pray for safe trips in for all the artists, and good weather wo

Just when I'm ready to wash my hands of Hip Hop AGAIN , something extraordinary slaps me in the face and brings the love right back. The chin-checker in this instance is Apathy and his latest project " Honkey Kong! ". On the strength of the Peace Connecticut video shown on the  Soul Assassins web site I copped the album and I've not been able to get enough ever since. I'm happy to admit that this album for me is better than Hot Sauce Committee Part 2 by the Beastie Boys. And I f cking love the Beasties, but it just didn't meet any of my expectations. I'm sorry. Having read many a review I felt this article best says what I would have liked to say - If you are a fan of hip hop in its truest form, then you will appreciate Apathy’s latest offering, Honkey Kong. Filled with Apathy’s brand of hardcore story telling raps and crazy punch lines as well as guests like Celph Titled, Action Bronson, Xzibit and a few other lyrical heavyweights, Honkey

We all need help from time to time. No one can do this on his or her own. Having said that and knowing it to be gospel, there are times when you get yourself into a particular funk. During these times there is only one person capable of picking you up and dusting you off. You. Some of my favourite Joel Osteen quotes relating to how I'm feeling right now - "You may live or work around a bunch of weeds, but don’t let that stop you from blooming. Realize that your environment does not prevent you from being happy. Some people spend all their time trying to pull up all the weeds. Meanwhile, they miss much of their lives. Don’t worry about things you can’t change. You can’t change the traffic in the morning. You can’t fix everybody at work. You can’t make all your family members serve God. But you shouldn’t let that keep you from being happy. Bloom anyway and focus on the things that you can change. You can change your own attitude. You can choose to be happy rig

This is the dialogue that best describes what is going through my mind right now with regards to work. (thank you to IMDB  and Hark ) Martin Riggs: [after cutting the wire which accelerates the timer so it'll detonate sooner] Rog? Roger Murtaugh: Yeah?   Martin Riggs: Grab that cat!                -Bossman75

A couple of brands that were on the edge of my peripheral vision have come into full view of late. First was Bloodbath™ and their collaboration with the Soul Assassins entitled Soulciety. And now a brand I've caught glimpses of and kept my mind open to - BLVCK SCVLE with their collaborative effort alongside one of the most in demand artists right now Jun Cha . Having just viewed the below clip via Vouchmag  and in addition to a teaser already blogged by Jun himself entitled  BLVSPHEMY I'm definitely eager to see more of the Lux Aeterna collection. Jun as ever can be trusted to create and execute only the finest ideas and imagery. Having yet to experience any of the BLVCK SCVLE products in person I can only use what I know of Jun's philosophies and ideals to base my assurances on of the quality of this venture. What Jun says about the belief, commitment and relevance of the classic religious images in modern life is very astute. "What