We Celebrated It First

That's Right, We're In New Zealand!
3,2,1... HAPPY NEW YEAR!
The Crowd
Explosions In The Sky

Gisbane

One of the first things we did while in New Zealand was take the 5 hour drive to Gisbane from Mt. Maunganui and went camping for a few days. After getting lost on the way there, we arrived at the spot which was absolutely stunning. We camped out at a white sand beach bookmarked at each end by 2 mountains. The beach was also tucked away in some remote bay that only a local would be able to find, making it pretty remote. If this spot was in the US there would have been thousands of people. Since we were in New Zealand, there were only about 15 groups of campers.
Chillin' In Gisbane

We're Off To New Zealand, See You Next Year!

In a few hours my financee and I will be off to New Zealand's North Island visiting friends on a 2 week long trip. I'm NOT looking forward to the 13 hour flight...
We Will Be Staying In The Tauranga Area

Merry Christmas... Well Not Really...

This was pretty much one of the worst Christmas Days I can remember in a long long time.
I Really Should Have Sold My Tickets To Todays Game

I'll Miss You Grandpa

My Grandfather passed away today on Christmas Eve. He will be sorely missed by us all. I love you Grandpa... We will meet again someday.
He Would Have Been 86 On January 2nd, 2010

RIP Chris Henry

WVU Star Turned NFL Star/ Bad Boy... Pretty Shocking,

Jazz The Glass Premiere Party

Tonight I saw the most awesome surf movie of all time... JAZZ THE GLASS. It's the story of some Surf Pirates and their quest to mine the Stoke, rid the world of Kooks, keep their surf spots secret, make as many ridiculous booze and grogan references as possible, all while shredding the waves and Jazzing The Glass. A buddy of mine, Mike "Kobok" Black was one of the geniuses behind the film, and lucky for me I got invited to the premiere party.
PICS POSTED SOON

The LSD No No

For all you lovers of weird moments in sports, here is a pretty cool cartoon about Doc Ellis and his infamous no hitter on acid.

A Night To Remember

In The Tunnel from brandN on Vimeo.

Throw It Down!
Waiting In The Tunnel
Larry & The Lakers Girls
Me & The Lakers Girls
Courtside!
The Shoot Around
Courtside Randoms 1
Courtside Randoms 2
Courtside Randoms 3
The Black Mamba & Friends
Gametime!
The End! Another Kobe Buzzer Beater For The Win!

Vintage King Diamond Interview

WVU vs LBC

Today was Thanksgiving, but my Dad and I celebrated in a much different manner. Instead of eating a bunch of turkey and stuffing and all that good stuff, we went down to Anaheim to see WVU in a rare west coast appearance play against Long Beach State. We had a great time, WVU destroyed the LBC, and we EVEN made it on Sportscenter...
Courtside Seats For Only $30... PRICELESS!

Worst Invention Ever!

I found this ad online today. It has to be the most idiotic "extreme sports" invention since (well actually prior to) rollerblades...
Who Would Want One Of These?

Time To Get Your Blast On!

At long last, one of the most anticipated games in history has been officially released... Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Now let the hours upon hours of time wasting in the online multiplayer battle mode... BEGIN!
I Got This Game Last Week You Suckas!!!

Say It Ain't Sosa!

Why!?!?! Is all I have to say about this one.
I Guess MJ's Passing Really Affected Sammy...

R. Crumb x Philip K. Dick

Two of my favorites combined into one!
Robert Crumb - The Religious Experience of Philip K Dick

The Book Of Basketball

I got this book as a birthday gift from my Fiancee, and can't wait to start reading it today. Despite being a Boston native and Laker's Hater, Bill Simmons is hilarious! If you consider yourself an NBA fan, this is a MUST READ.
700+ Pages Of NBA Comedy Goodness!

Find The Hidden Message...

This Is How I Feel Today

Until The Light Takes Us

I originally heard about this film last Halloween, when it played at the AFI film festival in Hollywood. Too bad I found out after it had already debuted, otherwise it would have been the perfect way to spend an evening. Anyway, fast forward almost a year later, and here it is again... just in time for the holidays!

Uncharted 2

I've been waiting for this moment ever since I beat Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. Now, thanks to my cousin I have Uncharted 2: Among Thieves in hand, and can't wait to start playing.
Unbelievable Graphics & Gameplay

The Title Defense Begins Today!

I just got back from the Lakers home opener, which also kicked off the first day of the 2009-2010 NBA Season. Needless to say, it was a great time. The Lakers won, and the ring ceremony and banner unveiling was awesome to see live (its been a while... haha).
VIDEOS COMING SOON

R. Crumb @ UCLA

I just got back from an awesome evening over at UCLA's Royce Hall after listening to a lecture from the one and only R. Crumb. He just released an illustrated version of the Bible's Book of Genesis, so he came out of seclusion in France to do a handful of lectures over here in the good ol' US of A. Being a big R. Crumb fan, you know I wasn't about to miss out on that! I didn't take any photos since no cameras were allowed, but I did manage to pick up a copy of his new book, which I plan on reading ASAP. It is kind of ridiculous though that it took a comic book version of it to get me to actually read the Bible...
Look At The Detail!

Chiquito Trail

Just got back from an insanely technical trail in the Lake Elsinore area called the Chiquito Trail. I rode it with some friends from the 3F Bike Club, and as usual it was great time. Here is a pic of one of the gnarliest obstacles on the trail.
Yeah That Isn't Me

We Are All Connected

Here is the second Symphony of Science video with Carl Sagan and a slew of other great scientists. I cannot wait for the next one of these to come out! Whoever is behind these videos is a freakin genius! AND they finally figured out a worthwhile use for autotune.

A Glorious Dawn

I was talking to a buddy of mine who happens to be a big Sci-Fi fan about Carl Sagan recently, and he told me about these crazy/ extremely awesome videos to look up on YouTube. These videos happened to combine Carl Sagan's words of wisdom (with an autotune effect on them) and electronic music. That's basically all I needed to hear, so I looked up the videos and was completely astonished...

The City And The Stars

I just started reading my first book by Arthur C. Clarke entitled, The City And The Stars. So far it's a pretty cool read. Here's a brief summary...

The City and the Stars takes place a billion years in the future, in the city of Diaspar. By this time, the Earth is so old that the oceans have gone and humanity has all but left. As far as the people of Diaspar know, they are the only city left in the world. The city of Diaspar is completely enclosed. Nobody has come in or left the domed city for as long as anybody can remember, and everybody in Diaspar has an instinctive insular conservatism. The story behind this fear of venturing outside the city tells of a race of ruthless invaders which beat humanity back from the stars to Earth, and then made a deal that humanity could live - if they never left the planet.

Actor Or CIA Operative?

One of my good friends landed the lead roll in the latest Carrie Underwood music video called Cowboy Cassanova. In honor of his latest work, here are some frame grabs (in sequential order) from every scene in which he appears. TST Lee! TST!
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen

Shimano Saint Components

Since the brakes on my mountain bike are pretty much shot, it's time to fix that problem and take my bike's components up another level. Behold... these are some of the sickest brakes out there, for both form and function.
Shimano Saint Levers
Shimano Saint Calipers

Santiago Oaks Trail

Today I rode another trail in the OC called Santiago Oaks. Although I usually have a great time on any mountain bike ride, I was blown away by how insanely fun this one was (aside from the 3 B's). It starts off with three BRUTAL climbs, but after that the ride is all paradise... Rock Drops, Jumps, Rock Gardens, Chutes, Etc... It's a MTBR's Playground! I'm pretty sure Santiago Oaks is where I will be riding next weekend, and I will have some photo's and videos to show the trails layout.

11:11

Tonight my fiancee and I went and saw one hell of a show at the Orpheum Theater in Downtown Los Angeles! Who was playing you ask... Rodrigo Y Gabriela... thats who! I already knew that Rodrigo Y Gabriela's music sounded cool, but hearing them play live was mind blowing, and added a whole new dimension to the songs. They are two of the best guitarists out there and the music that they create with only 2 acoustic guitars seems almost impossible to do. Once again, I forgot my camera, so here is a picture I snaked from FLICKr. Check out their music if you haven't heard of them already, and definitely see them live if you ever get the opportunity.
Rockin Out Bigtime

4 Isn't Enough, But 5 Is Too Much!

The McGill Trail at Mt. Pinos is is my new favorite trail. You can quote me on that. Besides taking a saddle to the chest on my last ride of the day and completely jacking up my rear tire on a bail, the day went off without a hitch.
The Shuttle King aka Mr. SCOA
Our Riding Posse For The Day