EVERYTHING.

Greetings rich folk!

Billionaire Boys Club items (Never Fake): $50
Other Crew Necks and Hoodys: $25
Tees: $15
Fitted New Era Hats: $20
Vinyl&Art Book: $5

yup.

"I find it fascinating that most people plan their vacation with better care then they do their LIVES. Perhaps that is because escape is easier then CHANGE"

- Jim Rohn

time.

Someday in the not so far away future a child is going to laugh and shake his head at the concept of a “blog” or a “taxi,” or “Twittering.” Think about how drastically our world has changed just from three decades ago when the internet was a novelty. Than consider how far we could be only five decades from now into the future, a time in which you and I will still be alive but the picture and reality of our world could be completely shifted. I’m in a strange mood this morning, woke up and consumed a massive bowl of Granola cereal and have yet to get up from my seat. I’m not quite sure where I am going with this right now, but it’s just one of those days. At the end of the day, this world changes too fast and our days are incredibly short. Anyway, besides of all that mindless banter, the banner above is a rough draft but it's got the makings of ILL written all over it. kudos to Goutfire for the assist.

Under Construction.

Howdy, hello, greetings, salutations and such. Reporting alive and well from the desk in the corner of my room at approximately 2′o clock in the morning and things appear to be all sorts of grand. Did you ever find yourself amidst one of these invincible moods where nothing can touch you? It doesn’t even have to come after some grand accomplishment. Some days I wake up, roll out of bed, click my computer back on and allow a glorious soundtrack of Pac Div to go tearing through my ear drums while the morning is still young

With a music playlist of sheer victory now encompassing my body I proceed to consume a corn muffin with the ruthlessness of a Hun warrior. Standing a not too shabby five foot ten and a half or so inches clad in nothing less than Jordan Brand sweatpants and an OG bape t-shirt I take the keyboard in one hand and the mouse in the other and proceed to weaving a masterful symphony of mouse clicks and keyboard taps within Photoshop to create a page banner and layout of grand proportions.

It goes so much farther than the design work though. It’s amazing to wake up inspired and be able to crack out hours of work before most are cracking their eyes open, but that’s not the end of the deal. It’s that feeling that you can really do whatever you want. In literature they refer to it as the confidence of the youth. The invincible armor many of us seem to be able to throw on that consist of blind ambition and never ending drive. It’s a beautiful thing when that becomes an everyday occurrence and you feel empowered just by waking up. I started writing this post and had no idea what it was I was writing about but it’s pretty abundantly clear to me now by the end of the post.

I’m having an amazingly wonderful time living life right now and I’m only getting started. If you’re not doing something that gives you that same feeling then my only advice would be to stop at nothing to find an occupation where you are doing exactly what it is you want to be doing. And if it turns out what you thought was for you really wasn’t. Drop everything again and move on. It’s a beautiful thing to be able to skip around your room half naked in dances of euphoria but I am able to do that because simply living is making me happy right now. All the things that should be considered “work” are a pleasure. Once you’ve gotten to that point my friends it doesn’t get any better. Let’s make it happen, the sky isn’t even the limit, it’s only the beginning for us. No offense to the big man from Brooklyn.

in my best Barney Stinson impersonation I say "this is going to be Legen...wait for it...DARY 

Seasons.

Today I decided to take a break from my laptop and fire up the good ol' family computer and clear some space out by trashing some picture albums and music I stopped caring for. While looking through my countless files I found a few pictures, journal entrys, and papers I wrote for high school. I couldn't help but to think about the goals I wanted to accomplish back then, I realized that I'm nowhere close to what I wanted myself to be at 25, but you know what? I'm happy. 

Like most people taking a stroll down memory lane there is always something you wish you could take back and re-do. I, being a perfectionist for most things, have a huge amount of things I wish I could have re-done, but the point is that you do what you have to do and don’t look back with regret. I've changed a great deal since my "hypebeast" days and way more since my dragonball hair days. Things ALWAYS change and as long as you carry that same youthful energy that you've had since you were a kid, and make it shine through everything you do, you can't go wrong. which is why I can’t be anything but happy with the outcome of my life.

Just know without a doubt that every season incites more growth. who really knew what they wanted in high school anyway? When I was younger I wanted to be a Meteorologist a.k.a the Weather Man by day and a Cop by night. Fast forward 11 years and now I want to be a elementary school teacher.

anyway here are a few gems I thought id share.

04' a park in rancho del rey.

Journalism Paper 05'

Beached.

Yesterday was when I fully sat back and realized that I was completely in the throws of Summer. It's about a 20 minute drive from the Coronado beach and at some point in the afternoon it was decided that we should journey out to the beach for reasons that no one could really explain. It was more of a collective, “Yeah let’s go to the beach,” sort of deal. The kind of plan-making that will drive your older relatives crazy but at the same time is the only appropriate way to live life during the glorious months of summer.

Well we finally got out to the beach around 3:30 and from there proceeded to do just about the most entertaining amount of absolutely nothing that I have taken part in, in a very very long time. Good times abound on the waters of SD. The people you run into, the sights you see, everything seems to be a lot more interesting and amazing when you find yourself someplace with you're significant other and good friends. Like for example did you know that it there is a instant tanning spray? I thought tanning creams, mousse's, and sprays took days of applying to gradually see results. You can imagine my reaction when my girlfriend sprayed me down and I finally got rid of my farmers tan....Amazing.

Sometimes you sit down and evaluate yourself as a person. You go over your good qualitys and then you think about your faults. At times I can be Rude, Arrogant, Overbearing, and Cynical. I hold on to grudges and can be hurtful and vicious. But you must know that I make an effort to change and I am on a endless persuit to better myself. The problem at hand is that change isn't coming fast enough...

    

Blogging 101

Want to rule the Blog world?

1: Buy yourself a Nikon camera...d80 or higher

2: Take pictures of scenery, art pieces you have no real intrest in, Water glasses that are half full...or empty however you look at life, Don't forget to use those angles you learned in your high school photography class. 

3:Throw all the pictures you took onto your Blog

4:Heres where it gets tricky. Don't write a single word on your post.

5.Click the publish button.

Jealous? yeah. Bitter? you bet. I thought that people liked to READ! the images that accompanied the post were extra. It seems that bloggers got lazy and started posting pictures up instead of anything interesting and smart. When a blogger gets lazy: the readers get lazy as well.
Picture blogs are the new "hypebeast"

  

Hey Gorgeous.

The closest thing to perfect in my eyes..

Bobby Ra-who the fuck?

So let’s put this out there right off of the bat ok? I was never a big B.o.B guy. I have some friends who would rather listen to a Waka Flocka Flames freestyle for three hours than download a B.o.B song, and I have some friends who swear up and down that B.o.B is the truth.

Despite not being a big fan, I’ve been well aware of this fellow’s track record over the past year or so, as he was being heralded as the MC that would put the NC on the map. Fast-forward now to May 5th, 2010 and B.o.B is putting out his first major label debut B.o.B presents: The adventures of Bobby Ray. An album that I could not escape like Snuggie commercials on late night TV. It seemed like this body of music has not only been hyped from here to Kanagawa Japan and back again, but it has received the biggest promotional push I’ve seen in years for any artist’s first album.

With those being the facts, I figure what the hell. Let me uphold my duty as a law breaking citizen of the 21st century and download this album and give it a fair chance. I would give the guy who’s name no-one-could-pronounce-at-first a shot at proving that he lived up to the hype I had endured hearing for the past two months. Well, what follows is my reaction. And in case you’e somewhat sesitive, I’ll warn you now that I’m not rushing out to purchase any of this dudes shit.

My very first impression? They really, really, really tried to sell this album. Take a look at the roll call of artists present on nine out of fourteen total tracks. Literally everyone from Hayley Williams (Paramore) and the Knux to heavy radio hitters like Lupe Fiasco, T.I., and Eminem (That’s not to mention fellow up and comers Bruno Mars and Janelle Monae) They jam packed this disc with more collaborations than Nike SB had in 2007 and yet somehow I’m not convinced.

Follow me on this one. If B.o.B is the man who is going to not only put the NC on the map, but also be one of the biggest forces in helping to usher in a new school of rappers…you’d think he would absolutely impress me on at least a few songs on his album right?

Where was that on the album? Since the very first day that I hear a B.o.B track, probably somewhere around two years ago. I have never been blown away by his skills on the microphone. There is something lacking to me, maybe it’s his voice, maybe it’s that he was so closely tied to a streetwear culture that was exiting at the time he came out or maybe it’s just plain and simple the fact that as a rapper he is just good at best.

Take a serious look at it. When I think of the other up and coming rappers in the game-I’m talking about a Drake, J.Cole, Cudi, Pac Div, Wale, hell even throw blu in there. They have all at least once succeeded in make me stop, nod my head and go, “Damn, yeah he deserves the hype. That was ridiculous.” I am not getting this from B.oB. Theres a few tracks I kind of enjoyed but B.o.B succeeded once again in losing me over the course of his verses.

There’s some light on the album. the album has some cool production and some verses from B.o.B that are highly listen-to-able but again not stunning. The man has talent and I respect the degree to which he’s promoted himself and succeeded to date but to all my brethren out there calling out his name in adulation. Is this really the savior of the NC? The fore bearer of the new movement? He’s cool guys I suppose but I don’t feel like this is the best out there. I think there needs to be some competition, maybe from the NC, maybe from somewhere else but this can’t really be it?

From the amount of hype so many of you guys gave him, the absurd supporting cast assembled around Bobby Ray to make the album a success and the largely slick production throughout B.o.B still failed to make me a believer.

No par intended for those who are a fan of the man, all the more power to you. I even took it easy on him in this article. There’s a lot of things that could have been brought to light here but I feel like it’s counter productive to really shape any one’s thoughts who may be reading this and accepting it as truth without listening for themselves.

The essential problem is this.

I just feel as though maybe B.o.B was raised onto a platform to be a savior and star and perhaps maybe we all moved a little fast in choosing him to be the artist standing on that platform.

At some point I think there needed to be a step back and analyzing of this man’s skill and ability to ‘wow’ on a track before we all cosigned his proclamation as rap’s Airplane in his own words. That goes for everyone from the NC to L.A. and in between. Best of luck to the artist on future releases. I’ll be listening, and should he inspire, paying for the music as well.

Geeked Up Repost.

So from day one I have been a complete unabashed fan of the form of literary expression known as the comic. I’m not one of those Simpsons comic book guy look alikes that lines up at the shop door every Wednesday to pick up the newest title, and I haven’t followed faithfully through any series in quite a long time. When it comes to love however, there is none greater. Ever since I was little it was the art that kept me coming back again and again. Everything from Howard the Duck to the Ultimate X Men. Anyway, I got into a little discussion with some co workers concerning this years comic con and some stuff I was reading and came to realize how I havent discussed the world of tights and absurdly sized biceps on the AWAYTEAM blog yet.

Time to make reparations. So for the first time in a long time I’m following an entire regularly published, recent series from the good folks over at Marvel. While looking for some new D8 dice at my local comics n stuff, the owner engaged me in some conversation about some books he was looking to re-order. I asked him if he had Marvels in stock, and of course he said no. However, the no didn’t end there. As it turns out, Marvels (Which is quite possibly my favorite comic of all time, yes all-time. Even House of M stands threatened.), is being continued in a six part series from original writer Kurt Busiek and art from Jay Anacleto. Now I’ll admit when I heard that the god-father himself Alex Ross wasn’t doing the art for this new series I was skeptical but thank the lord on high-these issues do no disappoint.

For those who don’t want to hear all of this endless tom-foolery about the technical details I’ll put it to you this way. Anacleto does an amazing job channeling the original direction Ross set out with for the first Marvels series. It will strike you right off the bat how distinct and life like this style of illustration is. Couple that with the writing that made Marvels so amazing in the first place and you have a recipe for success. This book makes “super-hereos” as real as possible.

I realize for those of you who could care less about comics and come here to see music reviews and movie theatre rants, that this was more or less a confusing pile of non-essential garbage. But at the end of the day it is all so necessary. Maybe I should go do something manly and street to regain my cred. And quick. I'm going to listen to my Wu Tang cd while I watch sports center and do push ups now haha.

Mantourage Repost.

A somewhat brilliant combination of an undeniable life style, hilarious antics, witty writing and of course the ample dose of perfectly balanced Hollywood enhanced breasts and butt cheeks has made Entourage among the best shows making the rounds on television. We would all be remiss however to leave out the musical element of the show. I’m not sure who is choosing the tracks for episode after episode but they are proving time and time again that they have their ear to the proverbial streets.

The “outro” song that plays in the last minute or so of every Entourage episode has become something of a phenomenon itself. Just about everything ranging from Cam’ron to Empire of the Sun has found itself as the background sound canvas to another one of Ari’s rants or Drama’s mishaps. Seriously, whoever is putting this stuff together has quite the ear for artists both classic and those on the come up.

Maybe I’m just saying that because these are tracks from artists like Yeasayer and Lee Fields but perhaps it quite simple is just some damn good music. You be the judge.

Link to download every outro track from Seaon 6:Click Here!

Everything from Dutchess & the Duke to N.W.A

enjoy.

SLEEEP.

There is only one drink that satisfies the cravings that come in the wee hours of the morning. Arizona makes 23 flowing ounces of Sweet Tea in the home brewed style of the deep American South. Now take note that nothing even approaches the real Sweet Tea that is served up below the Mason Dixie. I’ve been down in Georgia (ATL SHAWTY!) once and I must say that the quality of their Sweet Tea is ridiculous. The only thing we have to challenge them here is the Chic-fil-A Sweet Tea. The only reason I only bring that up is due to the fact that it will only cost you one dollar. Anyway, take a look at the clock in the back of that photo. I’m just getting started on this night and thanks to my big bruh' I have the juice to get through it. Anyone else have a absolutely necessary late night juice?

Minaj.

If I had a dollar for every time Nicki Minaj made a face on camera I would have like 500 dollars ...

Wake.

Kendrick Lamar- She Needs Me (remix)

It’s morning and the mattress and pillows seem to literally be exerting a physical force on your body. There is an unexplainable pull reaching out from the soft surface of your bed and forcing you to stay in bed and ignore the issues of the day. This morning featured an especially strong pull, I’m still struggling to get myself ready for work, so I’ve decided to throw the above track on here not only for all of you but for myself also. Kendrick Lamar makes quite the funky head nodding assortment of good music and I find this track to be of the perfect variety to make me hop out of bed and start "turfin" around the room like I was straight from the Bay. Time to make moves folks.

Formal Introduction.

So I decided to break away from the team for a little bit. I'll still run the AwayTeam blog and keep you posted to any adventures that myself and the AwayTeam encounter. I just felt like doing something a little more personal. What you can expect from this blog? how do I put this in the most epic way possible... 

There comes a time for growth, there comes a time for change, and there comes a time to completely smack the world over the head with something no one saw coming. You guys have been the loyal faithful and the dedicated followers. It’s high time that I return the love and provide you guys with an outlet like none other. I’m planning on highlighting the writing you guys have become so familiar with in ways I hope you all come to appreciate it in the same way you have The AwayTeam blog. Begin to consider yourself well read, Be excited my brethren.

For

her.

"hope you had a great 3rd of July, and have an even better July 4th"

Independence Day. I’m a big fan of Ben Frank, Big George, and the the fathers who so famously did the founding on these shores. Good folks all of those guys were, I feel like myself and them would have got along in great fashion despite the fact that half of them were slave owners. Anyway. Get outside and make this 4th one to remember. Get some fireworks, get really close to losing an arm but please don’t actually do it. I feel like hoping in the car to head to Pacific Beach. one of the nice little beach communities in SD. Should come back with some great images if i go, enjoy the holiday fam.