Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Things Taken

Wallet (metal card case) contents:
Silver Screen Video frequent renter card
AAA membership card
debit card
credit card
debit card
credit card
debit card
debit card
Costco card
Calif Drivers License
Kaiser Permanente Med Ins.card
Artist and Craft Supply receipt

Back pack (light green Northface Recon II day pack) contents:
Beanie
pair of black Mountain Hardware gloves
pair of black heavy duty work gloves
coin pouch - $15.00 worth of quarters
2009 planner notebook
2010 planner notebook
mail - some retrieved
color wheel - retrieved
set of walkie talkies in package
clip
bandaid
toothbrush
DVD Blockbuster - Twilight
Samsung phone charger
Walking Through the Bible book
Bible
flat head screwdriver

this is the list I sent the OPD.

I'm consistently looking for things that I realize later were in the backpack, just today I realized that the screw driver and the fancy notebook that was a gift to me were in the back pack. There were some notes in there that I wanted. In the end I only want certain sentimental things back. Like the notes and my planner.

Oh yeah Twilight-don't ask. It was horrible anyways, so bad it elicited some anger. They did waive the lost fee after I showed them that I'd been robbed. Blockbuster definitely gets points for customer service.

The reason some of the items say 'retrieved' is because after calling all my banking institutions and finding out exactly what ATMs they went to, I drove out there in hopes of finding something. We got there saw nothing initially then underneath the wheel of the car I see a color wheel, familiar but out of context, takes me a sec to realize that we parked on the very spot they did - a little bit eerie at first but exciting like Sherlock Holmes. And then around the corner at the next one I found some of my mail twirling in a mini cyclone on the sidewalk. That's it.

Oh and a few days later the cops called to tell me they found some homeless dude with my Kaiser card, claimed he was me. That's the funniest part, black dude saying he's David Young Kim. Adopted perhaps. Let him have it, it's replaceable.

Top 5 Things I'd like back:
1)2009 planner
2)Bible
3)Beanie
4)Backpack
5)Cellphone

Now I only carry my drivers license and one debit card on me wrapped in a rubber band maybe 20 bucks in cash on a good day but probably closer to 10.

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

NYE in tahoe

Sorry guys, you guys are some of my closest friends but I can't do it. I needs to be this way. I want to go with you guys but i know myself too well, this is one area of my life where I absolutely know myself. I haven't gotten drunk in 2 years, maybe longer. This past November I took a trip back to Davis and got wasted. The thing was it wasn't a surprise. I didn't plan on but it wasn't surprising at all, and that's exactly what it is. So I'll just stay back and you guys go ahead.

Imogen Heap

I like this. I was first introduced to Imogen Heap by an old friend of mine, she had discovered her at the concert her friend took her to. I still have the CD that belongs to her. If you haven't heard of her she did that song called "Let Go" as Frou Frou from the movie Garden State. Anyhow I just got a chance to listen to her latest album and it's pretty sweet, I was reminded. I like the images in the CD booklet and the lyrics are good too. I remember her description of the concert; she pretty much does it solo with recorded beats, live recording which she plays back right then as part of her song and synthesizer machines and maybe occasionally someone would join in to provide some additional background. I've seen someone do that once live..it's amazing. I don't usually splurge on shows but I think I would for one of hers.
Oh, she's self produced, writes her own stuff and self promotes...which makes it even better.






Sunday, December 27, 2009

Road Kill

I was driving home today and I saw two squirrels dead in the middle of the road. Normally I would dismiss it as road kill but for some reason there being two side by side made it really sad. Like two kids, brothers perhaps, running across the street together, laughing talking about something, video games or something like that and then all of a sudden a car comes and hits them.

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

LiNK - The Hundred

It's pretty rad group, we had these guys over last summer to screen their movie and promo their merch and they have some sweet tech guys doing their web and video, impressive stuff.

LiNK's Mission

LiNK exists so that one day the crisis in North Korea will not. We operate under a mandate that does not allow us to remain silent about the human rights and refugee crisis that is a result of this emergency. We educate, protect, advocate, provide and empower the North Korean people so that one day they will have the opportunity to live in true freedom.

Pretty dope footage of L.A. too:

"All of Us" TheHundred Holiday Campaign from LiNK Global on Vimeo.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Oakland Crime

So I've been living in Oakland, just on the east side of the lake, Oakland has it's rep but this neighborhood is supposedly up and coming, working class, but we do have our share of crime.
Let's take a look at all that I've encountered since I moved here in Sept 07:

-caught two teenage kids sneaking out from our backyard, didnt get it at first but later went back and saw a used condom on the ground.
-got my laptop taken from inside my place.
-got my camera taken from the movie theater, but this was in Emeryville.
-Tim got his car jacked and totaled.
-Nate got his radio stolen from his civic.
-someone walked in stole Daphnes purse.
-Someone took Elaines wallet out of her bag inside the cafe.
-black dude in suit got beat and mugged in the parking lot.
-Ritch got his catalytic converter taken right off the bottom of his car.
-got hit by taggers, all toys by-the-way.
-one of the neighbors got her car shot twice, but that was down the street.
-Madalyn got her car broken into.
-Sasha got her house broken into.
-a bunch of laptop snatchings from inside of Woodys cafe.
-Asian kid got shot in the Luckys lot 2 blocks over.
-and the Finale, I got mugged at gunpoint in the lot 2 days ago.

This is life in Oakland.

They Got Me

This is so ironic, but an important part of the journey.

I got mugged last night, Dec 15, (about 10:50pm) at gunpoint by some dudes in the Regen parking lot.

I had just gotten out of my car completely distracted trying to manage the backpack and other things in my arms when about 30 secs into it 2 young guys approach me asking for my wallet. They were black males, 18-23 maybe, black hooded sweat shirts with the hood up over their heads, welding a semi-auto 0.22. Before I could even respond they started going through my pockets and pulled out my cash and wallet. They ended up running off with my backpack, wallet, cell phone, cars keys and about 5 bucks in cash, but only after a brief debate about whether or not to take my car. And he did hit the car alarm to verify which car the alarm belonged to making me suspicious that they might come back for it. We got it on tape but there's no way to make out faces. Also another suspicious thing is that there was a car in the lot waiting that pulled off just as I parked, the police believe this was the get away vehicle that probably waited for them around the corner.

There wasn't any physical violence, I'm okay, learned my lesson and it's more just a huge inconvenience (tons of phone calls and unplanned errands). And again I was tempted to dismiss Oakland as hopeless and be off but I think now this just motivates me to want to do more to transform this place. It's going to continue happening, it might happen to me again, I just have to make sure I carry less on me and am alert. This was for a reason, it changes my perspective on things and allows me to have empathy that only comes from experience.

The OPD was amazing, by-the-way, they were here even before I got off the phone with the 911 operator. Oh and 4 people got hit earlier that night and 2 more as the officer was taking my report. They apparently work in maybe 4 groups of 2-3 hitting simultaneously, taking advantage of the fact that OPD can't be omnipresent.




The whole thing went down in less than a minute.

Friday, December 11, 2009

Firsts

These are my very first oil paintings, I did them in a class I took in junior high at the Torrance Civic Center, I was 13 or 12 I forget, I remember my mom would drop me off and pick me up in her old school limousine caddy. I remember I was the only kid in the class. Anyhow this is when oils first entered my life.





Just like that except a darker shade of gray. Everyone wanted to buy it. It's a classic. We did eventually trade it in, I saw it randomly on some residential street. Same faded hood, it was her for sure.

Help

Man, how do you make it so that the website links connect directly to the site upon clicking?
And how you make it so that i could embed the weblink into the name in the text?
i think the latter would be better. former seems repetitive.
not too tech savvy, as you can see. you can usually determine how intuitive these website apps are if i can figure them out. so weve now determined that blogspot isnt so much. i think I'm a good example of an in betweener for those that are high tech and low tech. you have to cater to all, you know.
and how do you make the degree sign, i cant find it anywhere on the keyboard.

Batman Gotham Knight

A pretty sweet version Batman Gotham Knight by the Japanese studio Studio 4 (degrees) C


Videos tu.tv


http://www.studio4c.co.jp/english/

Monkey Goes West

Here's dope one from Jamie Hewlett (the guy who created the Gorillaz) and Passion Pictures.



http://www.gorillaz.com/
http://www.passion-pictures.com/flash.html#page=d3