Dear Friends

I miss you all terribly and hope that you had a wonderful holiday season!

I'd like to share with you some information about a project that I am involved in, and am quite proud of:

"Limbus" is my feature-film debut and one of the most exciting things I've done since moving to Los Angeles.  I am playing one of the leading roles: the plot centers around 4 cult members who commit group-suicide and find themselves trapped somewhere in between life and death, searching for answers and a path out.  Heavy stuff, I know, but the work we've done so far has been very rewarding and the footage from the initial shoot is haunting and heart-wrenching.  We shot for several weeks in early December, and will be picking up again in February to finish the film.

We need some help fundraising though:

Kickstarter is a grassroots funding tool that was named one of the top 50 inventions of 2010 by Time Magazine.  It is an exciting new way for non-corporate creative projects to attract investors.  If you're unfamiliar, here's how it works: we set a goal ($10,000) and a time limit (1 month); if enough patrons pledge donations, and we meet our goal, our project gets funded.

If the idea of supporting independent art excites you, or if you'd like to help me take a huge step forward in my career, or if this project just sounds cool to you, I encourage you to pledge.  Even $1 and you can say honestly that you produced a Hollywood feature!

I know these are difficult economic times, but if you can't afford a donation, you can still help by spreading the word about our project.  Check out the Kickstarter page, and pass the info along to others who might be interested.  Link to us on Facebook, or Twitter, or whatever social-networking site you prefer.  Anything you can do to help will be much appreciated by myself and the other artists invested in this film.

I love you all dearly and hope that you all have a great start to 2012!

-DMc, West Coast Correspondent

Some more fun facts:

Our director, Brandon Nicholas, has 2 previous feature-films that have screened at festivals around the country and have distribution through Netflix.  I've worked with him on several music videos over the past two years.

Our producer, Courtney Salmon, recently finished working on the new Spiderman film (with Andrew Garfield & Emma Stone).

We are shooting on the newest, bestest camera in the business, the Red Epic.  The first films shot on this camera include The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The Hobbit, and The Amazing Spiderman.

One of my co-stars, Alex Klein, recently played a German exchange student on an episode of "Community," (red shirt).

We needed a cheap location for the first section of the film, so we took all of the furniture out of my (large) bedroom and built a set, which I slept in during the shoot.

Spotify

So, I'm sure we're all familiar to the genius that is Pandora.
I present to you: Pandora's hot cousin.

Differences: Its Pandora but you can PICK the songs in your playlists, including music you don't own. So, basically its a shit ton of free music that you can create playlists for. And as long as you have an internet connection, you can access your playlists anywhere. I do this often for work.

Unfortunately, you cannot download the music for free. So, making CDs or playing it in your car is impossible. But, at your desk, at home - its all free.

EVERY Madonna album ever made? Make it a playlist.
Soundtracks from all 3 Twilight movies? Playlist.
ANY song that contains the word "Circus"? PLAYLIST!

Endless possibilities.

Enjoy and Happy Holidays,
fisticuffs


A Plus1Press Publication

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

If you've taken Psych 100 and this is old news to you, I apologize. Last week, some article made an off hand reference to the Myers-Brigg Type Indicator assessment. Being an Senser (more on that later), I did some research. It's basically an assessment that measures psychological preferences in how people perceive the world and make decisions. And using a free online knock off version, I got results that kind of blew me away. Apparently it's the most widely used personality test in the world and I've been living under a rock.

Four days later, eight people were sitting around a kitchen table taking the test, sharing results and then reading the wikipedia page for each person's results. And we still haven't stopped talking about it.

So if you're interested, take the test here, and then you can go to wikipedia and put in your 4-letter results and get all sorts of information about it. And if you'd like to post your results in the comments, feel free. I've been speculating about everyone I know, and I'd love to know how my perception lines up with your results. So far only two people have had the same type.

Want more info? As an ESFJ (Provider), I'm happy to help. Read on!

The test is based on the idea of 4 pairs of dichotomies, or opposing psychological preferences, which makes for a possible 16 types. The terms have specific meanings to this test which may differ from their everyday usage.

Some of these descriptions are a bit judge-y, which is off-base, but I thought it was somewhat helpful as a visual.

 1. extraversion/introversion (E/I)
People who prefer extraversion draw energy from action: they tend to act, then reflect, then act further. Conversely, those who prefer introversion expend energy through action: they prefer to reflect, then act, then reflect again.

2. sensing/intuition (S/N)
Sensing and intuition are the information-gathering (perceiving) functions. They describe how new information is understood and interpreted. Individuals who prefer sensing are more likely to trust information that is in the present, tangible and concrete: that is, information that can be understood by the five senses. On the other hand, those who prefer intuition tend to trust information that is more abstract or theoretical, that can be associated with other information (either remembered or discovered by seeking a wider context or pattern)

3.thinking/feeling (T/F)

Thinking and feeling are the decision-making functions. Those who prefer thinking tend to decide things from a more detached standpoint, measuring the decision by what seems reasonable, logical, causal, consistent and matching a given set of rules. Those who prefer feeling tend to come to decisions by associating or empathizing with the situation, looking at it 'from the inside' and weighing the situation to achieve, on balance, the greatest harmony, consensus and fit, considering the needs of the people involved.

4. judgment/perception (J/P) 
Judgment and perception reflect the implementation of the above preferences. Those who favor judgment prefer a planned or orderly way of life, like to have things settled and organized, feel more comfortable when decisions are made, and like to bring life under control as much as possible.Those who favor perception prefer a flexible and spontaneous way of life, and like to understand and adapt to the world rather than organize it.

Happy introspection!

 -av, lover of tests.

A Plus1Press Publication

Ryan Gosling, Feminist

You know all about Fuck Yeah, Ryan Gosling, and maybe you've seen him reading some of the best "Hey Girl" submissions aloud,so I know you'll want to be at the forefront of the newest Ryan Gosling meme.

Introducing Feminist Ryan Gosling:

-av



A Plus1Press Publication

Justin Timberlake...and Kim Jong-Il?

A friend recently introduced me to these two bad boys:

Justin Timberlake Does Things

and

Kim Jong-Il Looking At Things

Both of which, although short, are hilarious.

Previews:

-jb

Poor Justin Timberlake

Found this video through Today's Big Thing-which everyone should check out.
Poor Justin:

Here's a great interview with Justin in Playboy magazine that I read thanks to ED.

Jillicious1000
A Plus1Press Publication

The Man in Black Project

Always always always been a big Johnny Cash fan. So, the fact that I had to learn about this from one of those (deeply moving) Google Chrome ads made me embarassed.

Johnny Cash's last recorded studio album had this outstanding song Ain't No Grave Can Hold My Body Down (how fuckin BOSS is that title?) and he died before any video could be made for it. So, a group of genius fans decided to keep his spirit alive by making it a fan-created video of shots of older videos. Each frame of the video can be downloaded as a picture and you can contribute by drawing YOUR VERSION of the still frame. Its added to an archive, and your frame becomes part of the video as it plays.

Millions have contributed and what that means is that when you hit play, you never watch the same vid twice.  If you click the link right now, you can be a part of his video.

(this blows my mind berries EVERYTIME)

Check it out and for God's sake CONTRIBUTE!

Yours in badassity,
Fisti


A Plus1Press Publication

You should be following @mental_floss

@mental_floss is constantly tweeting amazing facts that I haven't ever read before. @mental_floss recently blew my mind by telling me that one in every thirty million lobsters is yellow. 
A FUCKING YELLOW LOBSTER!

If that isn't enough to get you following @mental_floss I think these three facts will.

-jv

A Plus1Press Publication

Spotify is the Tits.

I know I haven't posted any #SummerJams in a while, but that's about to change.

Imagine if iTunes and Pandora fucked and made a digital-music-streaming baby, which made it super easy to listen to almost any song or album by almost every artist you can think of, in a matter of seconds, any time you want, FOR FREE.  Wouldn't that be awesome?

Well they totally did it.  Spotify has been blowing up all over Europe for the past few years, and now it's available in the US.  If you don't have it yet, all you have to do go HERE, request an invite (which they send you basically immediately), and download the free version.

It will sync with your iTunes, making all of your current music library available while you're using it, and you will be able to search for whatever the hell you want to listen to at any given moment, stream it instantly, and create playlists with it.  You can access your Spotify account (and playlists!) from any computer that has the program installed (and since it's free, that pretty much means any computer).

There's also a version for $10/month that lets you access your playlists when your offline and, more importantly, on your mobile device.  I don't have the premium version yet, but if I ever get an iPhone, I will definitely upgrade.

The cherry on top?  You can sync to Facebook and share playlists.  As in, your friends will be able to see/access your playlists, you will be able to check out theirs, and you can collaborate on joint playlists.

So go get it.  To make it worth your while, I'll try to post more music recommendations over the next few days, which you'll be able to check out freely and easily now!


-DMc, West Coast Correspondent

Giving money to poor people

The NY Times blog posted this yesterday and I thought it was worth sharing. The post highlights a new charitable donation organization, GiveDirectly, that allows donors to give money directly to the people they want to help. Rather than donating to an organization that will spend the money on projects that will take time to complete, if they get completed, while also covering overhead costs, thus cutting down on the money that actually ends up making a difference to the cause you want to help, with GiveDirectly 90% of your donation will be available to a person in need almost instantaneously.

Here's how GiveDirectly puts it, "GiveDirectly allows you to send money directly to the poor. We locate impoverished households in Kenya and then transfer donations electronically to their mobile phones. Our goal is simple: to provide the most efficient, transparent, and respectful way to give."


But what if they spend it on cigarettes or alcohol? They can spend the money that way. But research shows* that "temptation spending" doesn't go up in the households that receive funding. Mostly spend it on health fees, education costs, food, shelter, or starting a small business. The benefactors are interviewed prior to being set up to receive donations, so there is some screening going on to ensure that your money goes to someone who will use it well.  


So maybe you aren't into charitable donations at this point because you're up to your ears in student loans. That's fine. But someday after you've won the lottery, gone to Disney World, bought a few houses, and raced through a toy store with a shopping cart madly piling up everything you can reach because you're giving yourself that shopping spree you never won on Nickelodeon, you may want to give a little back. Here's one option. Or just buy some Toms. Whatever you're into. 

-av
Junior I-Get-Tricked-Into-Helping-People Liaison

*I did not do this research and I haven't seen it. I read that in the article. Grain of salt added.
A Plus1Press Publication

Pinterest is my creative distraction

Recently I've become obsessed with Pinterest, a self-described “virtual pinboard” and hub for all things visually-inspiring. Rather than racking up a long list of bookmarks, I “pin” images to my Pinterest boards when I find something interesting online. Recipes, DIY projects, artwork, quotes, landscapes, fashion—anything worth remembering. You can "follow" other Pinners' boards so you can see what your friends find exciting. I'm LOVING following Alice, Jill, KatieCaff and Lucy.

When I get stuck in my writing at work I often browse Pinterest for the sake of creative distraction. It’s inspiring to be presented with an array of fresh visual ideas whenever I want. And like all things social, my Pinterest experience would be much better if you joined. The site is still in closed beta (let me know if you want an invite!), but the interface is beautifully done and I expect big things in their future.

-Senior Pinterest Correspondent
id

ISHABAMI

In 2009 I drew a picture and tried to write SHABAM! underneath the picture and to be fancy I was going to put an upside-down exclamation point at the beginning of the word. I drew the word from left to right starting with the upside-down exclamation point and working my way over to the regular one on the other side. I messed up and put another upside-down exclamation point at the end of the word. "ishabami" I liked the way the picture looked though, so I hang the picture anyhow. The next day when BJK came over he saw the picture and said "ishabami?" and the word sounded right. Since then I have adopted it as a nonsense word that can mean anything or nothing at all. And I began to write it everywhere along with a bunny. I began a blog a few weeks ago to have ownership of the word on the internet. ISHABAMI.BLOGSPOT.COM I have added a bunch of painting and pictures, some from 2009 and a few that are more recent. Here are three samples.

-jv
A Plus1Press Publication

Google+

I'm ready to get excited about Google+
Its the new social network that Google is about to launch.

Some things that Google+ has promised to have:
1. "circles" so that I can group my friends, maybe I can do this on Facebook, I don't though
2. "sparks" which seems to be like your interests on Facebook only Google+ uses your sparks to suggest things to check out that they know you will like
3. "huddle" which seems like a way to have a google group chat

Unfortunately the doors on Google+ are closed right now. You can get on the wait list here and then check out this breakdancing gorilla while we wait to get invited into the cool kid club.

-jv
A Plus1Press Publication

Pottermore: more of what exactly?

By now you've probably heard about Pottermore, JK Rowling's latest project. It was shrouded in mystery and steeped in anticipation and now that we know what it is, we still don't really know what it is.

According to the site: "Pottermore is a free website that builds an exciting online experience around the reading of the Harry Potter books."

According to JK herself:



But what does all the mean? Here's what we know:
-The site goes public in the fall, for now you can submit your e-mail address and wait
-UNLESS you get selected to be in the preview stage this summer
-Pottermore will have the only way to get official digital e-books and audio books of Harry Potter
-The books will release one at a time, will gaps between them
-Some content will be user generated, hopefully more stuff like the awesome curling paper in the above video
-Rowling will use the site to share more secrets of Harry Potter, like Dumbledore being gay, etc.

I submitted my e-mail address. You probably should too. And if anyone gets in the site this summer, TELL US!

There's also a twitter account that is spewing updates. Apparently the first three chapters are going into preview tomorrow. And on July 31st, aka Harry's birthday, they're will be an opportunity to win early access.

Also JK Rowling is the most powerful person in the world that she can get people jazzed up about three chapters from a book that came out 14 years ago.

-av
A Plus1Press Publication

Get Bent

This artist Terry Border takes inanimate objects and makes them come to life with wire. His blog is called Bent Objects. Its hysterical usually, and amazing always.

This one is my fave. Zombie Peanuts...are you laughing? I'm laughing.

fp


A Plus1Press Publication

Talking Funny

Hello everyone, earlier today I stumbld upon a tumblr that I thought was killr. its called awesome people hanging out together, and its exactly what it sounds like. Here are some of my favorites;

 Mr. T and Nancy Reagan

Coronel Sanders and Alice Cooper

While scrolling though APHOT I also came across an HBO special called Talking Funny, starring Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock, Ricky Gervais, and Louis C.K. all in the same room talking comedy. They discuss each others styles and approaches to comedy, they also share stories about first starting out, failures and successes, its very interesting stuff. The best part is you can watch the whole thing on youtube, here is the first one;

and here are the links to part 2, 3, and 4. 

-bjk

A Plus1Press Publication

Why I Love MTV and you should too.

This morning I have been watching AMTV. Its where MTV still shows videos other than MTV Jams and MTV Hits. MTV still plays music videos and lots of them they just also give us amazing shows like The Jersey Shore and Fantasy Factory, which got Big back this season and is the best show on television right now. I wish MTV would bring back MTV News and put it on for an hour at 7 and go head to head with E! News, I'd DVR both and love it.

Also, Lil Wanye's new song is not at all what I expected and I love it.


-jv

A Plus1Press Publication

Great Television

I love television and I've been a fan since Sesame street and Barney. But as times have changed so has my taste for quality television. I follow this podcast called The Nerdist which stars stand up comedian Chris Hardwick and his two friends, Matt and Jonah, as they discuss nerd society and all things related to that. They have had great guests in the past (Joel McHale, Donald Glover, Colin Hanks, Kevin Smith, Jimmy Fallon, etc.) but I bring it up because of episode # 85 starring Damon Lindelof. Damon Lindelof, for those not in the know, executive produced Lost and wrote the Star Trek movie. The conversation that takes place is great for any of us who have wondered what the fate of television is going to be in regards to the new Kevin Spacey series on Netflix and google tv being launched and what our society has become in regards to ingesting entertainment. Also if your a fan of Lost it is great for that too. This podcast is amazing and free, check it out.

 - sf

A Plus1Press Publication

Sourcemap: Fascinating and Slightly Unsettling

Sourcemap is all about helping people find out where products come from, and what exactly they contain.

You can browse existing sourcemaps or create your own. Maps also display a given product’s carbon footprint… which is a cool feature, but personally I have NO idea what 0.14 kg CO2e for a bottle of Fiji water means. Relatively good? Bad?

But the site is definitely worth checking out. It’s pretty interesting to see exactly what you’re consuming when snacking on an AriZona Arnold Palmer Iced Tea and some Oreos. It slightly horrified me to find out that my favorite 99¢ beverage is sweetened using Splenda, and that Oreo cookies are manufactured in Indonesia using palm oil from Malaysia.

Sourcemap also breaks down an iPhone 3GS and Domino’s Pizza. 

-id

A Plus1Press Publication

Shiz My Students Write

Just came across a pretty hilarious tumblr called Shit My Students Write. Teachers submit unintentionally funny lines their students write anonymously, and though some are just typos, I couldn't help but laugh out loud at how idiotic some of this kids seem.

I bet FP & AV could add some good entries. Here are some of my favorites:

Indians, the other dark meat, were saved from extinction by the humanitarian, Andrew Jackson.

Before the days of colonization, America was like a young, untouched child.

I’ve lived my whole life on the west coast and to me, the civil war seems like a really really long time ago.

Like a woman seduces a horny man, Hitler captivated the people of Germany.

Macbeth couldn’t have loved Lady Macbeth because he was crazy and too busy hallucinating witches and stuff. Also, crazy people can’t do it without going crazy midway through.

-id