hogpath

For over a decade Rita Sayegh has been integral in the Detroit design community. (and I mean city, no suburban thing here) She is one of the remaining vestiges of the mythic and romanticized presentation of Detroit's finest music- especially the electronic variety. Her bold and graphic styles have helped identify classic record labels like Axis, Minus, and Planet-e. Her company's website recently went live at Constructure.net. Perusing the gallery is a virtual education on Detroit Electronic Music Culture, not to mention its design and futuristic aesthetic. It is elegant, mechanical, simple, bright and vivid. Peep it.

Hello blog. Hello podcast. Hello world. It has been some time. What it boils down to, if I was going to sit in an airplane chair and head west across the Atlantic and confess my soul to the clouds and h20 below, is fear. So quick I excuse to lack of hours, even laziness, but its fear in the challenge. That is out of the way. Moving on. All I can do is create grace to eliminate waste of fluids and solids that are empty and disappeared now.

It all came together when I scribbled words I'd forget on a piece of cardboard. Words coming from an International American living in London passing through Dusseldorf. He said, “there's a lot of interesting and great opportunities out there.” Simple, true, cliché, synthesized in my moment in Dusseldorf in Lindner Hotel Airport situated in a suburb of some sort. I admit I do not now the term for suburb in Germany, “area” perhaps. The International American was a refreshing and familiar character in the movie's second act with technology integration to Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, which (like software) has the acronym EMEA. With the pile of business cards I will never forget him, the words, the Pilsner, and the Heiffiwessien. Palaner, Killepitch. I picture an apartment nestled in London somewhere, an area, where he rushes home to his wife to fix the plumbing we discussed not to mention Obama and McCain which arrived at last call.

Drupa- Mammoth. Take Cobo Hall in Detroit and multiply by 18. At times I did feel like I was at the gathering of the world with the representatives of EMEA, India, Asia, and the Americas. Somehow I am embarrassed and insecure that the entire world speaks English. It is all I know and I can get by. I met so many who spoke 2 – 5 languages. How do the connections in their brain work? Where do verbs and adverbs and connections reside in their tissue? Is it only possible to wire that in your childhood? I learned the valuable lesson of how to communicate with eyes, gestures, and a smile. They can go just as, if not more far, than language. Drupa was business with a mission that I accomplished. I must leave that at that for now.

While walking, taking the tram and the Mercedes taxis I could not help but think and reminisce about WWII. “So this is where it went down.” , I kept thinking. So much so I went back to room 335 and googled “Hitler Dusseldorf”. I kept envisioning the banners and swastikas that must of hang from the modern office buildings and medieval taverns. I begun to realize there is a spirit of a terrible and awful wound that has healed. The evil once there has not vanished but has been realized and understood. Evil has come to terms and humanity moves forward. I think the therapy for all this- the nationalism of it all- is futbol. I applaud the day when the battle is completely decided on the pitch.

The vegetation and lushness of Germany was inspiring and in harmony. Ancient maple(?) trees lined parallel with the dignity and force of statues with the tram running between them. The mood like a small abbey, a cave, rather than a cathedral. Every fence had shrubbery entwined in it so you were constantly forced to see green and nature. The business and shopping areas with neo-modern and classical lines seemed sprinkled throughout Dusseldorf and broken by trees and tall grasses. It was the cleanest city I've seen. The tidiness like Disneyland. A lot of graffiti. I gather to say it was aesthetically based rather than gang related. Something to research.

I notice I did not write like the poet but still think like one. It is even difficult for me to sit here and write for this long. So many feelings and emotions surfaced, so many experiences. Do I only write for memory? These feelings and emotions must be shared. I think I went wrong years ago when I was foolish enough to believe I could produce emotions and feelings on paper for profit and proper economics. While obviously immoral and whack, that is destined to become a job. Then it's over. So here I am back feeling the new international Hogpath with difficulty in expressing and arranging.

I spent quite a bit of time in the old town, Altstadt which was invigorating and exactly how one fantasized and dreams of Europe when they have never been there. The town square with the green statue in the middle square that has survived wars and seen humanity roll out before it. The brick streets. The endless restaurants packed with people out onto the street. I walked the Rhine noticing the quickness of the current, almost seems like it had the possibility of whitecaps. However, the area that inspired me most was the square by the Rhine with the glowing buildings, the lit trees, the couples lined up on the railing looking out. The bustle that has gone on there for hundreds of years. You could feel it.



never forget those church bells that awoke me this morning
and they importance they have for someone in that neighborhood.

i lay there and the air was clean and my breath was easy.

Watching mobuzz is a part of my morning routine. Tea, pajamas, and the small stool at 6:30am. It keeps me abreast of the tech world and the crew seems to share some similar worldviews. However this past week I sensed the need to frivolously tag and link with "Miley Cyrus". They mentioned a Time Magazine article and merely mentioned her name. It had no point to the story. Pure fluff. And then their show had a tag for Miley Cyrus. Why I ask? Is it really important and does it help your readers find information when the host says "Miley Cyrus'. Linking and tags are the new currency.

The other night I was impressed. We went online to look at the menu to order food from Anita's Kitchen in Ferndale. There was a link to order online. Hmmm... So we did. After driving there, I think the wait was a little longer than had I phoned in, but it still came up. I give them credit for trying.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation is one of those few groups who have been around since the beginning of the Internet. These are folks "in the know" and are trying to keep things as open and true to the principles in which the internet started- free and open communication. As time marches on the big boys step in be they large corporations like Sony, BMG, or government institutions. The EFF is a conglomerate of lawyers and activists who want to protect your freedom, identity, and give you the power.

They also have useful information on a range of subjects. I was particularly fascinated with this article about protecting your identity while online.

Resistance.

I'm fascinated with Detroit all over again. Recent events have had me pretty jaded...he doesn't even deserve name recognition here.

And it gets kind of tiresome driving around all the bombed out buildings, especially when you travel to another city and see and feel what vibrancy is about. The disconcerting thing about Detroit is that it once was the center of the world in an economic and even cultural sense. You would think there were vast remnants of that era. A onetime visitor might see and feel the skeleton which conjures up archetypal ruins a la the fabulous ruins of detroit. What can seem strange though, the more you spend time is the ghosts have gone. The result is emptiness.

So now I'm commuting twice a day up and down 8 mile and ending up in Warren. A new side of town for me. I realize something about Detroit, not to be flippant or negative. It's the model of our country's economy. The system is falling, some call it a recession, whatever. The big boys and the big boxes are in trouble much like the auto industry began falling in the 70s and 80s. When the system fell, people left, and people who stayed became hungry. Detroit demonstrates this.

There is a new economy emerging, one I am hopeful and eager to see grow. It's in Detroit, you gotta know and you gotta look, and that's what is fascinating. As the economy rises the ghosts will come back.

Today was the first day. I am driving a Scion on the whole 8 mile cross spectrum of Detroit. No longer commuting on the numbered freeways in and out of suburbia. The drives are usually where inspiration begins. I fathom I will be posting a lot of pics from the drive.

I am using the strategy of getting ahead by sacrifice and rising above the conditions. Stay tuned.

This article by Michael S. Malone calls for action by the US government to spawn development and entrepreneurship of Americans in the about to boom mobile market of small, poor, developing countries.

This is an interesting notion that the impoverished of the world will be connected by cell phones rather than the personal computer. Makes sense.

Yeah, the global economy is slowing, recessing, and completing its cycles. Though this is where the growth is. The playing field has changed. Involves everyone. Kudos to Malone point out we all need to be able to bring the footballs to the field.

I’m on my third pair of speakers for my laptop. I blew out my last pair as a result of bumping up the bass via last.fm. There’s buzz about the decline of social media but last.fm has me everyday, all day, motivating me to buy music from itunes or amazon or wherever. I have been schooled.


I started off on Pandora.com a while back, not a bad site, and it always provided nice tunes while I ate dinner. However if you type in an artist to create a radio station it wasn’t often before you heard repeats. And try some Detroit techno, Chicago house, or some Puffy Ami Yumi J-Soul- forget about it, you’d get nothing.


So I heard about last.fm. Tried the Puffy Ami Yumi test. You got J-Soul all day all genres and all types of artists. It led me down the way into minimal Japanese Avante Garde tracks, one after the other, found some cat named World’s End Girlfriend. Serene and inspired.


I tried the Detroit test, threw on some Carl Craig and Recloose, and eventually was led with some UR and Drexciya. DAMN! All of this is streaming and full length tracks.


So I gave it the Brazilian test. Threw on Gilberto Gil and I discovered Elis Regina. Falling in love with 1970s Brazilian ladies all over again for about the fourth time now.


Threw in Chain Reaction and I got Fluxion, Maurizio, Aril Brikha, and Vladislav Delay.


And my ultimate test which I haven’t gotten past. I’m stuck in dubland. Threw last.fm Augustus Pablo and I’m stoned cold listening to deep dub crates all day. The Heptones, John Clarke (who I hadn’t heard of- had to buy that cd), Sly and Dunbar, Jah Stitch, The Revolutionaries, on and on.


Last.fm is pretty slick. You can download a little free app that acts as a player and scans your itunes, figures your tastes and finds those who are likeminded individuals.


I’m here for a long time – I’m taten155. And don’t ask me about that Hannah Montanna on my playlist or the YMCA for that matter.

Twitter is out of control. It just celebrated its year anniversary and like so many innovative web 2.0 software apps that come out many (including myself) ask, "what's the point?" You hear those phrases like microblogging and the web going esp. I just signed up yesterday and I'm on it. As I type and numbers count down my alloted characters left I feel we've created some new form of haiku. There's an inherent poetic in the forced brevity. A lot out there is written about it and as corny as the esp thing is, I feel it, and I do see that this is where newsmedia is going. If you are a reporter or a media institution twitter is the real time.



Today I learned about twittervision and now my head is officially spinning. A world map, either flat or 3d, your preference and the map shifts around to display all the twits going on in the world in real time. All the world's languages pop up and the randomness is incredible. Humanity's consciousness is all laid out in front of you. Out of control. Inspiring.



twitter.com/hogpath

Her complexion had changed from a rugged stone map to a dark smooth earthen glow like the sea had finally completed its mission on a pebble beneath the fluorescent hospital bulb. I turned off my cellphone and chanted with Jim and Susie who were there side by side and the three of us, palms in prayer, chanted the daimoku of the Lotus Sutra. I looked to her face that no longer had the constantly beaming smile but had some uncommon calmness, some new comfort I’ve never really known or seen. Her chest and breath rose quickly, not sporadically, her lips would flutter. Susie said her noises of a reassuring groan were her chant and prayer. As the minutes ticked by I realized it to be true.


After the three of us did gongyo Jim and Susie left to share the daimoku to others as Miss Jackson always did.

I was alone with her for about 20 minutes. I chanted mostly. I could sense a black peace. There was no fear. There was no suffering. I was honored to be there. The sense of our different lives coming together in the quiet murmur of a hot hospital room on a cold February night with my chant and her breath focused me on our universal beating heart. Fifty years separated us, as did continents, countries, and cultures. The differences mean nothing. As the Gosho says, “it’s the heart that matters most”.


I recounted to Miss Jackson my recollections of her powerful smile that made all at ease and her wise silence. I remember her support, her scrapbooks, her delicately sewn pouches for prayer beads, and her leading the community of believers in origami instruction. I told her “I will never forget you Miss Jackson.” Her brows quivered and for the first time there was a quick pain on her face while she moaned. I realized she was completely there. I felt bad for changing the calmness but now realize it was her acknowledging my confusion and being humble for her powerful life effect. The causes have been done.


Before I left I turned on my cellphone and got Sensei’s guidance to read to her. It had been a while since I shed tears.



It read:

Buddhism teaches that life at each moment embraces all phenomena. This is the doctrine of a life-moment possessing 3,000 realms, which is the Lotus Sutra's ultimate teaching and Buddhism's essence. Because of the profound way our lives interact with people around us, it is vital that we reach out to others, that we be engaged with our environment and with our local community. A self-absorbed practice or theory without action is definitely not Buddhism.



Thank you Miss Jackson. I will never forget you. You have led me to be better…….and smile.

Click here for words. podcast 10. the economy

This past week I was in the bright and shadowed hills of San Francisco to walk the ubiquitous conference halls of MacWorld. Here is the Japa. Japa is mumble in Sanskrit.


The conference is a bit utopian. A second life-style gathering of Mac techs, obviously, but in their different tribes of Goths, geeks, a few hip hoppers, west cost intelligentsia prep, and the corporate denim gurus. I’ve come away inspired, not so much for the friendliness of the affair, the product releases, and the stuff learned, but more or less the immediate sense of community after flying 4 hours to get there. All these online social networks, blogs and podcasts are bringing us closer together in the real world to create codes of understanding, even if it’s an iphone and Apple logo. They seem to be working. There is a very pure and smart undercurrent manifesting itself with the help of linked technology. What no better place than San Francisco.


Surprisingly, a thread through the japa was a suggestion or comment of Obama. There is talk of this man in these circles. I was surprised how effortlessly it floated off others people’s lips and even mine. To be able to talk politics so openly with strangers because of an intuitive understanding of the headz (spelled H.E.A.D.Z) was refreshing and fills me with hope that yes, things are changing into a positive direction. As I trekked the hills and avenues of SF, a visitor, a guest, a remnant of a business man I felt no loneliness as I pondered these new found communities I don’ know yet as imagined or real. In a dark sushi bar in a basement with blue walls, dangling lights, jazz giant pictures, salsa music and electro I met a talkative tech sage who gave me guidance. Her story began with talk of seeing Obama coming out of a hotel with the security posse. Is there something going on? Is there a connection? It is both exciting and frightening to see a mobilization and movement residing in the presence of one man. We will see.....


And with all intention of staying out of the cults and blowing smoke…..the fellas over at twit.tv raised a great point. Apple TV will now let you download films and television programs alongside podcasts. Think about that- the hogpath podcast next to the last episode of Lost. We will see…….


Remember to dance for joy.

When I first heard of prosper.com I was immediately intrigued and even thought quasi-conspiracy theories as I’d never heard of it before. Based off their website they have had their share of press in Forbes and Business Week, however I’m surprised there isn’t a “word on the street” pulse. Then again, the topic of credit can be kind of dicey.



Prosper.com takes lending and credit to the next level by using a little bit of trust and truly opening up the market via the Internet. Simple- I need some money, you lend it to me, and I pay you back in installments with interest added based off a credit rating. What’s different this time is say I want $10,000. Instead of going to a bank or a credit card company, at Prosper.com you post what you need and it’s possible 200 different people are going to lend you $50. It’s very interesting and entertainingly voyeuristic to see what people are asking for. There’s the debt-laden person with terrible credit, all the way to the young startup who has a business plan together.



There’s also a flipside to all this. Now you can loan people money, at a $50 minimum, and check this…….collect the interest.

A few years back I went to an exhibit at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit focusing on notable modern graphic design. There was a section on The Walker Art Museum in Minneapolis, Target, and of course, Apple. Each section looked at the history and evolution of these different brands from a design perspective. It was cool.



A colleague of mine and I walked through the exhibit pretty quickly as we absorb design daily both consciously and unconsciously then we wandered around the lobby of CCS where there was a student exhibit showing. Some of it was dark and twisted and some of it flowery, but it had something the graphic design did not. My colleague pointed out how refreshing it was to look at art for art’s sake, rather than used as a tool to promote and advertise. Some of the darker paintings, complete with guns and blood from what I remember, had an honesty and soul. It was humble and personal. I felt a connection not only with the artist but an intimate part inside myself as I responded to my emotions created by the art.



Now, not only with the web, but with high-end inexpensive ink-jet technology, art is becoming more accessible, more prevalent, and more easily shared so we can all respond to the artist’s plea. Check out deviantart.com. It has the standard web community features but what is really innovative, is you can submit your art and also purchase art. It puts it in our hands, not the curators. You can choose from a postcard or a wall sized print, even a print on canvas. Cuddle up, this site is huge, you can spend hours on it. And come away inspired.