Bring It On

Paul Mabury put me onto this album while in Nashville last week. Lenny is cool. This new album is amazing. It Is Time For A Love Revolution. Check out a recent appearance on Letterman. Lyrics below.



I'm gonna walk my faith
Gonna raise my song
I'm gonna fight my battle
Gonna praise my Lord

It's getting heavy
But I'm ready
To take on this world and rock steady
So come on, bring it on

I'm gonna face my demons
Gonna turn them down
I'm gonna keep on moving
Gonna make my sound

It's getting heavy
But I'm ready
To take on this world and rock steady
So come on, bring it on

Bryce & Kym in LA!!! Part #1

The Dancer

Stare at this image...

The Right Brain vs Left Brain test ... do you see the dancer turning clockwise or anti-clockwise?

If clockwise, then you use more of the right side of the brain and vice versa.

Most of us would see the dancer turning anti-clockwise though you can try to focus and change the direction; see if you can do it.

LEFT BRAIN FUNCTIONS uses logic detail oriented facts rule words and language present and past math and science can comprehend knowing acknowledges order/pattern perception knows object name reality based forms strategies practical safe

RIGHT BRAIN FUNCTIONS uses feeling "big picture" oriented imagination rules symbols and images present and future philosophy & religion can "get it" (i.e. meaning) believes appreciates spatial perception knows object function fantasy based presents possibilities impetuous risk taking

Courtesy www.news.com.au/perthnow.

Superbowl Ads

Superbowl Sunday is almost here. I'm not a huge fan of American Football, but I am a fan of the ads that come out at this time of the year. Here's a good one:

I Heart New York

It's been a bit quiet on El Rancho of late! I guess we're all too busy to blog. At least that's my excuse. Lots of exciting things happening here in the US of A for me - more on that in the coming weeks. For now, I've just returned from New York City, where I spent a week with the parents, who were visiting from Perth. Words cannot describe how this city makes me feel, so here's a few pictures.

"...to those of us who came from places where no one had heard of Lester Lanin, and Grand Central Station was a Saturday radio program, where Wall Street and Fifth Avenue and Madison Avenue were not places at all but abstractions (“Money,” and “High Fashion,” and “The Hucksters”), New York was no mere city. It was instead an infinitely romantic notion, the mysterious nexus of all love and money and power, the shining and perishable dream itself."

- Joan Didion, Goodbye to All That.

Cooties

Junky Car Club

If you haven't yet had a chance, check out the Junky Car Club site. It's a great project that's attracting a lot of interest. Phil Baker posted about it on his blog recently. The concept of living with less to give more. A very counter-cultural idea here in Southern California! Drive a cheap car, no payments, use your money for good causes. Anyway, we shot some videos a while back - here's one with a couple of my good friends, Mike (Junky Car Club president) and Kai.

 

Las Vegas

Over the weekend I spent a few days in Vegas. Ethur has partnered with an organisation called Corps of Compassion, feeding homeless and at-risk kids in the city. All proceeds from the 2008 Junky Car Club calendar are supporting this cause. There are more than 4,000 homeless kids in Las Vegas. Corps (sounds like 'cause') visits schools on Friday afternoons and hands out bags of food so the kids have something to eat over the weekend. It was a great experience handing out food and meeting the kids. Here are a few highlights from the weekend:

what happens in Vegas... stays... on El Rancho

at the Corps of Compassion warehouse :: FOX News did a story about the calendar

staff from two of the schools we visited

the streets of Vegas most people don't see

a couple of the kids who benefit from the program

MGM Grand

all the cities of the world in one convenient location



admiring the Bellagio fountains Oceans 11 style

I Saw What I Saw

I've never listened to Sara Groves before, that is until someone sent me this clip. Sara's new album has just been released here in the US and contains this amazing song called I Saw What I Saw, based on her time in Rwanda. I love this clip. Its use of textures and handwritten lyrics is very effective. It really captures how I felt while I was there last year, and reminds me how much I want to go back.

Twittering away

Let me just explain the little Twitter box on the right hand side of the page. It's kinda like the status updates in Facebook. I just update it from time to time with thoughts, or whatever I might be up to. You'll also notice updates from some friends and other generally cool people. Lesson over.

Speed, marker... Action!

One of the projects I'm working on at Ethur is Deadly Viper Character Assassins. It's one of the hottest books I've ever seen :: it's about encouraging leaders to live with radical integrity and radical grace. We're also releasing a DVD in November. On Thursday, we shot a series of talks with Mike Foster and Jud Wilhite in a Japanese Garden setting in LA. We had a lot of fun and got to work with the guys from DOT+CROSS. They're the creative geniuses behind the Nooma DVDs. Here's a few shots from the day:

Sonny behind the camera :: On the set

Mike and I going over lines :: Mike and Kai guarding the entrance ninja style

Quiet on the set!

Me :: Sonny, Mike, Jud and Corey


The book

A Swift Kick to the Fortune Cookies

The Deadly Viper Character Assassins launch at the Catalyst Conference was a huge success. The book and website are attracting a lot of attention, which is good news. If you haven't checked out the website yet, then click here. Visit the online store and buy a book!

Another exciting part of the project is the Deadly Viper DVD, which you can pre-order online. We're shooting a series of short films in LA later this month. We'll be working with the talented guys at Dot+Cross. They've done a lot of the Nooma DVDs and other cool stuff. Check out their mini showreel below.