The Substance - these are some of my recollections and thoughts regarding things that are somehow connected to me. You can see my thoughts on other random stuff by visiting The Thoughts page. Please excuse any crude language that you might come across.
This was my first trial and error session using my Nikon D5000 and trying to make a time lapse movie. The next attempt should show a significan improvement.
Two days ago I found out a friend of mine committed suicide, it really caught me by surprise because he was always outgoing and well liked by everyone that knew him. I don't think anyone that knew him could think of a negative thing to say about him because he always had a positive vibe and was more than willing to help others. So when I heard the news I was shocked that someone who seemed happy and willing to take on all the challenges that were put before him, could be feeling so low that he would be willing to take his own life. It made me wonder how long he had been feeling bad about life and who else I know that could be feeling the same way. This event has left me wondering if there was anything I or anyone else could have done. What if I had invited him to Thanksgiving? What if I called him to see if he wanted to grab dinner or go to a movie? What if I just called to ask him how life was going? I'll never know whether something so simple could have prevented what occurred, but I will always wish that I had asked.
I was just looking at Rick's Facebook page, I was checking out all the nice comments people were posting. Everyone had kind things to say about him, about how he'll be missed and how much he meant to them. It brought a smile to my face to see all these kind words and to know that the smile I have is shared by all that knew Rick. However, at the same time it saddened me because it took such a tragic event for all of us to remember how much we appreciated our friend and how often we take for-granted our friends and loved ones. I'm sending this to all of you because I appreciate you and want to share my appreciation with you. I encourage all of you to share your own appreciation with all the special people in your lives because you never know, it could be just enough to save someone's life one day.
For most, this is a happy time of year when people bond and families come together to celebrate the holidays . . . for some, this is the loneliest time of the year. So, please take a moment to contact all the people that play a role in your life, even if it's a simple e-mail or phone call. If you have trouble thinking of your own words then feel free to forward this e-mail and let them know you're thinking about them.
I'll miss you Rick, you were a good friend to all that knew you.
Photo by Ferguson PhotographyI'll be heading out to New York September 6-10, I didn't think I was going to make it out there this year. I was supposed to go in March and May for some events that I was booking music for, but both things fell through at the last minute. This trip should be cool, I'll be meeting with some ad agencies that I met with last year when I went on a marketing tour with 3Dar. During this trip I will be presenting some of our new work. Check out some of the new work here.
Let me know if you're in the area and want to meet up. I'll be staying in the Upper East Side, this will be a nice change and give me a chance to hang out in a different area since I normally stay around midtown or SOHO. Hopefully the trip is a success and will lead to more trips to NY.
Hard Rock in Hollywood, FLSo lately the question that seems to be circulating amongst friends, musicians, and venues is "Is Steve Still Alive?" The answer . . . Yes, I seem to be alive. I haven't been seen as much lately because I've spent about 2 months this year in Argentina and about another 2 months between New York, San Francisco, and Texas working on both music and other various projects. I am now back in town and will be reorganizing a few things within Inner Voyage Entertainment, as well as continuing to grow my other venture with the 3Dar VFX Studio out of Buenos Aires.
I just came across some old videos of the band that were taken back in 2005. This is us playing Seven Nation Army at On Broadway, Phil had to play drums in the beginning because I had to take a piss.
So I'm sitting here in Santa Monica at a Coffee Bean on the corner of Santa Monica Blvd and 2nd which I will now call "Schizo Corner." For some reason at approximately 4:35PM all the schizophrenics seem to come out. The corner has 5 or 6 people standing there, they're all talking, but they are all talking to themselves. It's quite interesting because this is a nice part of town with nice normal looking people and out of nowhere the schizos appear.
Here's an ambient video project we (www.3dar.com/vfx) did for Hornitos Tequila a few months ago. The project was done in collaboration with my friends at Mirrorball.