Nothing compares to the soul inspiring grandeur and quiet beauty of artificial generated landscapes.

Earlier this week, my friend and fellow designer, Enrique, stumbled across this interesting little piece of freeware called Terragen. The purpose of this diabolically titled program is to allow one to generate… let’s call them terrains… with one’s computer. Hmmm….

The program’s results harken back to the early days of Bryce* but, without the demand on the user to understand 3D wire-framing. The two of us have now spent the better part of a week trying to wrap our collective mind around the in’s and out’s of Terragen and explore its potential. So far we’re pretty self-impressed with the results. It helps to have Photoshop to make more realistic landscapes but, the program is still pretty easy to use as-is. Version 2 is currently in the works and it remains to be seen as to whether Terragen will remain freeware for much longer. It runs on both PCs and MACs so give it a shot or, at the very least, check out their gallery of more accomplished landscape artists.

(*For the non-design geeks in the audience, Bryce was 3D landscaping program that was popular in the early days — i.e., pre-Pixar.)

Posted by Thom at 10:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

While Beth’s mother was on a business trip to the Philippines, it seems that her father gave birth to a very furry, 14 lbs. little boy named Seamus. While it is a wonder how Don kept this a secret from everyone, what is more significant about this blessed event is that it takes the heat off of us for producing little things of our own (furry or otherwise). Don’s new little friend is a Cairn Terrier and hails from heathered moors of Scottland. This is perfectly appropriate seeing as the Mannings themselves are a Scotch-Irish breed.

Welcome to the family, Seamus.

Posted by Thom at 10:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

My good friend and Jeff Award winning director, Nat Swift, has just opened his latest directorial opus with the Midwestern premiere of The Sweetest Swing in Baseball. In case you missed it, I've had a long standing link to his blog which followed the shows developement up until previews. Now, the show's open. Forgive me as I steal the show description straight from the website: “The Sweetest Swing in Baseball follows the story of Dana Fielding, a successful artist whose latest exhibition flops along with her personal life. To dig her self out of her crisis, she is admitted to a psychiatric hospital and seeks inspiration from the unlikeliest of sources — the bad boy of America's favorite pastime, Darryl Strawberry.”

Nat is an ensemble member of the Eclipse Theatre Company, a Chicago based company who has gained recognition through their commitment to a single playwright with each season. This is a very bold approach for any theater company because the run the risk of committing to a potentially shitty season. Good thing for them (and their audience) they know what they’re doing and, they have a long list of accolades and awards to prove it.

Nat has been with Eclipse for almost eight years and, he has been involved with a lot of strong theater because of that relationship. The Sweetest Swing in Baseball runs through April 23rd at the Victory Gardens Theater. If you’re in the neighborhood, check it out.

Posted by Thom at 9:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

No, this is not a reference to the crappy video game from the 90s that tried to pass off geography lessons as fun. This is a reference to our good friend Tim Shriver whom we haven’t seen in almost 3 years. It’s not as sinister as I make it sound, though. After our wedding in July 2003, Tim went off to Morocco for two years with the Peace Corps as his host. Certainly, a more admirable thing than I have ever done in my life. The only problem is that Tim’s commitment to the Corp officially ended in December. It seems that 2 years as an ex-pat wasn’t enough for him and that Tim’s taken him carte blanche to continue gallivanting abroad will the rest of us are left missing him and toiling away with our hum drum lives.

What brings this commentary about, you ask? Saturday was Tim’s birthday. We wish him well.

Posted by Thom at 9:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I know this covering old ground but, I have re-launched my Japan photography website. I was never happy with the design of it and always had the intention of giving it a make over. But just so you don't think I did this for purely selfish reasons, I have added roughly twice as many pictures for your viewing pleasure. So if you couldn't get enough of our madcap adventures in Japan, you can enjoy twice as much fun* with our new and improved Japan 2.0.

(*Twice as much not guaranteed. Individual results may vary.)

Posted by Thom at 10:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The husband of a friend and office cohort of mine is a wine wholesaler. As if he doesn't work enough, he has now decided to share his knowledge of vintage and grape with the public. He and a partner have opened a wine bar down in the Bowery called Jadis.

I had a chance to check the place out over the week and I have to say, I'm very impressed. They have really nailed down the atmosphere of the bar. At first glance, you immediately think 'wine cellar.' But, I don't want to mislead – the place is warm and cozy with tables and couches and, the music is quiet enough to have an intimate conversation. Definitely the type of place that friends can call their 'meeting place.' But, the real reason you go to wine bar is, of course, the wine. They have impressive selection (including a sampling of my favorite wine, Riesling (yes it’s fruity, I know)) and they can make great recommendations.

In short, if you find yourself in the New York Bowery, I strongly recommend checking Jadis.

Posted by Thom at 10:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

After 31 years, I learned one of life's valuable lessons today. One so important, so quintessential to our existence, I found it my duty to share with everyone . . .

How to fold a fitted sheet.

Posted by Thom at 7:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

. . . oh, won't you guide my sleigh tonight?

Like that? So do I. I got that walking around my office at 1am with my shoes off.

I was working late and my dogs started hurtin' me. At least they thought they weres. Especially the one on the outside — he was stepin' out of line, that one. So I took him aside. We had ourselves a little talk. Now he's the one's got somethin' to hurt about.

Actually, I walked into a counter.

Posted by Thom at 10:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)