Amaze'd

Not sure how this slipped past me...
Looks like SF circa 94-00. Makes me miss living up there...



Apparently made by the infamous Amaze...

Punching walls is not an option although it should be

The madness has set in and the stress level is at an all time high. We are leaving for California on Sunday and the moving truck comes tomorrow. We're in pretty good shape with our stuff being packed up but I am a worrier and until all of our stuff is in the truck and on the road I will be a stress ball. My usual coping mechanism's have been halted by myself, due to both lack of funds and the need to have a clear head dealing with all this stuff. It has been nice for a change but goddamn I may kill someone if they say the wrong thing at an inopportune time.
Even though we are in good shape packing wise it still feels like there are a ton of loose ends hanging out there. I'm getting real tired of people telling me to relax and that it will be ok. That may be the case but until you are in my shoes please shut the hell up. You are not helping.
On Sunday we begin our drive to Long Beach. Hopefully I do not lose my mind before then...

Talk to you then.

Back to the beach

What do you do when plan's fall through? What if those plan's had been made when one was not in the proper mindset/emotional state to make said decision?

a) Stay the course and hope things will work out
b) Regroup and look at all your options

The answer was b.

The decision did not come easily as we had invested a quite a lot to move out here with the full intention of staying.  Money, family stuff, money, jobs, and overall long term happiness were weighed very carefully. Pro's and cons lists were made. Sleep was lost. Stressful times. In the end SF and I weighed our options and kept coming back to one thing; moving back to Long Beach. Crazy right?!
We are both very excited and can't wait to get started on our journey back. We are in the midst of packing up everything we own for the second time in a year for another cross country move. As of today I am sitting surrounded by boxes, packing tape and bubble wrap trying to tie up any loose ends while working out what is needed when we get out to the LBC. SF was able to convince her job to allow her to telecommute which is amazing since we really need the $$ as this year was extremely difficult financially as well as emotionally for us.
We battled and battled but never seemed to be able to get proper footing here in Philly. From job leads that led nowhere to false promises of opportunities it was a constant beat down emotionally. It has taken it's toll. Somehow SF was able to motivate herself to get the dissertation monkey off her back and finish her Phd. Amazing accomplishment for anyone but for her to be able to get it done under these circumstances is beyond belief. Plus it was so good the idea of it being turned into a book is an option in the future. She also has been offered a full time teaching gig at Cal State Fullerton where she has previously been teaching. Great potential for the future as those jobs just do not come long everyday.
We were able to get an apartment in our old complex. Perfect as we loved the complex, had great neighbors and were in an amazing area of Long Beach.
There will be some challenges along the way as expected but in the end I believe we made the right decision for us to have long term happiness.
Lot's to look forward to though; Hole Mole, Cherry Park sessions, the weather, close proximity to the beach, and above all the cultural atmosphere of Long Beach. Home sweet home!

What is on the other side of the horizon

Today was a pretty good day. It was the 1st day of summer 2011, although it has felt like summer around here for the past month and half or so. 

Today also happened to be"official" Go Skateboarding Day. This is celebrated at events in cities around the world. Some events are sponsored by local shops and smaller companies at the local skatepark while others are supported/sponsored by larger skate (mainly shoe due financial ability) companies as well as mainstream sponsors. I personally celebrated at two local parks.

Some argue that everyday should be GSD (as it will be referred to from here on) since you are out skating everyday (yeah right) anyway and the only people who benefit from this "holiday" are companies like Vitawater, Monster, and other such entities looking for a larger share of the youth market including skate companies. Now, it is true, to a certain extent and using the argument "Where were these companies when skating was broke?" you can see that side of it but I think the young skaters and the potential future skaters are the ones who truly benefit not to mention all the old dudes who aren't trying to run from cops at real spots will have skate plazas and skateparks now. More parks, plazas, increased parental support, more awareness from city officials (in turn more skateparks) and better products are a few examples. 

I guess I just went through all that to say I like the idea of GSD but everyday is GSD to most skaters, myself included... but we will take the parks, skate plaza's and better product. Oh yeah and we still bomb hills.

I have been skating a bit more lately as well as riding the bike. Starting to feel more and more like my old self. It's funny how you can lose yourself along the way. 

Feelin' this line especially the back 180 over the sign. Big snap! Can't wait to see what else he has crackin...

Enjoy this masterpiece from Magenta Skateboards. It basically features the SF hills. Enjoy and the go bomb a hill. 

Magenta's SF Hill Street Blues from Magenta Skateboards on Vimeo.

Injured Reserve

I am back on the injured list. This time due to a ganglyon cyst on my right wrist. It has been exactly 2 weeks since the surgery and I am still pretty hurting. My hand is a bit less swollen but it hurts just typing this (insert world's smallest violin here).


The timing is pretty crappy, not that anytime is a good time for surgery, but I just finished building a nice little skate box. I have been wanting one for years and am super excited to skate it. Probably not gonna happen anytime soon with the healing process to take 4-6 weeks with stitches coming out in 10 days.

I did however go out and purchase the Real video, Since Day One. Definitely a must see! Had a nice little Percodan premiere party at the house.

Just a little update. Hopefully once the swelling goes down I can get some better content up.

For the past few years I have been really interested calligraphy and sticker making. I started making and putting up stickers a few years ago and am constantly trying to perfect my handstyle. There is no correct style, only shitty ones and good ones. Hopefully mine falls into the latter category. I however will not be posting any of mine up on this blog so I can maintain my anonymity. Laugh if you will but one of the best feelings is walking around and seeing a sticker I put up years ago still hanging out and knowing that maybe only 1 person in the world knows who created it and took the risk of putting up on public property.
I am a participant in the Bomit Sticker exchange. Pretty cool little program in which you send in a bunch of stickers and you will receive back a ton of other peoples stickers. Only have to pay for the postage. Some are handmade, alot are Obey type, marketing style stickers but it was all worth it for the Faust, Ader, and UWP (straight from Philly!) slaps. Below is a sampling from the two packs that I have received.

 More Faust love below.

Almighty style master Twist. SF's finest!

Till next time.

Newness

As you can tell I have switched up the look of the blog a bit. Nothing too craze but I felt it needed a facelift. Background art by Jose Parla. Been really feeling his stuff as well as Luca Barcellona, Jon One, and always looking at Fauster and Surer (Sure was killed in Afghanistan late last year I believe).

Has anyone else listened to the Travis Barker (I'm pretty sure a few years ago I would have never even written his name in my blog) album, Can the Drummer get Some? It is surprisingly good with guest appearances from many of your favorite rappers. Only real problem I have is that he has a song with Steve Aoki...I can't stand that dude and wish I could kick his ass to sleep. What! You thought I wasn't gonna diss that kook. Ha!

It is the end of March now and I'm completely over this extended cold we are having. To keep me looking forward I built a skate box with dad this past weekend. The liquid nails is just setting under the angle iron and the it's ready to skate. I'm not even sure when the last time I skated. Will have to start slow and get the timing and strength back in my legs. But goddamn if I'm not excited to get the 1st grind on that thing.


As always I have a few links for you check out.

Palace Skateboards - maybe the best ting in skateboarding right now. Straight outta London this small knit but super rad team just put out the clip below. Bun a zoot and watch!

Palace in NYC!                                       

Commonwealth Stacks - Reese Forbes teams up with Michael Leon to form this brand. Sick team with Dani Lebron, Cameo Wilson, Sebo Walker and Reese of course. Art direction is super duper!


Andre and Andre - Neva Seen - You thought were getting out of here without a song. This has been going hard in my brain for about a week now. Nicky T all up in your area. Mac Dre Rest in Power.

Until next time.

Real talk.

Below is a link to an interview with Bobby Puleo. Bobby rides for Traffic Skateboards, Venture and VKTM (his brand).
Not only is Bobby opinionated and blunt but he is also knee deep in conspiracy theories. Exactly what skateboarding is missing in these days of cookie cutter Billy Backlips and Scotty Skateparks training for the next XDewMaloofLeague contest. 
If you are a fan of his or you just like his skating, you should take the 5-10 minutes to read this interview. Then watch a couple of his video parts, check some classic pics (esp the switch heel flip in SF! Peep those kicks son!) and go buy his board!


Bobby Puleo interview

INFMS video part

Traffic part

The weather has shifted and autumn is in full effect.

I am still unemployed...at least Sandra got a job. She now works in a large law firm in the city. Not a great job by any means but does provide health insurance and a paycheck. Both of which are sorely needed at this time. She seems to be getting settled in to living here pretty nicely. Even has a bus pass!

Now I am running all the errands, grocery shopping, laundry and cleaning. As you can imagine it does'nt get done as well as when Sandra does it...Have not been skating at all. Totally unmotivated. I have been out on my bike some. Also have been walking the city when I have the chance.

But I have been keeping myself busy with some side projects. I have been participating in Alphabattle 2.0. It is a online typography contest where each month a different letter of the alphabet is the subject. So far I have submitted a few letters. I am working on T right now and will post when finished.

Big shout to the East Coast!

Had my first job interview today. It was for a design position at a small weekly newspaper. Turns out the job offered was putting all the ads together and laying them out. Would have been perfect except it was apart time position without a regular schedule. So in the end after we finished up the interview it was asked if I would be interested in working as a freelancer on specific projects. I told them I would most definitely be interested. Unfortunately it would not be worth it to work a part time job I would have to drive to Chester for. Oh I forgot to mention it's in a hood straight out of The Wire complete with roaming leashless pit bulls (seriously!), burned out buildings, lurkers, baseheads, and out in the open drug dealing. This was all on the same block as the offices. Chester is no joke.
It was a good experience to have the interview and go through the process again. It's been a looong time.
 
Went out for a nice bike ride with my brother and his friend Kris. We rode the bike path all around the Art Museum and back up the West River Drive (no cars allowed on Sat and Sun!). Even though it was raining the whole time it was a good ride and a nice way to end another weekend filled with vodka...

Going to the Phillies game on Sat night! Beers and baseball with friends. Good times guaranteed!

Listen to Kool Keith!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkPsYvOgTtI

Back from the dead...

It has been along time but I am back in effect.
We made it to Philly with all our belongings and animals. Drove all the way across the country in 4.5 days with Radley and Stevie in the car. No tickets, no real drama. Kind of amazing if you ask me.
So far we are really enjoying living in the city. We found a place right across the street from the Art museum. It has been so hot however that we have mainly been inside enjoying the a/c. Not to be a pussy or anything but it is the hottest summer on record I believe. We are entering the 5th straight week of temps in the 90's.

So hopefully I will be able to post a bit more often now that I have my workspace set up.

Until then I leave you with a song.

Recent School Projects

Below is a link to some of my recent school projects. All responses and critiques are welcome and appreciated. Unless you are just being a pretentious asshole...then you can fuck right off.

http://www.scribd.com/mattlipschutz

Hope you like some of what I have here. Soon I will update more and will have a dedicated website for my work, resume and portfolio. Until then...

Tues is the new Mon in the blog world

It's now the second week of March and the search for an apartment in Philly is in full swing. I've been in touch with a real estate person to aid in the search since we are 3000 miles away. It seems like we will be able to get what we want (pretty much) in a nice walkable Center City location. The only real deal breakers would be no A/C and no W/D in the unit. The summer is entirely too hot and humid not to have a/c and the convenience of the in unit w/d dryer cannot be overstated.
Out here in the LA area we have a very helpful rental site called Westsiderentals.com. You pay $75 and instantly have access to much better listings than what you see in the papers and the internet sites such as rent.com, apartmentfinder.com, etc. Does anybody out there know of any such site in the Philly area? I know that working with the realtor will cost more than that but as of right now I am unsure how much that will end up costing. Any help from my people out there would be greatly appreciated.

Now back to the fun stuff. I had a pretty good weekend even though it rained most of the time. We got out at night and went over to our favorite watering hole, The Red Room. A great place to drink, watch the occasional skate vid, scope on the cute girls or just sit and talk junk on everyone around who we deem uncool...my personal favorite past time. Also I was able to get out and ride my bike a couple times. I would have been skating but it was wet most of the time, and I was a bit hungover. Never a good combo.

This week has started off pretty well. I received a surprise in the mail from EDD, 4 checks that I have been waiting on for what seems like forever. Plus one of them had a continued claim form so that means at least one more check. I need this $$$ badly. I got habits...

As I have said on here a bunch lately, I have been skating quite a bit when my body feels up to it. It is great but now I remember how fast you burn through boards, wheels and shoes. The shoes part I have covered, working for DVS/Lakai for 6 years has left me a stockpile of shoes. I would prefer to run another brand after the way I was let go but I can deal by painting over the logo's. Now boards and wheels on the other hand are a different story. I just put together a set up last night that consisted of a previously skated Furnace shop deck and some no name wheels I have had laying around for years. Not exactly a "buttery" set up...at least I have new Thunders. Enough bitching and moaning...at least I have a set up.

As per usual I have a couple videos for you to check out.

1st up in Chris Mulhern's new video entitled "This Time Tomorrow". I am really looking forward to seeing this when it comes out. Should have ton's of Philly footage as Chris is either from the city or lives there and films there now. I encourage you to buy it not download it as I have had some communication with him and he seems like a good dude. Without further adue here is the trailer.



Next up is the upcoming film from Blueprint Skateboards entitled "Making Friends with the Colour Blue". If you have ever seen anything from the Blueprint fellas then you know this will be one not to miss. Parts from all the team including, Chewy Cannon (personal fav of mine), Neil Smith, Nick Jensen, Danny Brady, newest team memeber Marty Murawski and the rest of the squad. Grimy London and European spots mixed in with Dan Magee's filming and editing. Sure to not dissapoint. Check it out and then go skate a gravely bank to ledge.



That's it for today folks. Until next time...Late.

Now I've seen the errors of my ways, said goodbye to all my happy days

Have you ever heard a song and been mesmerized by the beat, chorus, or sample. Of course you have, unless you are one of those weirdos who doesn't like music. Well lately I have been completely obsessed with the song below and the eerie chorus sample. I love trying to search out and find the original song to see who it was. I always wonder when and how people come across these relatively obscure songs. I have done my fair share of diggin' for beats when I lived in SF and had access to great record stores. These days since Amoeba is not a 10 minute bus ride away, I am stuck using the interwebs. Lyric search is the best way to do this. But it does take away the random finds that you come across just by looking. This one took a minute to find since it's super obscure. It's from a band called Atomic Rooster. They were a "prog" rock group from the late 70's - early 80's. Ginger Baker actually played drums for them at one point in time. The song is called "Never to Lose", and the chorus sampled is super eerie and works absolutely perfect for the song. The song is called Death or Retirement by Psycho Realm member Sick Jacken with help from Tooker TKO, 2Mex from Shapeshifters and B-Real from Cypress Hill. Basically it is a song about graff life. Listen and let me know what you think.




As per usual I have another clip for you. Today it is for a flick coming out of NYC called Empire. This had me at the start when they decided to use the Cro-Mags as the song. Peep it and go ride in traffic!

Bomb Hills

So here I sit on my break from class. It is a slightly cool, rainy winter morning in So Cal. I just finished presenting my latest project. This one was a personal artist statement done in InDesign (makes sense as this is an InDesign class). I think it came out pretty well. I do plan on posting some of my work up here in the near future.
Belated Happy New Year's to those of you who check in on this blog. So far I have had a pretty nice 2010. School is going well, we are already getting packed up for our big move back to Philly, and I have been skating again. Man, the 1st couple times back on the board were rough. Timing, balance, confidence all shot to hell. But as I kept going they have slowly started to come back. I was even able to get some letters on Blake (RedRoom!) in S.K.A.T.E. Then I ran out of flatground tricks. Never had the deepest bag but some of them are coming back...Also I have been out riding my bike again regularly. Nice to feel as motivated as I do these days. Oh yeah back to running the ankle brace as well...ah to be old.
In other random news, I reconnected with some long lost friends from SF State, thanks to the magic that is Facebook. It was rad to know they are still out there alive and well. What up Keith, Rawls and Cree!

Here are a few things that have me motivated to get out.

Kyle Nicholson - Philly's young street star.



Faust - handstyles for days. Reminds me that I need stickers.



Massan - MASH SF's resident smooth operator. Also has a dope photo blog. Check and then go bomb a hill.

Fire, Fire

It's Sat morning and I am up and alert early. I just finished watching the new Zero video "Strange World". Pretty typical Zero production, lots of big rails, gaps and single shots. Not really my cup of tea as far as skating is concerned but I have to respect the gnar factor.

Yesterday I watched the 1st of the Slap Pals questions with Ricky Oyola. His answers are a true reflection of who he is as a person. No fakin here. No holding back and no side stepping. He was "the" skater I looked up to as a kid and still do to this day. I remember being at Sub Zero getting some shoes and was about to skate the 15 or so blocks to LOVE. Rick comes in says what's up to everybody in the shop, asks if I am heading to LOVE and to come skate the "route' with him. To this day it was the most amazing thing I have seen in person (although watching Chris Senn bomb Delores St in SF from the top and ollieing through the intersections was insane). He was going Mach 11 doing kick flips in traffic, ollieing double man hole covers in intersections, switch flips, and this was the warm up on the way to LOVE. Needless to say I was about a block behind the whole way just pushing to keep up, ollieing the occasional curb, manhole spot. What did that have to with watching Strange World you ask...not much.

Tonite Sandra and I are going to the Improv in Hollwood for some comedy. She got the tickets for my birthday. We both the love the Improv and stand up. Should be a great time.

Fire, Fire

Fire, Fire

Well it's been quite some time since the last time I updated this here site. As it stands not really a whole lot has happened since the last update. I finished another class and started Life Drawing. 1 class in so far. It is interesting to sit and draw a body for 5 hours at a crack. Luckily for me the instructor is super cool. He plays music and we pretty much sit around and draw.
As for the elephant still in the room...I still have no job. But I did win a battle with EDD to continue my unemployment benefits. Fuckers.

I have been sick for almost a week and a half now and am starting to get real annoyed. It is the sort of sinus infuction that lingers for days. Can only do the bare minimum of anything before I get tired. Plus the amazing the substances that creep out of me after another TB coughing fit. But on the plus side I get to walk around in a Tylenol Sinus/Dayquil haze...always a bonus.

Before I got sick I had been riding my bike a ton. Can't wait to get back on. Even thinking about picking up the board again...I always seem to be saying that but then shine it at the last minute. I think mostly due to not having a partner in crime anymore. No fun to always skate by yourself.

So here we are.

Let's end this with a few things I am feeling and some shit I ain't feeling

Shit I'm feeling

Jamie T- Sticks and Stones - so sick!
Riding my bike - when healthy of course.
All the graff I have been seeing lately.
The Philadelphia Eagles!


Shit I ain't feeling
Christmas music
Rent
Charter Communications - WORST cable company ever.
Being sick

Hopefully I can continue to update this a bit more frequently.

See ya later.

Big time news!

Well first off I have some big time news to announce. Sandra and I have decided to move to Philly next year when I am finished with school. This is big news as I am heading back to the city that shaped me and Sandra is moving to not only a new city but also all the across the country and away from her mom. I have moved like this before when I went to SF for school but this is slightly different as we need to have jobs and an apartment before heading out. When I went to SF all I had were the dorms. We all know how that turned...poorly.

I have been slacking super hard on this blog and intend to get back on it now that we have made this decision. Lately I have been getting back into skating again. I know that's all I write about pretty much but if you skate you know what it's like. I went out on Sun for awhile to push and see what kind of legs I still had. It was fun as always but slightly boring since I was by myself. Flatground can be really fun when you are playing skate with friends but by yourself it can be a bit tedious. May have to actually venture out and talk to people in order to have people to skate with. I am trying to be more friendly.

I am now into my 1st module of Illustrator in school and completed my 1st project last night. I designed 4 separate hangtags. They came out ok, not perfect but I am still learning. During the crit I was nervous but somehow I made it through relatively unscathed.

I ordered the video below a few weeks back. Definitely worth the wait. London has a really fresh scene. Rugged skaters, even ruggeder spots. Watch and enjoy. Then go skate some fucked up spots.

Hold Tight London
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArKp8cL_RLY

PJ

Wow.
That's all I can really say. That and check the last trick.


PJ Ladd Battle Commander

http://www.theberrics.com/dailyopspost.php?postid=1273

Slippin into the couch

Been slippin' on this for a minute.
School has been busy. I finished color theory and now am onto typography. I finished my 1st project and have begun the process of comping fonts. Basically freehand drawing the specific fonts only using the pica scale for measurement. Challenging to say the least.

Not much skating has been going down but I have been out riding my bike a few times. Actually just got back from a quick ride downtown and back up the beach path. On my way past downtown I stopped off at LB Fixed Gear to check out some bullhorn bars. Too pricey. Anybody have some 36cm bullhorns they want to part with cheaply? Or some old drops that I can chop? Little help people, c'mon.

Below are some of the finished projects from my color theory class plus the 1st project from typography. Any comments or criticism welcome.

Sin piece is colored pencil on paper. Drawn from picture Sandra took in the Neon graveyard in Vegas.


Needle is also from color theory. It is radiograph pen on paper. This was my favorite piece I made in the class.


Bounce - 1st project from type. Descriptive text. Pencil and pen on paper.




Enjoy this video from Ill Bill.

My Uncle - Ill Bill