Every year on the 4th of July I like to tune into Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating contest at Coney Island. Is it because I’m a fan of competitive eating? No. Do I love watching people repulsively shove dogs down their gullet? Absolutely not. I don’t know what it is but there’s just something about the event that’s worth a yearly watch.

There are plenty of characters to make fun of from Eater X to the Notorious B.O.B. It’s hilarious to see how seriously they take it and it’s humorous to watch a group of small-time competitors compete in an event they have no chance of winning. It’s like golf used to be when Tiger was on the course. Chesnut and Kobyashi are so far ahead it isn’t even a competition.

The rest of the year, however, not even the WWE is below competitive eating on the stupidity scale. But apparently there’s even a league for competitive- it’s called Major League Eating! The fact that I didn’t even know there was a major league of eating until this year wreaks of a setup.

If Kobayashi has been the McGwire of competitive eating then Joey Chesnut is the Sosa. They’re really in the competitive spotlight in the moment, but they’re a joke as soon as the it shifts away from their “sport.” In effect they’re in the spotlight for 10 minutes, as long as it takes them to inhale 20,000 calories. After that they are barely remembered for 364 days.

The alleged “hold-out” of Kobayashi this year meant he didn’t compete. This allowed for an easy win for the grossest hot dog eater in history, Mr. Chesnut. After the “match” there was some token sports-competition-like trash talking from Chesnut about the manhood of Kobayashi which incited a slight chuckle from me. Is this competition really even competitive? Is it even a sport? Is it even worthy of trash talk? It seemed silly to me and since the 10 minutes were over, I turned off the TV.

That was my loss apparently as afterwards reports of Kobayashi rushing the stage and his subsequent arrest began to show up in the footnotes of sports news stories. It’s barely even worth space in the footnotes, but it was enough to get Major League Eating on the minds of a handful of sports fans.

Google it. It exists. They even have a decent looking website.

I think Kobayashi and his “Free Kobi” t-shirt and hold out were more than staged. We all know the economy is tough. Even big time sports organizations in major sports leagues like the NBA are signing big dollar deals tentatively. How much money is there to be made for a competitive eater? They should be stuffing all the cash they can into their mouths while they have the chance.

Any money Kobayashi makes is more than enough. I see no warrant for him to hold out in his sport, especially in the Daytona 500 of his pastime. That’s why I believe it was staged.

I imagine the big wigs of the MLE crafting a plan like this:
News outlets would report of his contract dispute with the MLE and then thousands of people would laugh at the TV and say “What’s MLE stand for? MAJOR LEAGUE EATING! There’s a league for that?” Simple? Yes! A genius ploy? Absolutely!

There’s only 1 real competitive eating competition that anyone cares about – it’s the hot dogs. Why would the best in the world sit out over a contract dispute, show up in the crowd and then rush the stage if it wasn’t planned?

It’s such a stupid sounding sport controversy you might be tempted to say “Only professional wrestling could be so fake.” But guess what, no longer is professional wrestling the biggest joke in sports. That title can now go to Major League Eating now that we know it exists.

Related posts:

1. A Fever in April, Cold Sweats in May I randomly recall heading into another 2nd grade school day...
2. World Cup Soccer Ain’t So Bad! Every four years soccer comes around in full force. To...
3. Has the Sun Set on the NCAA? With the dawn of the super conference era rising in...

I randomly recall heading into another 2nd grade school day many years ago. As I crawled out of the passenger seat of the car, I turned and asked my grandma a simple, yet naively relevant question. It was this: “Will the Royals win this year?”

In an encouraging tone she replied “It’s a new year so you never know what could happen. Now go learn something!” Since that tiny and rather useless memory is now 18 years aged, Royals fans all know the answer. It was no.

If fortune telling was a human gift, what she should have answered with was “No. Nor will they win for the next 18 years. They’ll only let you down. Now go in there and learn to be a Yankees fan!”

Yankees fans see winning all the time, while Royals fans get countless opportunities to appreciate the potential in losing, the possibilities in blown saves and powerless hitters missing the big hit. There are no expectations of coming in 3rd in the division, let alone winning the division, nor are there expectations of winning a playoff series, or taking the pennant or being in the World Series. Winning the World Series? Are the Royals even allowed to do that anymore?

As a kid during summer afternoons I would read the sports section of the Topeka Capital-Journal. I would look at the standings, read the spreads and follow the stats. I would count how many teams had a worse record than the Royals, then I would yell out to whoever would listen “Can you believe it! 4 teams!” Or two teams. On a good streak, 6. How can someone be so excited about such a small feat?

I would look at our own record hoping we’d hit 70 wins that year or not lose 100. I’d hope we’d finish above at least one team in the American League central. I’d be in awe at the fact that we were only 10 games under .500 or 15 games out of first. This is the life of a Royals fan – little things. They are my team.

It seems they like to finish every year on a hot streak, stoking the fire for next season. By the time April rolls around, the spark on the field was dampend by another midwestern winter but my excitement for the new season is at a fever pitch. It sometimes lasts through May, sometimes not even until May, but that’s alright.

I’m still a fan, a lifer if you will. This year is no different.

I see potential in certain members of this team and I hope we don’t lose them. I hope we pay them what they’re worth and build upon them. We’ve had a lot of great names in our dugout only to let them go and watch them win in another city.

I’ve even begun to hope we unlock the secrets of human cloning so we can duplicate Billy Butler, David DeJesus and Zack Greinke. As the years progress and the losing seasons string together like stale popcorn decorations on a Christmas tree in July, I think our chances of cloning players is more likely than building a team from the ground up.

Building from the ground up has been our strategy for years. Supposedly our farm system is full of young talent. I can only hope it’s true. There it is again… the little things. I have faith in a young farm team full of talent I know nothing about and while their major league counterpart rides a 4 game losing streak, I’m just stoked we still remain above the lowly Cleveland Indians. Y-E-S!

Now maybe tonight we can give Strausburg his first Major League loss. No matter how great of a pitcher he becomes I’d never forget that little factoid. It might help out on Jeopardy! one day, or at least give a lowly Royals fan something to brag about.

This is the the life of a Royals fan and like family, win or lose I still love them. Win or lose there’s nothing better than a day at the ballpark or an evening in front of the Royals Network. There’s just something about that winning, though, that makes America’s true pastime a little sweeter.

Related posts:

1. March Madness Without a doubt, for the past 15 years or so,...
2. The Major League of Eating? Every year on the 4th of July I like to...
3. Advent | “Naked And Cold” via flickr.com I am really digging the new cover for...

Hot Hot Heat has been one of my favorite bands since Make Up the Breakdown. 2007′s Happiness Ltd. had a few perfect songs but overall it felt like something was missing, the heartbeat of the band wasn’t there.

I could tell by the first glance at the Future Breeds album cover this album was not cut from the same die that made Happiness Ltd. The energy is back, not in the same vein of Elevator or Makeup, but in a new and refocused way. This could be due to the band working in their own studio this time around.

It’s an eternal struggle for bands to evolve and create new music without going stale or repulsing their fan base. I’m sure it’s extremely frustrating for musicians to create songs they feel are their best work yet only for fans to yell out song titles from their very first LP of decade-old songs.

I believe that Hot Hot Heat has done just that with this album, they wrote some of their best songs and these songs will have fans yelling out their weird titles instead of just “Bandages!”

The old energy and wittiness of lyric are back, but there is a new element of spastic experimentation in the guitar solos and frantic synth leads. What I love about it, though, is that it never leaps off into just plain weird “creativity.” Sometimes I feel modern musicians let creativity take over. While by itself creativity is never bad, it can be a negative when the creativity becomes the focus and what’s created limits not only the appeal of the songs but the ability to define the sonic noise as a “song.” Sometimes doing the same thing over again, revisiting what once worked, is the best approach.

Hot Hot Heat walked that fine line and found success in Future Breeds.

The album should be purchased in either CD or Vinyl format. The art is a really fun illustration piece created by Keith Jones.

Hot Hot Heat store

iTunes
Amazon MP3

Related posts:

1. Stavesacre | Against the Silence Stavesacre is back with a brand new EP after a...
2. Meg & Dia -Here, Here and Here Artist: Meg & Dia Album: Here, Here and Here Label:...
3. Damone – Roll The Dice Artist: Damone Album: Roll the Dice Record Label: None Year:...

Texas is the mastermind. I’ve always held the position that Texas didn’t want to go anywhere. They covered their bases in case the whole conference imploded, but they didn’t start the snowball rolling in the Rockies, the one that swept away Boulder and ended up wiping out Lincoln.

How did rumors of the Big Ten’s interest in expanding get into the minds of certain Big 12 universities? Rumors started in December which begs the question “Why didn’t Beebe do something earlier?” Maybe there was something more too it than what is now chalked up to Beebe’s incompetence. I find it hard to believe that such a game changing deal was drafted up overnight as soon as the two schools left.

Consider this, assuming the money promised from the new TV deal and the Texas TV Network actually materializes, the Big 12 just got stronger in every aspect including on the football field and in the bank account. In football everyone now plays everyone else. We all must go through the same gauntlet and whoever comes out of that hellish schedule on top is without a doubt the best of the best.

The idea of a super conference is built on a flimsy premise. I think each conference should be split up into groups of 10 teams, everyone should play everyone and whoever ends up in first should be put into a National Championship football tournament. Do away with half of the early season gimme games and actually play a couple games in December. This will never happen because money has long since become king of the game, but it can happen in one place at least for a moment… the Big 12!

The realignment mixer apparently showed cracks in the Big 12 cake pan that held the schools together. Rumors were stirred around by the media’s big mixing spoon and soon the whole thing was whipped up into a conference recipe filled with ingredients that never really went together in the first place, like chocolate and cheddar cheese.

It seemed that crusty Nebraska felt out of place and felt slighted by the creation of the Big 12 nearly 15 years ago; wanton Colorado yearned for the Pac 10; Baylor wasn’t part of the equation if Colorado was; A&M wanted to go east; Tech didn’t make the grade in the classroom; both Oklahoma schools would hitch their wagons to Texas; Kansas, Kansas State and Iowa State were loners; Missouri was given the finger by the Big Ten and we all hated each other and couldn’t stand being in the same conference.

Was it really a dysfunctional family or was it a product of all the pressure of possible collapse? I wonder how many buttons Texas really pushed? Nebraska and Colorado apparently caught the message, too bad it turned out to be smoke signals for a raid that never happened.

Texas knows they’re the money in the Big 12. Everyone knows that. When Texas sent out a few rumors of their “discussions” with other conferences, did they think they could knock a few screws loose? When pressure is applied who’s the most likely to get antsy and collapse? The weakest ones at the bottom.

Maybe that’s what Texas wanted all along. They knew that deals could be made in the eleventh hour after a couple defectors jumped. Dan Beebe pulled off a genius fix that makes Texas come out looking brilliant.

Now Colorado gets to travel an extra thousand miles to play their nearest conference “rival” unless you count the new dream matchup to mark on your calendars- the Buffaloes vs the Utes.

Nebraska on the other hand gets to take a beating on the court AND the football field now. No longer are the Big 12 north rivals there to prop up their football program.

We get rid of two bottom feeders from the clearance rack. Yes, we’ll miss the wraith of Nebraska football but I wish the the Pac 10 and the Big Ten well as they try their hand at milking money out of those turnips. Texas was the prize all along.

Media coverage has dulled as expected, but when they do bring up the topic they now say this fix is like putting a bandaid on a severed hand. With Texas getting the lionshare now, soon the other schools will grow disasitified with the way the money was divvied up. Maybe so, but Texas and Oklahoma have dominated the football field for years. That hasn’t killed off the fervor fans feel for those “lesser” teams in the conference.

It is time, of course, that will be the only thing that will prove this theory true or false. East-cost media minds under estimate the power of close rivalry, especially rivalry in the midwest. I think that distance is what will ultimately separate the “super conference” from becoming fact and remaining fiction.

Related posts:

1. Has the Sun Set on the NCAA? With the dawn of the super conference era rising in...
2. Broken 12 – The Death of the Big 12 So with sultry rumors of the demise of the Big...

Every four years soccer comes around in full force. To the rest of the world, the World Cup is just the cherry on top of the soccer sundae they eat everyday. For America, soccer is the melted ice cream at the bottom of the bowl. If we’re really hungry, we’ll lick it clean. If not, we’ll toss it out. But what about American interest in the World Cup?

It’s not an unknown fact that soccer has never caught on from sea to shining sea. It’s more than just the oceans that divide the world’s passion for soccer and American’s apathy for the sport. Could ESPN’s extended push to cover the entire World Cup event cut into the major sports death-grip they have on American athletic attention?

This time around I decided to give the sport a “kick” (I couldn’t say “shot” now could I?) and what follows are a few of my thoughts on the experience. Keep in mind I am an uneducated Philistine when it comes to the art of soccer. I know little about the rules. I watched the full England v USA match and listen to the rest when I am working through the day, but osmosis has begun to fruitfully impart a little knowledge about the mystics of a game I used to categorically deny.

First, I must admit, it’s not that bad! I don’t think there is any way it will dethrone my favorite sports, but every four years I’ll tune in. The beauty of this sporting event is the passion each and every country has for their respective representatives.

In my uneducated opinion, the biggest reason soccer will never catch on here is the scoring. Most people just don’t understand a tie because winning decisively is integrated into American DNA. If you cannot deftly win, do not bother to win at all.

If a persons only knowledge of the sport is what they caught during the few highlights on Sportscenter, it’s impossible to see what could be interesting about a game that ends 1-1 or nil-nil. “What? They played 90 minutes and didn’t score!”

But when the entire game is watched live, excitement is apparent and the overall feeling is one of intrigue. One team can dominate the other by scoring just once. One erroneous goal can shatter the confidence of the players and bring a media blitz of negativity washed up pop starlets couldn’t even comprehend.

A few aspects that are unique to this sport that I enjoyed: ties can be wins, less is more, patience is key. Skill trumps power conditioning or doping (cardiovascular conditioning is highly recommended though).

At its basic form, soccer is the most primal of competitive gamesmanship that requires the most miniscule investment to play. It’s no wonder the rest of the world loves it, everyone should be able to get invovled.

The way the clock is managed is magnificent. They don’t mess around on the soccer pitch, the clock runs without stoppage. The clock runs while players hurry to grab balls that go out of bounds or act injured like they were just ran over by a truck. Torrential downpours and freezing weather? No problem! Even the stadium is still packed in spite of the conditions. Halftime is snappy, there isn’t even much time for commercial interruptions. I like that. Other sports can drag on with stoppage and commercials can derail my interest in the game.

Even penalties add little time to a soccer match. Add up the time spent standing at the free throw line in basketball games and I’m sure it’s more than the typical +3 or +4 they add to soccer games. And time referees spend under the hood in the NFL? Sometimes it can feel like it’s 3 minutes a pop.

The passion of the fans is not much different from other sports, except for the vuvuzelas. Maybe this is local to South Africa, but once the buzzing burns its way into the head it becomes unnoticeable.

In the end I have other sporting allegiances that will always be higher up on the importance order. There just isn’t room for the MLS while I’m waiting on the next World Cup. NFL and college basketball are locks despite disappointing greed in football, MLB takes up my summer and NHL hockey fills in the brief leftover moments. However, I have a newfound appreciation for the sport of soccer. It’s hard to completely ignore something the rest of the world so arduously loves.

Related posts:

1. The Major League of Eating? Every year on the 4th of July I like to...
2. Winter Olympics While I admit to being a diehard Olympics fan in...
3. Broken 12 – The Death of the Big 12 So with sultry rumors of the demise of the Big...

With the dawn of the super conference era rising in the western sky, it appears that the sun could be setting on the reign of the NCAA in an ironic turn of backward events.

The NCAA’s recent track record has been a bit shaky. Their almighty hammer of justice nails USC into a 6 year old coffin while others continue to cheat under the boards. They want more “students” and less “athletes” yet they let athletics call the plays. They refuse to fix the defective BCS algorithm, yet they want to mess up the perfect ending to the college basketball season by letting almost everyone in the tournament.

Now by sitting silently they are acknowledging that it really is football, not academics, not any other athletic affair nor even the NCAA themselves, is all that matters. Forget the spirit of competition and rivalry, invite the spirit of avarice.

Sportscasters chatter and sports fans watch eagerly as the NCAA turns a blind eye to the rapacious Big Ten and scheming Pac 10 as they burn and pillage a powerhouse conference for money and football. Some are excited at the thought of new rivalries and new incomes, others are being boxed up and packed away. In the midst of all the warfare, nothing is considered sacred and even the most cherished aspect of sports – the rivalry – is being shelved.

Rivalries are what moved sports out of the YMCA gym and into the mega stadium. Without rivalries sports would never have ascended to these heights. Without rivalries money would not be an issue at all. If rivalries go, will the money stay?

“Tradition” is what college sports were built on, not money, and tradition is made through years of competition. Not that changes can never occur, but changes this drastic should involve planning and structure, not this panic-riddled farce of a “realignment.”

Maybe the Big 12 should dissolve, maybe super conferences are the future. I’m not arguing for or against the Big 12 though personally I’d like it to stay. However, if the future of the super conference is beginning to ignite… the NCAAs future is flickering. If the NCAA is showing right now that they are powerless to the conference committees, what will they do when those conferences gain even more power?

Related posts:

1. Newsflash! Texas Owns Big 12! Though it seems like eons ago, it was just last...
2. Broken 12 – The Death of the Big 12 So with sultry rumors of the demise of the Big...
3. NCAA Championship I realized that I forgot to post about last nite’s...

Colorado

Ok, I get it. You’re scared you’re going to go the way of the buffalo (pun definitely intended!) along with the Big 12. Your hoops team has been busted since Donnie Boyce broke his leg in ’95. At least Chauncey is back in town, but like Mr Billups, even Tebow can’t help the Buffaloes on the field. If the Big 12 breaks up, you’re a mid-major lock so you’d better cover yourself while you can. The Pac 10 claims they want the Denver viewing market. Are people in Denver really watching Colorado Buffaloes games? Unlike Nebraska who only has the Huskers literally, don’t they have Tim Tebow and Carmelo Anthony to draw their attention in Denver? Yes, I’m saying a third string Tebow on Sunday afternoon is more interesting than a Colorado Buffaloes game on Saturday.

Now did the Pac-10 really want Colorado? Is the Boulder gold and black the real lapel pin on the Pac 10 suit coat? Or are they just trying to lure away some stray cattle from Texas? Do lapel pins and suit jackets go well with boots and chaps?

Colorado, you jumped the gun. Nebraska could have been the fall guy, but now YOU are the ones history will blame for the break up of the Big 12. If you would have waited four days, we could have blamed Nebraska like we’re all primed and ready to do!

Either way, some new team will use you for their doormat in the Pac 10… but at least you’ll be getting paid for it, right? Money is more important than winning games.

Texas

We (those of us from the Big Eight) knew you’d never fit in. Sheesh, you think your state is it’s own country! However would you fit in a college athletic conference? You couldn’t even consider the notion of conference headquarters in Kansas City (the middle of the conference regionally and logically) so we moved them to Texas too! Now you want to move on, who cares about the other school’s programs your stomping on? I say annex yourself and become your own conference! Invite SMU, TCU, Rice, Texas El Paso and North Texas. Sounds like a real Texas party!

Nebraska

This one hurts a bit more. Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Missouri and Nebraska have been together since 1928! Now they decide to blow away with a whisper of interest from the Big Ten?

Oh how crafty you Cornhuskers are! I can’t wait until it’s Nebraska game day when you have to travel to KU, KSU, ISU and MU. The boos will be a sound so loud, a roar like you’ve never heard! We will all bring ears of corn to the game and hail them down on you like a summer thunderstorm in the fall when you enter the stadium. Go ahead, take the money and run. We’ll hate you forever. We already do.

By the way, do you really think you’re going to be able steal the spotlight from Ohio State, Penn State or even a fledgling Michigan football program? I know you have a legacy and all, but let’s get real. You made that legacy on the field against what are now being called weak football programs! I believe you’ll miss bowling over the Big 12 North in football every year on your way to a bowl game… oh wait, you haven’t even been able to do that the past few years. And poor Doc Sadler, will he ever win another conference game now? He has to play Michigan State, Ohio State, Wisconsin, Illinois, Purdue and Indiana yearly now? Good luck Big Red, you’re going to need it.

*the designer in me would like to point out that the ingenious 11 hidden in that Big Ten logo won’t work so well as a “12″ or “13.”

Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech & Texas A&M

I feel for you guys. You don’t know what’s going on, so you’re tying to cover yourself like the Buffaloes while we watch Nebraska and Texas hose us down. That’s fine with me, look out for #1. I’ll miss the OU and OSU rivalry. The others, not so much.

Related posts:

1. Newsflash! Texas Owns Big 12! Though it seems like eons ago, it was just last...
2. Has the Sun Set on the NCAA? With the dawn of the super conference era rising in...
3. March Madness Without a doubt, for the past 15 years or so,...

Go ahead and check it out!

Here’s the idea: commercialize. At first, that may sound like an anti-artist notion. I felt that with some polish and my newfound style, this project could reach a broader audience. Each individual piece can be consumed on it’s own.

For the past 30-40 days I’ve holed myself away in my studio, cranking out pieces at a feverish pace. Never has art came to completion so effortlessly and easy. I felt like a modern day Wayne Thiebaud, painting cupcakes and cookies, pork ribs and pot pies, enchiladas and eggs. I screamed, I yelled, I smiled and I got really excited. It’s no slight to the first versions, but these new pieces are flat out awesome.

I took into account all the feedback I received from the critical outside world and implemented suggestions from readers of Food Network Magazine and SeriousEats.com. Feedback that I put into good use:

1. Make the prints a more manageable/frameable size. New prints are available in 8×10 and 11×14, both with a small white border for framing/matteing. These should be easily frameable in standard frame sizes!
2. The first time around I often went towards a more abstracted image to fit the shape of the state. This time around, each and every piece is clearly rendered. I found a balance and walked the line between fitting the food into the states boundary and the boundary into the food. I found that most people do not like abstraction like I do.
3. Lower shipping costs! They were getting out of hand with the way I was force to mail the older versions. Now, shipping charges are nearly cut in half. I put that cut in cost back into the product by making archival giclee prints on fine art paper. Sorry USPS. Now I can charge $3-$6 dollars and not lose money on shipping! Yay.
4. There is now a Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico print!

In making these changes, some great ideas had to go. That’s the thing about attempting to do something better. Obviously you cut the less-than-stellar ideas, but also in the process many good, even great, ideas are forced out for the greater good. For example, I wanted to move away from hand-drawn lettering. A couple of the originals had lettering that I loved (Montana). Also, it no longer made sense for the human to be in the series or for all the utensil pieces or state names on the actual food product packaging. So I said good-bye to a few ideas I still love in attempt to broaden the reach of the idea.

If you purchased from me before, I am humbled that you came back to take a second plate. If you’ve never made a purchase, welcome to the buffet line.

Here’s the print sizes and packages I offer:

11×14
Single Print: $20
3 Piece “Meal”: $45
6 Piece: $75

Framed and Matted: $65 (This is still the best deal I can offer, but there are only 10 left. Hurry if you want it!)

8×10
Single Print: $15
3 Piece: $35

4×6 Postcards
10 Cards: $15

Related posts:

1. Without Further Ado… The United Plates The United Plates is a series of posters I created...
2. News & Notes November Well well well… I’ve been a bad blogger haven’t I?...
3. Serious Eats SeriousEats.com featured me! This is the post that caught The...

Related posts:

1. About the US Presidents After much delay (most of which was out of my...
2. A Quick Update I’ve obviously been slack on the blog recently and for...
3. 2010 Preview Typically I don’t make plans to break them, I just...

Check it out here. There are all kinds of other publications on the site, so be prepared to waste a lot of time if you’re into visual history.

I like the internet and all, it obviously makes research such as this much easier, but I hope we never see the day where printed newspapers and magazines cease to exist. Digital is just not the same in my opinion. I often wonder what our generation will leave behind. Museums have innumerable written correspondance between friends, lovers and haters. Children find vintage records, baseball cards and other priceless ephemera in their parents and grandparents attics. What will I leave behind? A hard drive with a bunch of files on it? Yeah, that’s just not that exciting at all.

Also, I feel that the Time covers aren’t quite as good the more modern they become. Older issues had lively illustrations and ideas, new ones look more like photo collages. Wonder if my opinion has anything to do with the fact that I’m an illustrator, haha. Obviously I’m really drawn to the individual portraits of the older covers and would love to do that kind of work.

A few of my favorites are:

Related posts:

1. News & Notes November Well well well… I’ve been a bad blogger haven’t I?...
2. Meg & Dia -Here, Here and Here Artist: Meg & Dia Album: Here, Here and Here Label:...
3. Chevelle | Wonder What’s Next Artist: Chevelle Album: Wonder What’s Next Release Date: October 8th,...

Related posts:

1. News & Notes November Well well well… I’ve been a bad blogger haven’t I?...
2. Topeka Capital-Journal Article This excellent article on my United Plates series appeared in...
3. Serious Eats SeriousEats.com featured me! This is the post that caught The...

Artist creates ‘tasteful’ depictions of 50 states

MAYETTA — A Mayetta-based artist is finding out Americans have a hunger for his hand-drawn posters.

John Holcomb, 25, has created a series of tongue-in-cheek posters titled “The United Plates” that depict each state as food. A rectangular Kansas is made from triangular turnovers. Indiana is a bunch of asparagus, while Minnesota is a frothy mug of beer.

The sales of his unique artwork recently were boosted after catching the eye of SeriousEats.com, a recipe blog, and the Food Network Magazine, which featured his posters in its December issue.

“It’s my goal to create something that people will enjoy and hopefully something that will last longer than I will,” Holcomb explains in a flyer about his series. “I’m always working and always pushing myself to do something better.”

Holcomb, who grew up in Mayetta, attended Topeka High School and graduated from John Brown University in 2007 with a degree in design and illustration. After his graduation, he and his wife, Ali, returned to Mayetta to live. His wife took a job at the Holton newspaper while he concentrated on his art and taking care of his ailing great-grandmother.

In March 2008, when he was at his great-grandmother’s home, the idea of “The United Plates” series popped into his head.

“I thought Delaware looked like a dead fish,” he said. “It was a random thought. I sketch every thought I have. I did 20 states right there and then.”

Iowa became a green bell pepper; Oregon, a pile of spaghetti and meatballs; Tennessee, a hot dog; and North Carolina, a slice of cherry pie.

The following July, Holcomb began screen-printing his designs in his garage.

“I printed 5,000 to start with — 100 of each state,” he said.

The last state he drew was Missouri. Holcomb said he is an ardent Jayhawk fan and didn’t want to let the Kansas-Missouri rivalry influence what food he chose to use for that state.

“Chinese — I gave them my favorite food,” he said.

In January 2009, Holcomb launched a Web site, theunitedplates.com, to sell his prints. But traffic at the site was slow and sales were sparse.

“It was really hard for seven months,” he said.

Last July, Holcomb said he and his wife said a prayer and put his fate as an artist in God’s hands.

“The next day I was featured on SeriousEats.com, and traffic on the Web site jumped 3,000 percent, and I got an e-mail from the Food Network the next day,” he said.

The magazine gave him a full-page feature story that showed several of his posters.

Since then, he receives two to three e-mails a day from people inquiring about his artwork and has gone from screen-printing each poster to printing them on the computer. Holcomb includes a hand-written thank-you and a brief note about the state with each order.

Holcomb said “The United Plates” series was a “confidence builder” that has led to other projects: a coffeetable-style book based on the “United Plates” series and a series of watercolor paintings of the U.S. presidents, which can be seen at www.shorthandedstudio.com/us-presidents/.

“I work with the ideas I have,” he said, “and see where it goes.”

Jan Biles can be reached at (785) 295-1292 or jan.biles@cjonline.com.

Related posts:

1. Serious Eats SeriousEats.com featured me! This is the post that caught The...
2. Without Further Ado… The United Plates The United Plates is a series of posters I created...
3. News & Notes November Well well well… I’ve been a bad blogger haven’t I?...

Enter the code “newsite” for a 10% discount in my shop!

I’ve been slightly derailed from the Presidents series of late, but it’s not for lack of good reason. One of which is new jobs, the other is a brand new Shorthandedstudio.com!

If you’ve happened by the site of late, you will have seen some of these growing pains. I’m not a “web designer” so I choose to tweak my site a piece at a time instead of launching new versions overnight. However, I believe I have finally put the finishing polish on this version of the site and I’m really excited with how it turned out. It’s much cleaner than the last iteration, and most importantly to me it features a brand new store!

If you’ve really been following Shorthanded since it’s debut launch in January of 2008, this is in fact version 4.0 (4.5 if you count the crash and collapse that happened on January of 09 that caused a massive loss of data and many unkind words spoken on my part). The second version was launched January 2009, the 3rd in November of 2009 and now this version in February 2010. I wish I would have kept screenshots of each version because it would have been nice to see the progression, but I’ve never been that organized.

This version directly adresses two areas that I’ve always felt were problem areas for my site.

Problem #1, the store. Paypal is a great tool, but their popup and cart system are hideous not to mention I dread adding products because it means I’ll have to login to Paypal’s backend site. As a person interested in design and usability, Paypal’s administrator area is the nastiest place on the web. Even though I came up with a quite genius setup for adding products to the store, I always felt it was a weak link. Now I cannot lie, the store I just added to this site rules! You should really go check it out. I’m so excited to finally have it integrated as a shopping cart.

Problem #2, the navigation. I’ve never liked the navigation systems I’ve employed in the past. To me, the beauty in a navigation is hidden in its simplicity yet as a peddler of visual goods I want every viewer to see everything I do, but that’s the worst approach to a navigation system possible. When those two opposing ideas collide, there’s chaos. Your best bet in navigation is always sub navigation and since I hate hate hate dropdown menus, I chose to employ a sub navigation system my own way.

There is a photo of a recent version of the site so you can see the changes.

Those who choose to shop in my store are my means of existence, my most appreciated visitors. To say thanks, and to entice anyone who may want to make a purchase from my shop, enter the code “newsite” in the discount code field and take 10% off the order total.

Related posts:

1. The Shipshape Shop Alright, after a hectic couple of weeks prepping for the...
2. Sale! So in honor of my return from Yellowstone I have...
3. Thanks for nothing WordPress Ok, so I’m not a web designer. I honestly hate...

While I admit to being a diehard Olympics fan in general, but the winter games have always been my favorite by quite a large margin. Honestly I love every sport in the games (minus ice dancing, which it’s debatable as to whether that’s even a sport). I watch every event, listen to every Bob Costas segue and every Mary Carillo human interest piece.

Therefore, the only reason for this blog post is to say I’m cheering for my long lost cousin Steve Holcomb in the two man bobsled tomorrow and the four man later. It’s fun to hear announcers say “Holcomb this” and “Holcomb that.” The only other time I’ve heard my name on TV was that one brief moment where Kelly Holcomb won a game or two with the Buffalo Bills in the mid 2000s and then disappeared. After day one of the 2 man competition, Steve and teammate Curtis Tomasevicz are sitting in 4th place. They looked great in the second run, so here’s to tomorrow!

Check out his website here: Team Holcomb and Steve’s profile here: Vancouver 2010.

Related posts:

1. Jon Foreman – Fall/Winter EP I don’t like the direction Switchfoot has gone since ‘The...
2. World Cup Soccer Ain’t So Bad! Every four years soccer comes around in full force. To...
3. Broken 12 – The Death of the Big 12 So with sultry rumors of the demise of the Big...

Here’s a list of what I do when I feel like I’ll never ever come up with a new idea that’s any good, which for me is basically at the start of every new piece while staring at a blank “canvas.”

• Get away from the computer/drawing table/studio. This is easy, fun and not so frustrating as sitting there blankly. This can involve the following: physical exercise, swinging in the park, the latest sports video game which right now is NHL 10, up next is MLB The Show 10, or reading a book, currently a biography of Woodrow Wilson.
• Eat something! I can work for hours and forget that little detail. The following are examples:
• In the Winter: Go make Hot Chocolate: 3 TBS Carnation Malted Milk, 1 TBS Powdered Sugar, 3/4 TBS Non Dairy Creamer, Copious amounts of powdered milk, 12-16 oz of water. Heat. Marshmallows optional. Nilla Wafers mandatory. Enjoy.
• In the Summer: Eat an Ice Cream Cone: Go to Dairy Queen, ask for twist. If I’m really mad at the pencils and brushes, go for the Blizzard of the Month.
• Year Round: Go to Qdoba, order Ancho Chile BBQ Burrito, ask for extra rice, black beans, chicken, extra BBQ, corn salsa, cheese and sour cream. It’s obvious I eat here oft, which means I constantly fight the creative block.
• Think of quitting
• Surf the inspiration blogs. I’ll post more in depth about these individual sites later.
• Look at my favorite illustrators specific sites. Currently those people are: Josh Cochran, Nate Williams, J Alex Stamos, Jessica Hische and Invisible Creature.
• I keep an “Inspiration!” folder on my HD. I drag inspirational images into it, keep it ordered by name. Fire up Bridge, drag the thumbnail slider to the largest setting. Very handy.
• Change the music currently playing to a different style.
• Thumbnail for another job/project/no reason at all.
• Convince myself not to quit
• Repeat as necessary.

Related posts:

1. Come & Live I’ve been meaning to post about Come & Live for...
2. Jars of Clay – The Long Fall Back to Earth Artist: Jars of Clay Album: The Long Fall Back to...
3. A Quick Update I’ve obviously been slack on the blog recently and for...