Fast Fashion: Tacking Together a Fire Fit

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I always have had a “passion for fashion” in my own sense. Before I got to college I wanted to own my own clothing company. Too little too late, it seems like there are so many out there now a days I had fled that idea, even after carving out a name, logo, and Instagram page. Next up, I transitioned that idea into a higher fashion label, and for a while I had always had the idea of a suit company. I liked dressing up, and was sold on the idea until I kind of realized going to school for design or fashion would definitely couple well with this passion rather than Business and Writing (not to say I have completely given up on this). Fast forward and while I do work at a clothing company, I’d say my experience in fashion is just how I dress and especially on a night out on the town. While I was reluctant to give away these details, here’s my guide to how I go on about picking out my outfit for a night out.

 

Step 1: The piece

I tend to make my decision first based off of the main piece I want to work around. This can be pants, shoes, shirts, or a hat. While you can get more than 1 centerpiece involved, it tends to look tacky if you are trying to put on too much. It also can draw attention away from the piece you wanted to focus on. A lot of times, I tend to pick a pair of shoes or pants to focus on, and when it’s colder out maybe a jacket or coat to work around. After the desired piece is chosen, we now need to compliment it.

Step 2: Piece together the puzzle

Its like a five piece puzzle, and you just figured out which one is the middle piece, it’s time to put together the border of it with the corners (terrible analogy, as finding the middle piece out of 5 would be easy as cake). I tend to keep it plain as again to not take away form the shine of the centerpiece. A lot of black and white, and occasionally a pop of color to maybe compliment another piece.

Step 3: The accessories

Who says accessories are just for chicks? While I tend to keep it plain, I definitely want to step up this department of my outfits. I have a plain silver ring that is literally stuck on my finger, so it is always a part of the ensemble. Aside from that, I typically pick a watch that goes with the vibe of the fit. I have a black plastic one, a black metal one, and a rose gold metal one. Rose gold when the fit is pretty basic, and the black ones get a lot more play, going plastic on the more casual fits.

Bonus: Tie it together with some musk

You can’t forget: while everyone is eyeing up your fit, they need something to smell that goes along with it. Adding on the sprits of musk to top off the outfit adds a second sense. I have mine dialed to depending on the kind of night, I’ll use certain brands scents. Don’t be afraid to mix and match.

 

There you have it. Sometimes this process can take 30 seconds; sometimes it can take 30 minutes. It all depends on a medley of variables that come down the pipeline before or after the shower. Just make sure to have some good tunes while you scope your options.

East Meets West: Pizza

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After living bicoastal for an extended period of time, I think it’s a good idea to let the people back east know some things about the west and vice versa. It’s funny, because when I am on the east coast, I gas up the west coast. When I’m on the west coast, I gas up the east coast. I grew up back east and wouldn’t trade that, but there is a reason I moved out west. It’s just more my speed. Anyhow, I figured I could do an article like for a lot of things I indulge in on both coasts. So here it is, welcome to East meets West.

 

This one is brought up a lot, and is increasingly more relevant as the Barstool pizza reviews gain more and more of a following (if that is possible). Ask me which coast has better pizza, and you won’t be able to blink before I say the east coast. BUT, I do like to preface the statement with a little bit more detail.

A Classic Slice: East

I’m talking just cheese, a 1-bite-everyone-knows-the-rules slice. As far as keeping it OG, the east coast has the basic cheese slice on lock, and the west coast has no clue where the key is. This is a large reason as to why I will say the east has better pizza, as this plain of a slice makes it easy to tell who gets it and who doesn’t. Also in this category is a Sicilian style slice, one of my all time favorites and is pretty hard to come by out west. And it’s not just plain slices. Pretty much any “regular” pizza I’ve had from back home is superior to the similar pizza out west.

Designer Pizza: West

While home has my pizza pick and nothing is better than a peppers and onion pizza from the local joint in Lavallette, the west coast does do the instagram pizza well. The type of pie (as slices are hard to come by out here) that when posted has people DMing you either asking if its good, where you got it, or calling you a psycho for such a wild pie. Never would I have thought about eating a blue cheese honey pizza, until I would go to 2145 in Costa Mesa. Boyyyyy is that thing tastey. Those are hard to come by back home, unless you are in the city.

And that’s how the tale of two coasts ends in regards to the zah. Check back for more East Meets West posts.

Recently Released Roundup

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Here is what has been jamming in the headphones at work and slapping on the speakers in the CRV:

Upon finishing this, I noticed I didn’t mention The Plugs I met, by Benny the Butcher. So instead heres a video so you can learn more (it might be my most played of them all).

Revenge of the Dreamers 3 – Dreamville

With a star studded roster of both rappers and rhythm-ers, this album was bound to be good from the get go. Although I kind of wanted to dislike it to due to a pal of mine being one of Dreamvilles biggest fans. Nonetheless, this tape was jammed packed with heat from the first track. A hard-hitting beat + a feature from Dababy = happiness. Along with having multiple heater tracks that just slap (especially in the car) there are songs for just about any mood. As far as groups, this tape is up there for a cohesive, pleasing to the ear project. It also might have 2 of the better interludes I’ve heard in a while (Wells Fargo + 1993).

FAVS: The 1st 3 (Under the Sun, Down Bad, Lambotruck), Sleep deprived

 

BANDANA – Freddie Gibbs + Madlib

Freddie Gibbs absolutely bars out on this thing. I mean, at this point it is pretty expected you are just going to hear bone-crunching bars and gritty beats. Madlib teamed up with Gangsta Gibbs for the second rendition of a joint project, and the two again show their chemistry is unmatched. Last summer when Gibbs and Currrensy teamed up on Fetti, I was surprised at how well the two matched. It kind of just shows Gibbs can flex no matter whom he is paired up with. With a great string of lyrical features and a catchy Paak. Chorus, this thing is in constant rotation.

FAVS: Palmolive, Crime Pays, Cataracts

 

ERYS – Jaden Smith

Jaden Smith has always been an artist that has a couple songs that I really can jam to. Both this new album and SYRE have some awesome songs, and overall when you listen to them front to back put you in a musical scenery. ERYS was more of a chopped up and raw version, with gritty beats (one using the sound of him shaving his dreads) and wavy vocals. While I tend to cherry pick this project, the two ASAP featured songs and the Kid Cudi feature have been on constant repeat. I think I need to immerse myself in the album as a whole, but overall ERYS and SYRE both are a good listen.

FAVS: Chateau, On My Own, Ghost Remix, Summertime In Paris

 

Let’s Rock- The Black Keys

I am going to steal this from the pitchfork, but I believe it sums it up: the album title is called let’s rock, and that exactly what we are going to do. With just a classic black keys sound, this album has been a go to for the speaker on the beach. With enough melody coupled with hard guitar riffs, it makes for an enjoyable listen. Much like the Dreamville Tape, there is a varying amount of songs to compliment different moods and occasions, from mellowing out to amping up.

FAVS: Under The Gun, Shine A Little Light

 

OASIS – Bad Bunny + J Balvin

While I can’t entirely understand what is being said, this joint kind of just screams a summer vibe. From more poppy songs to deep trap hits, Bunny and Balvin cover all the bases on this dual project. This thing has to have Central and South America jumping, since they are the two biggest Latin stars at the moment.

FAVS: CUIDAO POR AHÍ, LA CANCIÓN

 

Perfect 10 – Mustard

Mustard has a pretty firm grasp on recruiting some of the hottest rappers to join his projects when they come around. I got to salute him always putting on the CA rappers to help blow up his fellow statesmen. This tape has a lot of different sounds and the beats are A1 as usual. Mustard pretty much does it all on his own, and just cherry picks the features as the icing on the cake. While I don’t love every song, some have been in heavy rotation. The album couldn’t end better than with the track Perfect Ten.

FAVS: On God, Baguettes in the Face, Ballin, Perfect Ten

 

Late Night Feelings – Mark Ronson

Mark Ronson enlists an all female crew for a slew of songs that can kick in the club or on the beach. While this is not my main genre of listen, I always tend to lean more towards female vocals on Edm type joints, so this is more up my alley in comparison to other albums in the genre. I don’t have as much to say on this one, since I don’t bump it nearly as much as the others. However, I threw it on shuffle for a beach day and the sounds complemented the sunshine perfectly.

FAVS: Find U Again, Truth, 2 AM

 

Bonus: Acid Rap – Chance The Rapper

Enough has already been said about this piece of work. As my favorite Chance project, this thing hits home with the nostalgia and also the fact I don’t have to switch to my apple music library just to play cocoa butter kisses.

FAVS: Cocoa Butter Kisses, NaNa, Favorite song

Jbay Preview

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We have reached just about the halfway point of the 2019 WSL Championship tour, and we find our selves in South Africa. A place that reminds us of Kelly’s broken foot, devil-wind-groomed rights, and that time Mick beat down on a great white. All jokes aside, Jbay holds a spot as one of my favorite stops on the tour, one because it is just such a classic wave plus we also get to see the top 34 spread their arms out and really form out while also still being able to get shacked. While I would say it favors regular footers, It’s safe to say some of the goofies can get after it on the backhand. Let’s take a dive into some things to keep your eyes on during the waiting period.

The Ideal Conditions: 2 Very Different Possibilities

The best and most entertaining conditions would be 6-8 occ. 10ft with light offshories. This would ensure we see every bit of action we could get, from tubes to turns to punts. It also would be the most level playing field, since goofies could play to the advantage of the tighter arc on smaller waves while regulars would go forehand and read the tricky tubes a wee bit better. The converse, which is also awesome to watch, is close to maxed out devil wind jbay. With giant tubes and waves that test the top 34s abilities, this would also be a hoot to watch.

The favorites: The Top 5

While it might seem fairly obvious since they are “technically” the 5 best surfers in the world currently, these guys have been looking tack sharp and definitely can surf to the beat of Jbay. With Filipe being the winner the past two years, he obviously would be a safe bet. Kanoa showed us his rail prowess at Keramas, and has been riding that high since. He has a powerful rail game and if it is smaller can flair out in the air as well. Kolohe’s Mick-esque form and powerful build also lend to him being able to find success at this event. Jordy has put up huge numbers, and also is looking poised in the 4th place spot on the rankings. The one most likely to maybe lose early on would be Italo, strictly because he is a goofy foot and has been looking patchier this year (I am unsure if he is still repping the ankle brace as well).

The Dark Horses: Rcal, The GOAT, Avoca Jesus, Seabass

While goofy footers have not faired well as far as a victory at Jbay in quite some time, Ryan Callinan proved to us at bells that the backhand can do some damage in bigger more open canvas waves. After that performance and the amount of push he can get off his heelside, he is my goofy pick to gar far (sans Medina and Italo). You can never count out the GOAT, since he has done this here and has always had a liking to the large groomed walls. Expect him to be fired up, since his last time there was when he injured his foot. Wade Carmichael is a solid pick and more of a no brainer rather than a dark horse since he is a larger surfer and has a lethal rail game. His presence overall tends to slip under the radar and hence is why he might be considered not to be a threat. I expect him to go far, especially if it is big and burly. Finally, Seabass has yet to find his feet this year and I feel like maybe has something to prove. Bass has one of the most polished rail games, and is a frother so if it is on he will be chomping at the bit to blitz some lips. He could easily be a winner here, and would be awesome to see since he is sans sponsor.

Maybe Avoid: Most goofies, less fluid surfers

Most goofies will be at slight disadvantage especially if it is big devil wind jbay. While it is not impossible, we have not seen a goofy hoist the trophy in a while. There are some who can pull it off and like stated earlier, if it is smaller it will open up the door for some to use the tighter pocket to their advantage or launch some airs. Aside from the goofies, some regular foots that lack a fluid approach (it is hard to name some, but for instance maybe a Peterson Crisanto) to look a little shaky against some of the more rail oriented surfers that flock the tour. No knock to Peterson or any of the other people who could come to mind, but there are just some guys that link turns together in such a polished manner that even if the surfing is less powerful or technical, it will look better on the walled rights.

And that’s all he wrote. It will be interesting to see what mother nature has in store, in terms of waves but and also if the locals in the grey suits will be attempting to regulate. The waiting period is only a couple days away; so all we have to do is wait. It looks like it has been cooking for the warm ups.

A Will of Iron

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I was so close!!!

I almost just broke it off. Bogged it like a top turn at lowers. This morning, I knew I was faced with the task of thinking of something to write about, but I had bigger fish to fry first. Coffee, check. Taking a dip, check. A nice greasy sando check. I had successfully cured my hangover and was off biking to the beach. I still don’t know what I was going to pen.

A nice leisurely bike ride to the sound track of tame impala, I followed up this hajj with a nice stand up boogieboard session. I think I did more “turns” that session than I did the morning surf. It’s been pretty shit. I miss cooking waves. A couple of laughs and some severe sunburn, and it was time to bike back. I grabbed an iced Americano from Vacancy coffee and was ready to roll. Still no ideas!

I hoped the coffee would help me brainstorm, but it rather got me stoked to do anything but write. I knew I had to pick up my roommate at the airport so that crept up on me quite quickly. I then again was off in the car blasting some new music that came out recently (DJ Mustard, Freddie Gibbs, and the Black Keys to be exact). We would then chop it up about losing money and the demons that inhabit the strip.

Fast forward and it’s 6 o clock. I’ve done just about everything I needed to, and also have done a shit ton of procrastinating around writing this piece. Of course, when I had the littlest drip of inspiration, I decided it was a good idea to make some dinner. Some friends also pulled up, so yet again I was stuck not writing. Do I just not write anything??

I knew I’d be bummed in the long run of not being able to keep up and having a chink in the armor. I really want to try to go a year of writing every Sunday. 54 posts that I can look back on and remember how I was feeling at that time even down to how I was feeling that day. I couldn’t give up, but what was I to write?