Ample Sanity

The only true happiness comes from squandering ourselves for a purpose." John Mason Brown

300&65 Ampersands. (via)

Record Tripping is a collection of five time-limited mini games you need to complete in specific order. Mouse wheel is required to play the game.

I adore the art and design work of Jeremy Holmes of Mutt Ink, which is why I bought his delightful and cleverly designed book There Was an Old Lady some time back. If you enjoy art, fun and smiles, I urge you to do the same. On this page you'll find three splendid 1920x1200 desktop wallpapers.


Here, I cannot mention Jeremy Holmes without also mentioning Norma V Toraya, aka Crankbunny as well -- largely because her work is thoroughly engaging, but also because one of her paper puppets, a Humpty Dumpty marionette, hangs on the wall just above the spot on my desk where Jeremy's book sits. However gloomy the day, the charming fellow is always there to give me a smile. I've been a Crankbunny fan since I first laid eyes on Army of Me. Be sure to allow plenty of time to give adequate attention to her all of her works, including those in her online shop, where you'll find a unique secret decoder pop up card for your Valentine. And if, like myself, you're into papercrafts, you'll love her Paper Puppet Palooza, a storybook instructional on building paper puppets.



MP3s: 40 Day Dream. Modern Drift. Beach House. Jasper. Cold Cold Cold. Top 200 Tracks of the 2000s Pt 7. Dark Road.

Found Sentence: "It's amazing what's being done for Haiti, but it's amazing what hasn't been done for New Orleans." Lil Wayne »»

Each night, I like to sit outside for a bit watching the deer. I'm sure it's just that it's been so overcast lately, but I did wonder briefly last evening if someone may have stolen the moon.

The pure and simple truth is rarely pure and never simple." Oscar Wilde

The work of French illustrator Caroline Selmes makes me smile. And, really, do you need much more than that? Plus, I see she's done her own take on the Catalan Caga Tió, or pooping log.

I suppose I mention A Bad Guide so often because it's such a lovely, friendly place to visit. I'm sure you'll find these images AJP Crown posted the other day to be breathtaking, and they are. But it's images like these of Vesla the goat which strike me most. Animals are often better company than people, don't you think? I suppose it's that we have no expectations or worries beyond love and friendship.

Artist Jodee Knowles has a remarkable illustrative style. Her characters seem at once innocent, sad, and extraordinarily fragile. Superb work. (via)


Timothy Allen, A Year on the Road. A selection of previously unseen pictures from a year of travel for Human Planet in 2009.

Quite enjoy the work of street artist Gaia. Talented fellow.

Inventing Interactive is a discussion of past, present and future interactive media, and the blog of David Young.

Haven't actually tried CellStories myself, particularly as I refuse to carry a cell phone, so perhaps you'll let me know how you like it.

MP3s: Henry the Van. But For You Who Fear My Name. I'll Quit.

Retail Therapy: Tia's is known for their freestyle sandals, but i'm in love with their beautiful recycled Vintage Sari Scarves.

Revisits: John Baker's Blog.

Listening To: Nothing. It's quiet. Giving cohesive thought a try.

Found Sentence: The new Apple iPad - all the functionality of an iPhone now with the portability of a desktop computer. Perfect for people with poor eyesight, huge hands and really big pockets. »»

I haven't felt warm in days. Shorty needs a thicker sweater and battery-powered woolen knickers.

Creativity comes from looking for the unexpected and stepping outside your own experience." Masaru Ibuka

Bkristiansen is living in Copenhagen, working as an interactive designer, and shooting images with old film cameras. Say hello.

Boulder Pavement: Art & Ideas Magazine.


Michael Cline Tells the Parable of His Painting

A person in a rented apartment must be able to lean out of his window and scrape off the masonry within arm's reach. Go

Daily Grommet is a marketplace for unique, creative gift ideas. Discover one new product idea every day at a great price.

MP3s: Bloodshot and Blistered. Animal Tracks. Numbers Don't Lie. Reckon.

Recipe: Marble Chiffon Cake.

Retail Therapy for Good: Rosa Loves. Buy a shirt, learn the story. Everyone has a story. Everyone has a need. By using art and creativity, we hope to foster hope and encouragement through the aid of apparel. Each story will be told through stimulating graphics and actual text that will appear on the inverse of the shirt directly in line with the heart, where the Rosa Loves movement stems from.

Revisits: Itty Bitty Mini Game: Marooned. Help Mr Chip get off the island

Listening To: Bad Rabbits.

Found Sentence: Adam from Bonanza has died. And if you know who Adam from Bonanza was, you're probably not doing too well yourself. »»

In case you're wondering, it's perfectly okay to send me gifts and homemade goodies. Like "Adam", I won't be around forever, you know. You just think about that.

Every day, I have a most embarrassing moment." Steven Hill

How very interesting: "A Google Maps Essay, in Which George Plimpton Delivers My Belated and Well-Deserved Comeuppance." Mr. Plimpton's Revenge.

note: this link was found via A Bad Guide (thank you!), and eventually led to literary magazine The Normal School. I see a subscription in my future.

I loathe the expression 'What makes him tick.' It is the American mind, looking for simple and singular solution, that uses the foolish expression. A person not only ticks, he also chimes and strikes the hour, falls and breaks and has to be put together again, and sometimes stops like an electric clock in a thunderstorm." James Thurber

Snapshots of Provence, a wonderful journey of image and sound.

Quite enjoying the art and illustration of Alfonso Muro


Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center Inmates in the Philippines perform Michael Jackson's "This Is It" routine, with the help of Jackson's long-time choreographer Travis Payne plus dancers Daniel Celebre and Dres Reid.

Pervagus is the first text-based Steampunk MMORPG, designed to be played in groups or solo. (via)

Hmmm. All i can say is, one woman's "art" is another woman's "holey moley that's disturbing". ...and speaking of legs, unsettlingness, and taxidermy.

MP3s: Stranded. Texas Is An Only Child. By and By. Top 200 Tracks of the 2000s Pt. 8.

Recipe: Single Serving Pie in a Jar.

Revisits: The Marionette. A Tale of Two Kingdoms.

Listening To: The Modern Electric.

Found Sentence: "Dammit" or "Damnit" are both acceptable, unless you are over the age of sixty, in which case "Dagnabit" is required. »»

Can't think of a single question to ask. Have you got one?

Happiness is having a scratch for every itch." Ogden Nash

I doubt there's a single thing artist Angie Wiggins could create that I would not seriously covet. Thanks, Cynthia!

MP3s: Restless. The Darkest Side. Zephyr Wind.

As for the quote of the day, well, rooftop chickenpops here. What other people call "shingles". Yes, again. Life gave me a wrinkled moon face and the desire to spend my life in the company of men. You'd think that'd be enough.

If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him." John F. Kennedy

You Are Ace
Fernando Garcia
Top 200 Tracks of the 2000s Pt. 9
Web 2.0 Blues
Tim Hunkin

Always give a little more than you promise." The Studebaker Brothers

Trust me, sugarplum, you need to download this song: Everybody's Gotta Live.

When someone said, "Go out there and do something remarkable", Alexander Jansson was listening.


Have a peek at Phillip Toledano's upcoming book Days With My Father. It may not be your story, exactly, but it will be familiar.

How many times have I wandered into a room and wondered what was it like right here, right where I'm standing, 50 years ago? 70 years ago? 100 years ago? Time Travel On The Cheap at NPR's The Picture Show blog.

Haiku delight: Wild Geese in the Cow Field. (via)

I Speak Fluent Giraffe: The Love Song of S. Alvador Dali by Jason Henninger.

Enjoy Take Away Shows on Vimeo by La Blogotheque. (via)

No real idea what's going on here, but it's fun never-the-less. Institute of Modern Science. (via)

Immerse yourself in the real-time web. Seesmic, a Twitter client.

Find out where, and by whom, your image is being used with the image identification technology of TinEye.

MP3s: Written in Reverse. Billie Holiday. Edge of a Dream. Top 200 Tracks of the 2000s Pt. 10.

Revisit: Melanie Bourlon.

Listening To: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin.

Found Sentence: A human being is never dependent on his own experience alone for his information. »»

Fill in the two blanks: Beware of ........ ........ .

When my daughter was about seven years old, she asked me one day what I did at work. I told her I worked at the college - that my job was to teach people how to draw. She stared at me, incredulous, and said, 'You mean they forget?'" Howard Ikemoto

Tom Gallo


The site, Heart On Stage, is a demonstration for an upcoming art book of that name. The book is a collaboration between Leena Yliportimo and Luiz Risi combining poetry and illustration. Nevertheless, it's not just a poem book with illustrations or vice versa. It's a piece of work, where the poems and illustrations unite, creating a deeper dimension. Note: Poems by Leena Yliportimo

This very short but remarkable film is a mockup commercial spot focusing on the attack on Pearl Harbor produced by Antonioa Alucema. He took actual newspaper clippings from the events that took place and let them tell the story.

Surgery Minor by Lukáš Brežák is quite a treat.

The photography of Brendan Austin is always extraordinary, but I have to admit to being rather partial to "The Sleeping Mountain" series.

Illustation, typography, and graphic design. Wonderful. Nicetomeetyou.

Fernando Volken Togni is a young man graduated in advertising, working with illustration and design, and living in Porto Alegre. Togni is interested in projects and collaborative work, and looks to be quite an asset.

The Vintagent is rather a nice blog on everything old motorcycle.

Colorful and delightful. Secret Cavern is Daniel Abensour, aka Aphte.

Reading Haiku Study, haiku and related forms by K. Brobeck.

Simple, lovely photographs by Tim Carpenter. Pastoralia. (via)

Elizabeth Shneyderman, visual communications and graphic design.

MediaCore is a free open source video, audio, and podcast publishing platform.

MP3: Norway.

Listening To: Yarn Owl.

Found Sentence: Every time I go into a Wal-Mart, I come out eager for the complete extinction of the human race. But, hey, low prices. »»

fill in the blank:   I'm so ....... it's ridiculous.

Creativity is not the finding of a thing, but the making something out of it after it is found." James Russell Lowell

The coffers at casa de grump are rarely more than half full, so blast The Stuff We Love for linking to etsy shop Lipson Robotics. Anyone got a large drool bib I can borrow?

Paul DiPasqua also makes fantanstic found object art. Look under "resume" to find links to his other delightful works.

Covered is a fun blog which invites artists to reinterpret comic book covers. Other fun links: Twink Paper Piano, BallDroppings, & We Love typography. (via)

Image via Covered

Cover Lay Down offers nice songs available in mp3 format, but unfortunately, no "play" buttons. Problem solved: Drag the playTagger bookmarklet to your toolbar, then click it whenever you land on a page which features directly downloadable mp3 tunes to add instant play as you go usability.

MP3s: Gone the Rainbow. Holding On To The Wind.

Listening To: Wiretree.

Found Sentence: You ever get drunk and buy something online but forget all about it until she shows up on your porch, yelling something in Russia-talk? »»

As you know, Tuesday's massive earthquake has caused unbelievable devastation to Haiti and its people. Please consider donating any amount you can afford.