March_Madness_Guide_For_Women
Ideas, Popular Posts

The Ultimate Women’s Guide to March Madness

A Guest Post By Daniel Rossi

If you are currently alive, you have heard of March Madness. Every year terms like “office pool”, “Cinderella”, “upset alert”, and countless others are thrown around like they were fourth grade vocabulary words.

March Madness is to men what the Nordstrom half-yearly sale, Victoria Secret fashion show, and finding out the new cast for “ Dancing With the Stars” is to women, all rolled into one.

While men all over America sit around watching the game, I picture helpless women sitting alongside their man and his friends, desperately wishing they had a clue as to what was going on. Naturally I am here to bridge the gap and translate the NCAA tournament and college basketball into terms women will easily understand.

Some women may wonder how men can watch SO much basketball. After all, it is the same game, the same ball, the same court, etc… Doesn’t that get boring after a while? Ladies, I will answer that question with a question: Do you ever get bored shopping for adorable shoes? No, you don’t.

Every shoe is different with every company making a slightly different version of the same product. College programs are much the same. Every team has different coaches, different players, and different strategies all while competing in the same product arena, chasing the same ultimate goal.

To help you better understand an overall historical landscape of college basketball, I have broken things down in such a way that you literally could not, not understand.

Team Breakdown:

Tier 1

Duke, North Carolina, UCLA, Kentucky, Kansas: These programs would be considered the Louis Vuitton of college basketball. They have the respect of every other program and are the top dogs.

Tier 2

Syracuse, Ohio State, Michigan State, Louisville, Connecticut: These programs are the Sperrys of college basketball. They are classy and look good and can be dressed up or down depending on the situation.

Tier 3

Gonzaga, Wisconsin, Texas, BYU, Marquette,: These teams are the Vans shoe of college basketball. They are solid, get the job done and will be there every year, but will they ever be considered the top shoe? No.

Tier 4

Binghamton, Grambling State, Louisiana Monroe, Northern Arizona: These teams would be the old pair of dog chewed sandals you forgot to throw away in your closet.

The Opposing Team:

A team’s opponent in the tournament is like your ex boyfriend’s new girlfriend after he broke up with you. You might know the girl really well (within your same conference) or you may have never seen her before in your life (different conference). Either way, they have something you both desperately want.

Position Breakdown:

The Point Guard: The point guard runs the show. The “point” is generally the smallest player on the floor, good passer, good shooter and is in charge of getting his teammates involved. They are almost always the smartest player on the team.

Translation: This is the person in your circle of friends that keeps everyone in the loop about what is going down this weekend. She sends out group texts saying things like “OMG Taco Tuesday this week?!” or “Let’s go dancing Friday.”

WARNING: This person might be super handsome and irresistible to all women…Side note: I was a Point Guard. You do the math.

The Shooting Guard: Generally considered to be the scorer/shooter on the team. They are usually a great defensive player and one of the best athletes on the floor.

Translation: This is the girl in your group who gets the attention when you go out for drinks. She has a little bit of everything. She is cute without trying, graduated with a masters at age seventeen, and has perfect teeth without ever having braces. She has to wear a fake wedding ring just so guys don’t bother her all night long.

The Small Forward: In most cases the in-between player. They are decent at most things but not really spectacular at any one thing.

Translation: This is the girl in your circle of friends that everyone generally seems to forget about. You don’t mind if they are there, and you don’t mind if they aren’t.

The Power Forward: Big, strong, and athletic. They are great rebounders and shot blockers and in some cases the team’s best player.

Translation: This is the Monica of the show “Friends”. She has a ton going for her, cute, smart, funny, but she just isn’t quite Rachel.

The Center: This position is the tallest on the floor. Centers block shots, rebound, and play close to the basket. Most of the time the game of basketball picks them because they are tall, not the other way around.

Translation: This is the tall girl of your circle of friends. She is like a baby giraffe that just came out of the womb, a little gangly and pretty awkward.

The Bracket

You may also be wondering how each year teams in the tournament are ranked and paired together. It really is quite simple, the teams considered the best in the tournament are given the one, two, and three seeds while the worst teams in the tournament are ranked as fourteen, fifteen, and sixteen seeds.

To help you conceptualize this idea in terms women can easily understand, I have created a bracket of my very own…

1 Diamonds vs. 16 Carbs | 2 Shoes vs. 15 Laundry

These Matchups are simple. Year in and year out, one and two seeds prevail. (Note two 15 seeds won this year. I guess laundry is cool too)

3 The Notebook vs. 14 Video Games | 4 Puppies vs. 13 Horses

These matchups are a little more interesting. Every so often, a 13/14 seed can win the day.

5 A Guy With Money vs. 12 A Guy With a Sense of Humor

For whatever reason, at least one 12 beats one 5 every year.

6 Chocolate vs. 11 Frozen Yogurt | 7 Manicure/Pedicure vs. 10 Tanning

You could see both winning, but more times that not the 6 and 7 seeds take it.

8 Cuddling vs. 9 Flowers

The closest matchup in the tourney. It’s really a shot in the dark.(Woman Madness Bracket Note: I could see Cuddling making a deep run in this particular tournament)

Now ladies I am no magician, but by knowing these basic principles of the March Madness tournament, your likelihood of being single next April will drop 36-64 percentage points based on what made up scale you use.

And finally, let’s be honest with one another. No man knows what he is talking about when it comes to brackets. All I do is watch basketball and if you would have chosen this year based on how adorable the team’s uniforms looked, chances are you would have had a more successful bracket than me.

So next year don’t be afraid, fill one out. And if a guy questions your choice just respond with, “They’ve been a great road team all year. They can handle pressure.” Trust me, it’ll work.

March 26, 2012 by
Life, Los Angeles, Westside Wisdom

10 Things I’ve Learned From Moving to LA

Welcome Home Carly Walker

I grew up in Utah and I went to school at BYU-Idaho. Our idea of a main street closes at 10 and the most dangerous place I have ever set foot in is the Rain Tree Hot Tub. So you can imagine my culture shock when 4 liquor stores and a family reunion of homeless locals were waiting outside my apartment to welcome me to the one and only…Los Angeles, California.

Oh I’ve Been Afraid of Changing

You may be wondering how I got here or why, and to be honest its all a blur. I woke up one day with my bags packed driving off with a pair of knock-off Ray Bans to cover my goodbye tears. It’s like Stevie Nicks said, “I’ve been afraid of changing because I built my life around you, but time makes you bolder, children get older, I’m getting older too.” I have always wanted to move by the beach, but didn’t want to leave the people I loved and had built my life around. Luckily time makes you bolder. Change is a scary thing, but if you stare at a cliff long enough you are bound to jump at some point. This was my ultimate leap of faith. Enough sap…lets get to the good stuff. LA has so many surprises for a young and naive Utah local. Here are my top 10.

1. Winter in California is a Joke

Every morning is the same thing. I peel away my curtains, the Beach Boys start singing, and a pack of California sun beams shower my skin. As my old roommates would say, “It’s a tender mercy” and I swear it’s not real life.

2. Inglewood Is Up To No Good

One of my first nights here, I ran out of gas in the wrong part of town. I soon learned what Dr. Dre meant when he said Inglewood was up to no good. Without thinking I got out of a car in a dim-lit empty gas station. Out of the shadows emerged four gangsters and I was surrounded. Terrified, tears-welled up in my eyes as they made their demands…a bag of potato chips. Someone should tell Ruffles they have a huge fan base in the hood.

3. The Street Doesn’t Sweep Itself

Speaking of hoods, this gem was on my hood the next morning for blocking a street-sweeper.

I learned the hard way that it’s cleaning services are highly valued by the state of California. I wish LA gave you the opportunity to hand sweep the section of curb your car blocked, because for 68 bones I would have made that thing look like gold.

4. If it Once Moved, You Can Eat It

My menu of beef and potatoes is quickly expanding. There are food trucks and restaurants everywhere serving anything from octopus to chicken on waffles. Kissing the chef would be an understatement of my affections.

5. Ikea Furniture is Cheap for a Reason

Imagine playing a game of charades but instead of guessing a word you had to guess how to build a 12-piece set of furniture. Thanks to Ikea’s pictures-only instruction manuals, this nightmare is a reality. The worst part is: You can’t get those five precious hours of your life back. It’s not in their return policy.

6. Blondes Run This Town

Being a small fish and moving into a big city has been overwhelming. One night, I put my head in my hands and sighed,”I’m just this little blonde girl.” A sassy neighbor replied, “Honey, blondes run this town.” Dolly Parton could not have been more inspiring and I have held my head high ever since.

7. The “F” Word is an Adjective

The “F” word is highly valued in Utah. People have been saving up this swear word their entire lives in case they ever need a way to describe a catastrophic event. If they get the urge to use it for anything less than a disaster, they use a swear-replacement such as “F,” “freaking,” “flip,” etc. So the first time I heard someone casually say $%^#, I thought something terrible had happened. I have since learned that this word is used for many different creative purposes and does not require me to rush to the aid of every single person that uses it. I have also learned to cover up my wide-eyed reactions by pretending something is in my eye.

8. Men Here Are Beautiful

I have never seen more good-looking men in my entire life. I knew the first time a guy turned to me at Marshalls and said in a low voice, “Hey, that lamp is fresh,” I was in trouble.

9. Honking Isn’t a Good Thing and There is No Such Thing as a Shortcut

In Provo, the only time you hear cars honking is when a sedan crammed full of freshmen boys see a girl for the first time. California is the opposite. Getting a honk is not a compliment and can mean anything from “You should have ran that light” to “I had a gut feeling you were about to cross the road.” It is similar to a game of Operation where even breathing in the wrong direction results in a chorus of beeps.

Unsolved mysteries should really try to tackle why no matter where you are or how far you are going, it will always take you 30 minutes to get anywhere in LA.

10. LA is Home to the Free Spirited

One thing I love and can’t get over is that everyone that I’ve met here marches to the beat of their own drummer. They aren’t scared to be themselves and it’s a strict “no fear” policy. If you want to stand on a ladder in a public place with a loin cloth on….you do it. In all honesty, It’s an amazing environment to be in. Without fear holding anyone back, people are doing incredible things with their time and the energy is contagious.

“You Are Like an Alien That We Get to Show the World”

I have been so surprised from my move to a city, but I have to say I am in love. As terrifying as the move has been, it’s amazing waking up and knowing that each day is going to be a new adventure. So bring it on LA, bring it on.

March 20, 2012 by
Bachelor_Daniel_Rossi
Ideas

If A Guy Were To Blog About The Bachelor

Meet Daniel Rossi

To be honest I have only met Daniel Rossi once. However, I have been a big fan and follower of his twitter(@coachrossi10) for the last six months because of his lack of a filter and obsession with sports, reality TV, and his dog Zoe. Since there are a trillion blog posts written by girls about The Bachelor, I didn’t feel like my perspective would add much to the table. Unfortunately, with the finale coming up, that’s all anyone wants to talk about. So instead of re-hashing what every girl has already said, I convinced Mr. Rossi to give a guy’s perspective on everyone’s current Monday-night addiction. Without further adieu here is the Bachelor update from the man himself.

The Bachelor According to Daniel Rossi

Ben’s hair has a mind of its own so I felt it only appropriate to model my thoughts accordingly, and scatter them all over the place. This article, like love, will have no direction, you will have no concept of beginning, middle, or end, and ultimately it will make no sense. Also like love, it will either leave you wanting more, but more likely regretting you ever spent time on it at all.

Watching “The Bachelor” with my roommates (Hi mom and dad!) has taught me some very valuable relationship lessons. Men should learn to use the show for exactly what it is: A guide of what and what not to do when it comes to dating. For example, we learned last year that wearing a mask to try to impress a woman just makes you look like a creep. Thanks Jeff!

I feel like I have been learning some valuable new tips on how to find true happiness when I am picked to be on The Bachelor (this will happen.)

For example, I would request twenty-five beautiful brunettes with great hair and light eyes. This would immediately rule out Kacie B from the competition. Let’s be honest, she is adorable but that hairpiece would take her three hours just to get it to look halfway presentable. I don’t have that kinda time

Secondly, I would request that we live in an average house in an average city. No luxurious trips or fancy vacations. Fantasy suites in Switzerland? No. We are falling in love in Reno sweetheart and if you’re not cool with that, I have twenty-four other weirdos who are totally down.

Our dates would be something really simple. I’d turn on the Xbox and order up some Papa Johns. Then I’d spend the next hour explaining how I need a girl who can just “be normal”. The girls would all nod like bobble heads in agreeance and claim how normal they have always been. They would then applaud me for wanting a girl who was so normal and how normal that makes me, etc…One or two of them would even claim they felt a real connection with me. Which they didn’t.

By week 3 I would find a way to become the bachelor everyone at home loves to hate. Girls would think I’m a jerk while guys would wish they were me. I would be setting the precedent for what every future bachelor contestant should be like and at the end of my run, I wouldn’t pick anyone in hopes I could come back two seasons later like Brad did. Now that guy knew what he was doing. And see how it worked out for him?! He is happily in love with the woman of his dreams! Wait, who is next season’s bachelorette?

I bet the success rate for The Bachelor would be much higher if my formula was followed. In fact, I would put a large sum of money on it. After all let’s be honest, the success rate couldn’t really get any lower, could it? You now find yourself agreeing and saying “good point”. Inception.

My Finale Predictions

And now the moment absolutely none of you have been waiting for…my final prediction. This is also the time where I tell you who I would choose. None of you care, but let’s be straight with one another, if you made it this far, you undoubtedly have nothing better to do. I was banking on that. Again, inception. Well, here goes…

Proposing to two different women in a matter of a year could/should make any guy uncomfortable, but not Ben! No, he is all about it. Ben goes down on one knee more than Tim Tebow. In fact, if I were Tim Tebow, I would ask Ben if he would be interested in an endorsement deal. The stipulation of course being he would have to cut his hair.

Ultimately Benjamin will of course be choosing Courtney.

You women may be wondering how he could possibly choose her. The answer, however, is really quite simple. Ben is a guy and he can’t help it. With only a month to date twenty five random women, men will almost always choose the one they find the most attractive while being the least annoying. That is why this show has a 4% success rate.

For whatever reason he has had a thing for her since day one. I’m convinced it is because of her eyebrows somehow. Those things just HAVE to have magical powers. They are too weird not to. It might also have something to do with the fact that she acts like a total floozeball 24/7. It could definitely be a combination between the eyebrows and the flooziness. You could convince me either way.

By now we also all know that Lindzi really is the better choice long term.

Unfortunately she has revealed some fatal flaws along the way that will ultimately lead to her demise. One of these flaws, for me at least, was liking horses too much.

It wouldn’t have been a big deal at first. I would have played along, joking about how horses are funny. I would have even been open, like Ben was, about riding them around a bit on the hometown date. However, if I were to pick her, a year from now she would have me moving to a ranch in Texas where I would wake up at 5 AM every morning to take care of horses I never wanted in a million years. And I am NOT a morning person. All of a sudden, I am living a nightmare which could have easily been avoided if I had just gone with the floozy.

Unfortunately, there are a couple more glaring flaws that are outside the realm of her control like how her voice constantly sounds like she needs a cough drop and her condition I like to call “Asymmetrical Dimple Syndrome” or ADS for short. She has a great dimple on the right side of her face with nothing on the left. That alone is grounds for termination in my book but kudos to Ben for being able to look past that. Or at least for having the presence of mind to only look at one side of her face at a time. I think this is the more likely scenario.

My Pick From The Season

When asked who I thought the best looking woman of this season was, I was truly stumped. I guess the answer was more complex than anyone could have ever hoped. If no one ever opened their mouth, it would have no doubt been Jenna the blogger (Whom you are about to Google to remember what she looks like. And once you do you will most likely agree. Inception part 3).

I could have really seen myself staying up late with her, blogging about who knows what. In fact, I can picture us doing just about anything together. Except talking (the biggest weakness of all the women, and men, who come on the show.)

Who knows, maybe she will read this blog and blog about me! Then we could fall into mutual blogness and communicate only via e-mail. Now that is a relationship I could see lasting. Again, as long as we never have to actually talk.

I will now end this fantastical little journey with a bachelor riddle. What would you get if you boiled some water and stirred together the following items? One Courtney eyebrow, a teaspoon of grease, Kacie B’s hair (not done), a ball of yarn, and a hipster’s mustache?

Answer: Ben’s hair.

March 12, 2012 by
Music

How to Get Whatever Woman You Want

Become Thomas Hall

This is a sampler of Tom Tom’s performance at the final Music Outlet last Thursday. All women in attendance were smitten. “I am ruined for all other men,” said concert attendee Janessa Clawson.

February 13, 2012 by
Carson
Life

Should You Let Your Little Brother Work With You?

The Sister of Carson Walker

I am in the slowest elevator in the world with an unnamed coworker. After a few seconds of internal debate the unknown coworker finally asks, “Is it true?” Although he is trying not to smile, the corners of his lips are fighting their way up to his cheeks. In my head I already know what he is about to say, but I let him finish. “Is it true that you are Carson Walker’s sister?!”

This happens at least once a week.

Flashback to a year ago. My little brother had just hopped off a plane from a two-year mission to Ghana Africa. He was a penniless college student rocking an anything but ordinary Bob Marley accent. At the end of his first two terms back at college he needed a job and asked if I would help him get a position on my company’s internal call floor.

In two weeks my worst fears had come true. Exhibit A:

My brother was instantly a hit on the call floor and was known for his loud chuckles, energy, and yes his planking-esk office stunts.

Over this past year many coworkers have asked me how I like working with my brother. The truth is that as terrified as I was about the idea, I ended up loving it and here is why:

Reason 1: Biggest Fan in the Office

The first month Carson started working at my office people thought he was a secret admirer from the call floor. If you haven’t caught on by now… we look NOTHING alike, we act completely different, and nobody could find a better explanation for why an employee would repeatedly shout my name from across the office until I waved back. As red as my face always got, in a sea of white collars it always feels good to know someone cares about you.

Reason 2: Keeping Things Real

It’s hard to act like a snobby office hot-shot when your brother stops by to remind your co-workers that you need to call your mom back. Not only that, but in chaotic business meetings where the “important things in life” were being overlooked, I would glance down to find messages like these scribbled in my notebook. Exhibit B:

Reason 3: Family Matters

A few months ago a sudden re-organization within the company caught me off guard. I was told to take the rest of the day off to regroup. Unfortunately, I had carpooled to work. About to burst into tears and stranded at my desk, I text my brother. I got a response within seconds that said “I am already on my way to the office to come get you.” This wasn’t the first time my lil bro came to the rescue.

Reason 4: Never a Dull Moment

From origami roses on my desk to surprise bear hugs there has never been a dull moment working with my brother. Especially when his idea of business casual includes vans with a church shirt (Exhibit C below). I can honestly say that on days when I was bored to tears with the sound of clicking keyboards, I looked forward to my brother’s chuckles and laughy taffy jokes.

So there you have it. A solid recommendation to let your younger siblings take over the office you work at.

February 9, 2012 by
Amazing Race Audition
Ideas, Office

How to Make Your Amazing Race Audition Tape an Epic Fail

Answer: Copy This Video

Me and Jordan Christenson (the CEO of Pacos Dillas) had this great idea to audition for the Amazing Race. Unfortunately it failed. It actually never even got off the ground. To save you all future heartache here are four valuable lessons we learned during this character-building experience.

If you want a terrible audition tape:

  1. Forget the deadline
  2. Forget to put in some sort of effort
  3. Record it after work on a web cam
  4. Make sure your co-worker ruins EVERY SINGLE take.

So there you have it…four solid ways to guarantee that your audition tape is not picked for the Amazing Race. Enjoy the best of our efforts in the video above.

January 30, 2012 by
Roommate Advice
Life

The 3 Types of Dating Advisers

 

And the Debate Begins

Today I came home with a dating dilemma. I live in Provo Utah so this is nothing new. When you live in the marriage capital of the world these conversations are absolutely unavoidable. For guys who have never seen how these conversations unfold, here is how the situation begins…. I say something along the lines of “Guess who just called me”, my roommates spend literally 5 minutes naming every guy I have dated or looked at in the last 10 years.

Carly Bird Dating

While roommate 1, 2, and 3 keep guessing, Gray’s anatomy is paused and everyone magically transforms into their sweats. Laptops are opened, Facebook is warming up, the ice cream lid has just been pried off with a giant spoon, and GIRL TALK is ready to begin.

What I have realized over the years is that although the roommates may change, the dating advice does not. There always seems to be three basic types of advisers on every dating panel. So here goes. The three voices of reason:

The Voice of Logic

THANK GOODNESS for this roommate. This is the one that immediately shuts down any rash or unconventional ideas. She is usually on her computer throughout the entire dating conversation and is only paying enough attention to keep it from breaking out into a women’s rights protest. She thinks any discussion about men could have been resolved two hours ago and doesn’t believe in over-analyzing hugs, texts, re-tweets, or “looks from across the room.”

In my experience if this roommate is on vacation you should: A) Hide your phone and B) Lock down your computer until they can come back to monitor potentially bad decisions. The only times I have ever showed up crying on my ex-boyfriends doorstep, thrown eggs at someone’s window, or written a dramatic Facebook status using lyrics from Dashboard Confessional…my “voice of logic” was out of town.

The Voice of Love

This roommate is the one that pulls up wedding videos or So You Think You Can Dance routines to solve any dating crisis. They use phrases like, “BUT HE LOVES YOU, YOU CAN JUST TELL!” or “You could literally be married in 3 months” before you have even finished a second date. This roommate has Anthropologies’ wedding line bookmarked on Google and shortcut links to all your potential lovers on Facebook. Not only that, but she has a mental roll-a-dex of index cards with examples of people who have gone through your same situation and made it work.

As much as you may think this roommate should be punished for loving wedding cake and eating it too, she is the HOPE stabilizer in the apartment. You always need someone looking at the glass half full even if the water hasn’t been poured yet.

The Voice of Not Using Your Voice and Making Out Instead

This roommate is my favorite. According to her Shakira had it wrong when she said “hips don’t lie” it was actually LIPS don’t lie. You can recognize this roommate simply by the fact that she is usually the one yelling “JUST MAKE OUT WITH HIM.” Most of her advice consists of copying the climatic ending from her favorite chick flick. This means you…yes… kissing someone… in the rain, on a baseball field, or right before your could-be-lover gets on a plane to leave your life FOREVER (but really just two weeks for Christmas break.) Although kissing may not be the correct answer for the situation the lip-lover is trying to make a point. Why are you sitting here talking about it when you could be doing something about it?

Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires

So there you have it. The three voices of reason who independently could be considered unreasonable. These three dating gurus can give amazing pointers, but remember to keep balance in all things. While they may give good suggestions, the only ideas worth noting are the ones that align with your own common sense about the situation and settle away from the extreme.

Just like only YOU can prevent forest fires, only YOU can prevent a reenactment of Casa Blanca gone terribly wrong.

January 23, 2012 by
Christmas_Flash_Mob
Life

The Office Christmas Flash Mob

Many Reputations Were Hurt During the Making of This Flash Mob

I found this video the other day and it made me remember why I LOVE Christmas. One year ago, our CEO gave us $100.00 to help someone in need. For some reason, a few of us thought that the best gift we could possibly give to the world would be…..(drum roll please)… a FLASH MOB where we showered starving college students with DOLLA BILLS.

For the next week we sacrificed most of our lunch breaks and all of our pride to come up with the perfect dance routine to the N’SYNC classic “Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.” Yes… this really happened.

As you could have already imagined, our flash mob was an absolute fail. Due to some last minute drop-outs, a boom box malfunction, and choreography confusion it didn’t exactly look as planned. As one YouTube commenter put it, “MORMONS ARE AKWARD AS $%#@….unless they are on meth which is likely.”

Even though it tanked, I loved it. It’s nice to know that someone has your back even if it means doing a shimmy in front of an sea of blank faces. Public humiliation does more company bonding than any trust fall exercise I have ever seen. Looking back, I wish someone would have told me I dance like a SIMS character but otherwise I wouldn’t have changed a thing. Giving is always better than receiving especially if you have someone else to do it with in an anything-but-epic way. Merry Christmas ONO.

Oh What? So You Think You Want To Learn the Dance?

Yep, we made tutorials on YouTube in hopes that other people would be inspired to join the BYU Library Flash Mob. Since these were never put to full use, feel free to click on the links below to learn our dance routine to N’SYNC.

Merry Christmas from ONO!

December 21, 2011 by
Date_Travis_Hatch
❤, Life

4 Solid Reasons You Should Be Dating Travis Hatch

Say Hello Ladies

Alright so… I have this friend. His name is Travis Hatch and we have known each other for 6 years now. Anyway. He is currently SINGLE (which rarely happens) so I thought I would help advertise my favorite Provo bachelor. In 10 minutes we put together four compelling videos that will surely tug at the heart strings of all single-women in Utah county. Here goes. Four SOLID reasons to date Travis:

Reason #1: He is creative

This trick/code/pen-drawn tattoo I am about to show you is as good as it get when it comes to male creativity. If you aren’t impressed by this you are either A) a dude that stumbled on this post by accident B) someone with moderate to low expectations. Prepare to be amazed:

Reason #2: He is a musician

Who doesn’t like a guy that can play a few notes on a guitar? The whispering is what will really get you:

Reason #3: In The Hipster Realm But Not Of It

It’s very easy to find a hipster in Provo. It is somewhat difficult to find an average guy who got attacked by a “indie” hairdresser on his way home from school. If you are looking for someone that could pass as a hipster, but won’t waste your time taking instagram photos of nature landscapes and mexican food, this is the guy for you:

Reason #4: Was Once Voted the Most Interesting Guy in Rexburg

Yes this really happened. Travis has been haled as the most interesting guy in one of the smallest towns known to the state of Idaho. The runners up for “most interesting” were Bear world and the Potato museum. Click here to see the video.

Get Him

There you have it ladies. The best of Travis Hatch. What are you waiting for? In all honesty, this is one of the all-around greatest guys I know.

December 20, 2011 by
Ideas, Music

Nothing says Merry Christmas like a Mixtape.

I love you like a Christmas song baby

Don’t get me wrong I love I-pods and I-tunes, but I have to say… sometimes I miss the good old days of Sharpie markers and cases stacked with my favorite things in the world called MIXTAPES. I was born near the edge of the cassette tape stage where you would spend hours listening to the radio with your finger on the trigger of a record button. It literally took decades of listening to the radio to record all the songs you wanted. Pointlessly time consuming? Yes. Worth the wait? Debatable, but we didn’t have a choice.

Luckily CD’s and the Napster scandal quickly made their break through and a faster revolution of sharing music was born. My first mix tape or should I say mix CD was from my best friend Adam Back in high school. Scribbled on the top of the disk were the words “Walk Back to the Dam Car.” He later explained it was the only sentence he could make out of both of our names. I don’t know if that was cute or awkward, but I LOVED THAT CD. It had all of our favorite songs from Sunday Bloody Sunday by U2 to Teenage Dirtbag by Wheetus.

After that, anytime I really cared about someone I made them a mix tape. The playlists became more than just a smorgasbord of songs. They became a journal. To this day I love listening to them and re-living the good ol days. I don’t believe any song can be recorded without a memory and those memories seem to have lasted longer than any backstreet boys hit ever did.

I apologize. That was a really long intro to two really short messages:

  1. Make someone a mixtape: Spread the love. It means more than anything you could buy off a shelf at Walmart.
  2. Listen to the mixtape I made you for Christmas: I made a Christmas playlist for all of you. You can listen to the best holiday jams via Grooveshark by clicking the link below.

Happy Holidays! Love Carl.

December 12, 2011 by