Sitting On A Soapbox

Our Web Design Site, flippingNORMALS.com is Now Online

2009-03-08T04:53:00.007+08:00

After a few weeks of design and development, we finally finished working on our newest baby, the web site for our web design group, flippingNORMALS.com!

flippingNORMALS.com is a creative collective headed by Adrian and myself. We are operating out of Hong Kong and the United Kingdom and specializing in web design and development, e-commerce and content management sytems and social media and mobile services integration.

We're really proud of what we have come up with. The design is intentionally minimal and lean, focusing on the content and ease of navigation. The design elements are really sleek and clean, you can stare at it for hours! ;)

On the technical side, the site is fully running on a Content Management System, so every piece of content on the site is easily updated. We also have a blog where we will post updates about our group, projects, trends and other things related to web design, social media, mobile and online technology.

Check out our new website!

Since we are also focusing on social media, you can also keep up to date with what's going on thru our Facebook page or follow us on Twitter. Better yet, subscribe to our RSS feed.

Interested in hiring us for your next project? Drop us a line!

flippingNORMALS.com
web|social media|mobile

More Flipping Normals Business Card Designs

2009-01-10T03:10:00.003+08:00

Played around the designs a bit more, all based on the previous batch.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Hong Kong License.

Designing Business Cards

2009-01-08T02:39:00.019+08:00

Edit: To answer one of the comments, contact info goes at the back, which is just a plain white background with black text on it. No contact info on the front.

I finally got around to designing some business cards I plan to use for my freelance job. I'm planning to have a set of MiniCards printed by moo.com. They are smaller than the standard size, which makes them a little bit different (and hopefully, more noticeable). I need to choose around 4 or 5 designs (total of 100 cards).

Design 1

Design 2

Design 3

Design 4

Design 5

Design 6

Design 7

Design 8

Design 9

Design 10

Design 11

Design 12

Design 13

Design 14

Design 15

Design 16

Design 17

Design 18

I have been toying around with the idea of using other color schemes--will probably do some of that over the weekend.

So what do you think? Which ones do you love/hate?

All images in this post fall under a Creative Commons License.

Flipping Normals Business Cards by Russell Gutierrez is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Hong Kong License.

Birthday/Christmas Wish List

2008-12-08T17:15:00.008+08:00

I will save you all the trouble...

The Web Designer's Idea Book: The Ultimate Guide To Themes, Trends & Styles In Website Design

Flash: Black Diamond Ultralight Pack

Quicksilver Anodized 12 cm Quickpack

Tabletop Beer Dispenser

Prince of Persia (XBOX360)

And if nothing else...

Donate to Doctors Without Borders/Medicins Sans Frontiers

ARRRR Facebook Matey!

2008-09-25T23:34:00.003+08:00

A friend of mine just pointed out that you can change the language of your Facebook page to English (Pirate). Just go to Settings > Account Settings, click on the Language tab, then choose English (Pirate) from the list.

Here's mine...

Hong Kong Barcamp 2008

2008-08-31T15:25:00.005+08:00

This will be my first barcamp ever! See you all on Saturday, 6 September.

2008: The Year of the Beijing "Olympics" (with apologies to Dr. Evil)

2008-08-20T15:06:00.015+08:00

Here is a recap of this year's "Olympics". Yes, those are quotation marks.

They funded research that led to new scientific breakthroughs to make little girls age faster to qualify for the gymnastics team.

They told a little girl she was too fugly to show her face at the opening ceremonies.

They faked the fireworks.

They brought in their own spectators and cheering squads by the bus loads.

They invented the only grand piano in the world that's light enough to stand on an LCD screen.

Through revolutionary DNA sequencing techniques, they turned Han Chinese kids into other ethnic minorities.

And now, finally, it has been revealed. Even Dan Brown will shudder at the biggest con of all-- the Bird's Nest is not real!

It is made all out of Lego.

Through digital editing and masterful cinematographic techniques (and a highly effective system of brainwashing...), the whole 2008 "Olympics" has been fabricated.

With deception at such a grand scale, who cares about freedom of speech, the right to protest, pollution and unrestricted Internet access in China?

Well, as long as it looks as real as a knock-off Prada bag.

This all reminds me of that scene in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, when Dr. Evil talks about the putting a "laser" on the moon, turning it into a "Death Star" and makes that finger curling motion to signify "quotes".

I think we should all start doing that every time we talk about the "Olympics".

Blue Screen of Olympic Death

2008-08-19T11:24:00.003+08:00

Since I am, undoubtedly, a geek, here is a geeky way of poking fun at the already embarassing controversy-ridden opening ceremonies.

The Blue Screen of Death, signifying a fatal computer error, was projected onto the roof of the National Stadium during the grand finale to the four-hour spectacular as veteran Chinese gymnast Li Ning, suspended 70 metres above the stadium floor, "jogged" towards the Olympic torch.

More of the same pics at Gizmodo, and all taken from different angles from different cameras, making it very likely that this was, contrary to the spirit of this Olympics, not faked.

Ok, so China, maybe it's time to press Ctrl-Alt-Del, reboot and ~~change the party in power~~ install a new operating system.

Just a thought...

Blog Action Day 08

2008-08-15T14:05:00.003+08:00

October 15, 2008. Blog Action Day is here again this year. This time, it's about poverty.

Blog Action Day 2008 Poverty from Blog Action Day on Vimeo.

Masked Cyclists Apologize to Chinese Officials - NYTimes.com

2008-08-08T14:25:00.005+08:00

It constantly baffles me how prominent (or in some cases, obscure) figures can make public apologies without actually owning up to anything. A long while back, we had Edison Chen apologizing to no one in particular for doing nothing in particular, except maybe possibly, within the realm of probability, hurting people's feelings.

Now, four American cyclists issued a formal apology to Chinese officials for wearing anti-pollution masks when they arrived at the airport. From the
NYTimes.com news article:

...insisting that they wore the masks for health reasons and did not mean to insult the host country.

...wearing the masks “was in no way meant to serve as an environmental or political statement.”

So it wasn't a political statement (Olympics is not politics!) or an environmental one (Olympics is not environment?). Ok, so that settles it. All is right again in the world. Nothing to see here. Move along now...

Seriously, how much intelligence does it take to take a look at a statement like wearing a mask for health reasons and ask the next logical question: political/environmental statement or not, the fact is that they still wore masks for health reasons. Do they think the air quality in Beijing is bad for their health?

The Olympic organizing committee has said that the air quality has improved to the extent that masks are no longer needed. Yet athletes are still bringing them. Some are even wearing them. Do they not believe Sun Weijia when he says they don't need masks? Or do they think he is talking out of his ass?

Isn't asking these questions more news-worthy than making sure the athletes understand how their actions are perceived by the host country.

It was just so I could prepare for competition in the best way I could. I hope people will understand that we meant no wrong.

But, does he think the air in Beijing is bad for his health?

I would understand someone saying something like,

We are sorry for wearing the masks. We were misinformed. We thought we needed them, but we actually don't since the air quality has improved.

Nope, but there is none of that. Instead we have,

I wore a mask because the air is polluted and is going to make me sick. I'm sorry that I offended you. BFF? (Then tack a smiley at the end) :D

Why is everyone so preoccupied with not hurting feelings rather than focusing on the important questions?

This touchy-feely world needs to watch less Oprah.

Olympic Live Sites in Hong Kong - Points to Note

2008-08-08T11:43:00.010+08:00

Olympic Live Sites in Hong Kong - Points to Note:
1. All participants should follow the rules and regulations set by the Organiser and produce valid admission tickets when entering the Sites.

Heil!

2. For security reasons, the Organiser will inspect the personal belongings carried by any person entering the Sites.

Fair enough but what will they be looking for and how aptly trained will they be to recognize, presumably, the items specified below?

3. For public order and safety in the Sites, participants are prohibited from bringing the following items into the Sites:
* Flags, banners, slogans, leaflets, publicity materials and displays without the Organiser's prior approval;

Aha, they forgot to ban the bat signal! Oh, wait, is that a display? And no lighting the beacons of Gondor either.

* Any kind of article which can be used as a weapon or may be offensive; and

Ok, they got me there. I can't bring in a sawed-off shotgun, nerve gas, or my Basic Instinct DVDs...

* Any food, drinks, glassware or fragile articles which may pose a danger.

Will they stop me from bringing in my McNugget Meal from the Official Olympic Restaurant? Well it does contain food and drink and poses a really big danger of chronic heart disease, obesity...

4. Not to wear collectively, display or promote the trade mark appeared on the clothing and belongings intentionally for the purpose of commercial or political promotion of any kind;

What? You mean this old bald guy in orange robes on my T-Shirt is not Che Guevarra?

5. Not to conduct activities which hinder the smooth running of the Sites or other people's participation;

People will be watching the Olympic telecast on a big TV screen on their big fat asses. What activity hinders that? Ummm... exercise!

6. Not to sell or hire out any articles in the Sites or provide any articles for the purposes of selling or hiring out without authorization;

I have nothing funny for this one...

7. Not to distribute unauthorized printing materials or conduct political/commercial promotion;

So you will have to spell them T1bet, Ta1wan, Burm@ and D@rfur? Oh and my personal favorite, F@lun G0ng.

8. Not to perform any acts which will disturb the order of the Sites;

I'm having a problem with all these broad and sweeping regulations. Standing still or producing anti-bodies could fall under this.

9. Not to record, take photo or video-shoot programmes conducted at the Sites without authorization or done for non-private purpose.

But Mommy, I want a picture with that tank rolling over those silly people!

10. The operating hours of the Sites may change due to weather conditions. Please take note of the public announcement.

Because Hong Kong does not get the same weather control budget as Beijing...

11. Please go to the Sites by means of public transport as far as possible.

Well, I actually agree. Hong Kong public transport is one of the best in the world!

Iran Tech

2008-07-16T15:36:00.002+08:00

Gizmodo has more Iran GIMP love

These ones really cracked me up...

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad makes you feel

He’s a cool exec with a heart of steel.

As Iran Man, all jets ablaze,

He’s fighting and smiting with repulsor rays!

Amazing armor! That’s Iran Man!

A blazing power! That’s Iran Man!

Amazonian Tribe Speaks Language Without Numbers

2008-07-15T11:40:00.008+08:00

From the article:
The work builds on a study published in 2004, which found that the Piraha had words to express the quantities "one," "two," and "many." The MIT researchers observed the same phenomenon when they asked Piraha speakers to describe sets of objects as they were added, from one to 10.

However, the MIT team decided to add a new twist--they started with 10 objects and asked the tribe members to count down. In that experiment, the tribe members used the word previously thought to mean "two" when as many as five or six objects were present, and they used the word for "one" for any quantity between one and four.

This indicates that "these aren't counting numbers at all," said Gibson. "They're signifying relative quantities."

Depending on what you're into, be wary or be very excited when a Piraha asks you: so you wanna come over tonight, just the two of us? ;) God knows what they mean by a threesome!

Closer to home, studies show that Starbucks baristas have no words for small, medium or large.

China to provide free Bibles to athletes, visitors during Olympic Games - International Herald Tribune

2008-07-14T12:11:00.001+08:00

China to provide free Bibles to athletes, visitors during Olympic Games - International Herald Tribune: "Religious texts and items from major religious groups are allowed to be brought in for personal use by athletes and visitors.'"

I wonder if that includes pictures of and texts written by the Dalai Lama?

Classic photos in Lego

2008-07-14T00:38:00.000+08:00

Something about Lego is a big turn on... but enough about my fetishes. Here's something more interesting: classic photos recreated in Lego!

Here are a few examples of the original photos and then their Lego recreations.

Lunch atop a skyscraper

Lewis Hine Power house mechanic working on steam pump

Tiananmen Square

Ducks and Bubble Wrap

2008-07-13T15:29:00.002+08:00

It has been over 2 months since we moved to the new flat but it was only last weekend that I unpacked my rubber duckies. One of my friends (thanks, Oli!) sent them from Chicago as a thank you for a favor that I did for him (I don't even remember what it was, but hey, that's what friends are for). Incidentally, Oli sells these ducks along with soap, candles and other bathroom products at Soak. As far as I know, they only deliver to addresses in the United States but if you want to buy something from them, give me a shout and I'm sure we can work things out.

I received the package before we moved out from the old flat which had a bathtub. Unfortunately, at the new flat, we only have a standing shower so there really isn't enough space to display the entire flotilla.

So I had to choose which ones to display in the limited space in the bathroom. I ended up choosing just 3 devil ducks, the big one even glows in the dark!

They were, of course, wrapped in the ubiquitous bubble wrap and true enough, I couldn't stop myself from popping the bubbles. This was late at night, so there I was, popping until I was so exhausted I had to go to sleep.

I'm not sure what it is about bubble wrap that makes them so irresistible; what I am sure about is that I am not the only one that shares this ~~fetish~~ sentiment. So for fellow bubble wrap-a-holics out there, feast your eyes upon the Bubble Calender, a poster-sized calendar with a bubble to pop every day.

Now back to the ducks. Thousands of them have been floating around in the ocean for over a decade.

Now if only we get this kind of pollution in the beaches here in Hong Kong.

College Humor Internet Meetings

2008-07-12T22:01:00.007+08:00

All these calls of "Photoshopped" reminded me of the series of videos produced by College Humour. If, like me, you have ~~lurked in~~ read a lot of forums and message boards, see how many comments you will find familiar!

Part 1: Internet Commenter Business Meeting

Part 2: Internet Commenter Retirement Party
And here I was thinking, where are the LOLcats? And where is goatse?!! (I realize that most of my friends read this from work and it is in my best interest to make sure they stay employed... so no links to goatse!)

Part 3: Internet Commenter Funeral
Gotta love ROFL!!!

More Photoshop, Ahem, GIMP Goodness

2008-07-12T21:44:00.003+08:00

Wired has rounded up reactions to the Iran missile launch picture manipulation feeding frenzy.

This one is my personal favorite.

Nuclear Iran Powered by Open Source Software

2008-07-11T12:53:00.008+08:00

A New York Times Blog entry calls attention to an "apparently digitally altered" picture of Iran's missile launch test. Comparing the picture above with the picture below, you can see that a fourth missile was added.

Their analysis of the image (below) suggests that it was ~~digitally altered~~ ~~Photoshopped~~ GIMPed (obviously, no self-respecting Iranian spin doctor would use software from the evil American-based Adobe Systems).

Of course there is not one shred of evidence that they used GIMP (the GNU Image Manipulation Program), but hey, everyone's been making things up and I wouldn't want to be the only one concerned with actual facts so here is my contribution to this big fat web of lies: GIMP!

Dirty Wii Accessories

2008-07-10T11:56:00.003+08:00

Are you thinking what I'm thinking?

From the website: we search man and woman for a commercial.

Floppy Disks Missing From HK Hospital

2008-07-09T16:54:00.002+08:00

From The Standard: "The public hospital in Tsuen Wan confirmed that a batch of 3.5-inch floppy disks was missing."

Floppy disks? Who still uses 3.5's? Hell, how many years has it been since computers actually came with floppy drives?

Official Beijing Olympics Cheer

2008-07-09T14:17:00.007+08:00

"Beijing Olympic chiefs are introducing an official cheer for patriotic spectators to spur on Team China at the Games, Chinese media reports."

Video footage of the cheer being performed here.

Hmm, where do I start with this one?

Beijing Etiquette Institute? International principles of cheering? WTF?

Imagine thousands upon thousands of spectators at the Bird's Nest doing this perfectly synchronized...who knows, though? After completely mastering the cheer, they may reach the upper levels of OT and finally be rid of the tyranny of the evil intergalactic overlord Xenu... oh wait, I'm mixing up my cults!

Kool-aid anyone?

Yes, Sex Sells Everything, Even Religion

2008-07-09T00:41:00.019+08:00

No, my Mormon encounter (or lack of it) has been discussed enough in other fora (EGO sum inflatus) so I will not repeat it here. If anything, it has led me to countless hours of googling as much ~~useless~~ information I can about our Latter Day brothers and sisters and the most interesting tidbits are these two:

The first is the Men on a Mission pinup calenda r (yeah, you read that right--a Mormon pinup calendar). They sell funny T-shirts as well. This one is my personal favorite.

The other (and more serious one) is Julia Sweeney performing the first 15 minutes of her show Letting Go of God at the 2006 TED Talks. It's a very funny and reflective piece about religion, Santa Claus and of course, Mormons.

She drives home a point every rational religious can't help but consider-- that there is a difference between the two questions

Do you feel that God loves you?

Do you believe that God loves you?

And yes, Elder Paul, I am still waiting for your phone call ;)

GMA: The truth will make you go hungry. Really, it will!

2008-04-09T14:16:00.007+08:00

The rice shortage in the Philippines may be strange but how it is being used by politicians for their own ends is hardly surprising.

Take GMA's latest rhetoric, for example.

Arroyo said, "No endless investigation will put rice on the table, computers in classrooms, or clinics in barangay [villages]."

Referring to continuing investigations of massive corruption in the government, GMA seems to be suggesting that in the face of the current rice crisis, we should abandon all efforts at solving our country's other deep rooted problems, such as corruption. This is a false dichotomy and ultimately self-defeating. The deeply-ingrained culture and system of corruption is in itself another crisis. Any attempts at putting rice on the table, computers in classrooms, or clinics in barangays... or any attempts at improving the economy will surely be undermined as long as there still exists massive corruption.

So it is important to continue the investigations and hold those responsible accountable. If GMA doesn't want them to be endless, then maybe she should do all she can to make sure that those involved facilitate and do not impede the search for truth and the carriage of justice.

food on the table, not politics on the frontpage...

Hmm, I wonder if this news made it to the front page?

New Year, New Cocktails

2008-01-26T23:34:00.000+08:00

I have decided to learn how to make new cocktails. I know, most people resolve to stop drinking but here I am trying to find new and wonderful ways of getting drunk.

So today's drink is called the Bourbon Highball. It has been pointed out that I have been drinking too much bourbon lately. Well what can I say, I like 'em boys down south ;)

1 1/2 ouces bourbon
1 piece of lemon (no lemon now, so I subbed a dash of lemon juice)
Ginger ale for topping up
1 lemon peel spiral (again, no lemon in hand!)

Put ice cubes in a highball glass, pour bourbon, then lemon. Top up with ginger ale. Then add lemon peel spiral.

It was absolutely yummy. Bourbon and ginger ale make it sweet and just a little hint of sourness from the lemon. The kind of drink you won't feel till you've had about 10 and it hits you and then you're down on the floor.

Much like a Cosmopolitan, except manlier! :D