2014 is almost over

It’s been several months since I’ve posted here, but I’m back. Just in time for 2014 to come to an end. With no expectation of making up for over 9 months of updates, here’s my 2014 quick highlight reel.

In February I decided to say farewell to my team at meltmedia and joined the team at &yet.

me with the &yet desing team

It’s been amazing! Design, development, illustration, and personal growth. It really is a dream job and I can’t believe how lucky I’ve been. The team is headquartered in Richland, WA and working remotely has been quite the learning experience.

For my birthday in April, we spent the weekend at Disneyland. Managed to take a neat photo from the top of Screamin’ at California Adventure.

birdseye shot of Disney’s California Adventure

The same weekend we saw The Book of Mormon at Pantages Theatre. It’s just as awesome as I hoped and I can’t get those songs out of my head.

nightime shot of Pantages Theatre in Los Angeles

Soon after, our niece Rebekah was born! She’s amazing. Here’s a picture of her and my brother from her Red Egg and Ginger party in September.

my brother with his new baby

At the end of April I had the incredible opportunity to travel to Fortaleza, Brazil to speak at JSConf. Clay and I had a horrible airport experience, but Brazil is so beautiful we soon forgot.

rural Brazil from outside a plane window dune buggies on the beach beachside town near Fortaleza

In July we traveled to Minnesota to hang with Clay’s family and visit his childhood home once more before his parents put it on the market. We saw the Twins play, hiked at Gooseberry Falls, and drank/biked on a Pedal Pub.

Gooseberry Falls bar on wheels with seats and pedals

In August my A Single Div project made its way to the front page of Hacker News. It was exciting and overwhelming to have so many people sharing my project. And it was later featured in the December issue of Net Magazine. Crazy!

A Single Div at #2 on Hacker News

For Halloween I attended my friend’s Wes Anderson themed party. I went as the narrator from Moonrise Kingdom. I was proud of my last minute costume.

me dressed as the narrator from Moonrise Kingdom with red pea coat, fingerless gloves, and green beanie

Had a wonderful Thanksgiving at my parents’ house in Scottsdale. Clay’s and Vanessa’s families joined us and it was great having everyone there together.

me and the Fishers

And to wrap up the year, we snuck in one more Disneyland trip before our annual passes expired. It was the busiest I’ve ever seen the park, but it was still very magical.

It’s a Small World all lit up for Christmas

After Christmas we’re heading to New Orleans to spend the last few days of 2014 with Clay’s family. Next year is going to be awesome.

Lego Movie

For anyone who’s been a kid in the last handful of decades, you must see The Lego Movie. It’s seriously fun and the animation is just so so cool. Plus, I dare you to keep “Everything is Awesome” out of your head.

characters from the LEGO movie Benny the astronaut minifig Emmett with LEGO Batman Vitruvius

A Doo Wop “Timber”

If you think that Ke$ha/Pitbull song “Timber” is pretty silly, you may change your mind after hearing this version.

Warby Parker’s Palm Canyon Collection

I’m a sucker for a good pair of glasses. Everyone’s favorite online glasses shop Warby Parker just released their new Palm Canyon Collection. It features their coolest frames with a charming textural update. The details on the frames are made by “melding sheets of woodwork-inspired acetate and tortoise acetate together” and each pair is unique, just like you. Check out the entire collection at warbyparker.com.

The Boxtrolls

Teaser trailer for the new stop motion film The Boxtrolls, from the makers of the amazing Coraline. This trailer makes me want to watch a movie of them just making the movie. So much work and such incredible detail.