Gina

Author, Designer, and "that girl your mother warned you about." Looking good seems to be my job, whether it's working with the site design, or a number of other more interesting capacities. I have a ridiculous sense of humour and a brutal sense of honesty- you'll see a lot of that coming through in my writing, so don't say I didn't warn you if I somehow manage to offend you AND hurt your feelings at the same time. On the plus side, it makes my dating and advice columns a lot more pertinent to an unfinished man in the real world.

Humor · May 8, 2016

Ed Hardy, Audigier, and You; Seriously, Stop It

As a woman, I appreciate when a man puts a little extra effort into the way he looks. I appreciate a man whose clothing fits, and …

Art & Photography · May 8, 2016

Sophisticated Stacking – Slate Sculpture by Stephen Kettle

It seems as though we have a desire from birth to pile shit on top of other shit. Alphabet blocks transition into beer can stacking, ending in professional careers as construction workers, architects and longshoremen. Enter Stephen Kettle– slate sculpture artist who painstakingly stacks thousands of slivers of thin stone into unbelievable pieces of art. Kettle has had a pretty interesting life outside of his OCD art form; as a member of the Oxford Dangerous Sports club, he was one of five men thrown over 100 yards from a medieval trebuchet that was so large it had to be loaded with a Range Rover, which sounds pretty awesome. Unfortunately, the fifth man was thrown to his death, and this apparently convinced Kettle that sculpting was a much better lifestyle and occupational choice. While maybe not as badass, that choice has worked out well, with his pieces being displayed in galleries and museums around the UK.

Fine Living · May 8, 2016

Manly Design with Wooden Cinderblocks and Oil Lamps – Sergio Silva

Most older guys will fondly reminisce about the days where they created customized (read: poor as shit) man caves with milk crates, two by fours, and cinderblocks. Something about the way the manly design of this makeshift modular crap is fondly remembered always made it something that a small part of me wanted to try, just because it seemed like a rite of passage. I usually snap back to reality pretty quickly, realize I don’t want trash in my apartment, and pull out the Ikea catalog. Then I found Sergio Silva‘s pieces, and suddenly the “I’m so broke I cook my KD on the radiator” look has been upgraded to a much more respectable “I have many leather bound books and my apartment smells of rich mahogany.”

Art & Photography · May 8, 2016

Hyper-Realistic Rubber: Tire Sculpture by Yong Ho Ji

Whenever I take road trips, I often notice the hulking shreds of stripped semi tires laying around, and I’ve always thought two things: one, they look …

Travel · May 8, 2016

The Urban Iditarod: The Best Beer Swilling, Cart Pushing Race You’ve Never Heard Of

The Alaskan Iditarod is a grueling race that pits man and sled dogs against the tundra and towering spruce forests, white out conditions and sub zero …

woman looking at man keeping him on the hook

Relationships · May 8, 2016

On the Hook: Worse Than the Friend Zone

Dear Gina, I’ve got a problem, and I think I need some advice. There’s this girl I love- we’ve tried dating but its never worked out. It was good but there were problems, and when I went back to NYC for the summer, she stayed in Buffalo where she’s from. The distance got to us, fights occurred a lot and we broke up. But we ended up talking, and almost trying to work out the problems; my stuff wasn’t the only thing keeping her from a relationship, life just handed her too many lemons. So we would kiss, hold hands in public, cuddle, no sex and it was ok, but there were still fights…Now we just decided maybe it won’t work. I don’t know what to do. Do I move on?

It’s hard to believe that there’s anything worse than being friend zoned by a woman you want to be with, but the sad reality is that there is an even worse state…and most men will experience it at least once in their lives. I was talking with one of the other unfinished men this week about being on the hook, and I decided it was time

Pop Culture by Madeon on Novation Launchpad with man dancing

Music · May 8, 2016

Pop Culture by Madeon: Killer Live 39 Track Mashup

I heard Pop Culture by Madeon a few months ago and it immediately got in my head with its crunchy synth and infectious dance styling, so when it came up in my playlist today, I decided to check for a video. When I found the official release on YouTube, I was blown away by what I was seeing. I knew it was obviously a mashup, and could pick out bits and pieces of songs I like, but I didn’t realize just how deep this rabbit hole went. The seamless editing blends 39 separate tracks from artists ranging widely from ELO and The Who to Chromeo and Nero. Watching Madeon’s fingers dancing across his Launchpad and trying to figure out how he’s keeping track of the samples and levels while playing a freestyle organ solo is nothing short of amazing. His mastery of digital dj equipment seemingly knows no bounds. And then, I found out he’s only 17 years old – queue puff of smoke leaking out my ears. Hit the jump and turn it up for a great party track, an unbelievable visual use of musical technology… and bonus utterly ridiculous dance video .