DI4LOGUE: 4 Questions 4 My Nonagon

BR4DSH4W: WHAT ARE YOU IMPRESSED WITH?
People that manage to successfully integrate their passions into their lives without compromising either. It’s an incredibly difficult balance to master, and I’m in awe of those that have succeeded.

BR4DSH4W: WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION?
The usual suspects—music, movies, images and friends. I also get a weirdly high proportion of ideas in the shower and on long car trips.

BR4DSH4W: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
Recently, lots of Brian Eno and Prince. Sometimes you have to look back to move forward.

BR4DSH4W: HOW DO YOU LIKE TO BEGIN?
I usually start without thinking deeply about where I’m going, just letting musical ideas emerge and evolve organically. I’d like to be more directed in my approach though- establishing a theme and a conceptual framework first, then explore within those boundaries.

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BIOGR4PHY: John Brian Kirby and I met because I found a demo CD of his amazing music tucked away in the basement of a nightclub—and I called to say thanks. I continue to be inspired by his humble focus and precise artistic vision, and consider it an honor to be friends and collaborate on projects together. Do yourself a favor and go download his wonderful album(s) right now: http://nonagon.bandcamp.com

Di4LOGUE: 4 Questions for My Lensman

BR4DSH4W: WHAT ARE YOU IMPRESSED WITH?
Meeting a person with a solid passion, firm conviction, and unstoppable dedication and passion for their craft.

BR4DSH4W: WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION?
My inspiration is triggered simply by opening my eyes. My neighbors, my peers, my colleagues, my family, my competition, my heros.

BR4DSH4W: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
Manu Chao Radio (Pandora) and that hungry beast inside me.

BR4DSH4W: HOW DO YOU LIKE TO BEGIN?
With balance and a clean work environment.

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BIOGR4PHY: Trevor Traynor is the hardest working man in photo-business. Whenever I end a day exhausted from work, I find his next post about flying to an exotic location for a photo shoot or behind-the-scenes video featuring a veteran star of industry; and realize that I should stop complaining and get back to work.

Di4LOGUE: 4 Questions for My Ninja

BR4DSH4W: WHAT ARE YOU IMPRESSED WITH?
I am always impressed when someone creates something amazing using very simple tools and techniques. I love loose work. I love when someone makes something incredibly difficult seem effortless, because you know just how much time and dedication they put in to their craft.

BR4DSH4W: WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION?
I find music to be incredibly inspirational. I love that music can create an emotional response. Sometimes, you can’t even explain in words what you’re feeling. It’s just something in your gut or your heart. Music can turn an otherwise routine walk down the street into a dream. You can close your eyes and imagine yourself in another place, somewhere in the past or the future. Of course, I check out all types of blogs for motion graphics, design, video and photography. I love reading now which I didn’t used to! There was about a 10 year period of my life that I don’t think I read more than 2-3 books. I just wasn’t in the head space to read. Now, the more I read the more inspired I become. It’s fucking awesome! I’m inspired by people that never give up. I’m inspired by people who are absolutely in love with what they do.

BR4DSH4W: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
Bachelors of Science “Warehouse Days”. Locally produced, bad ass drum and bass! This past year I found myself listening to much mellower, midtempo and atmospheric music—Lusine, Moderat, Apparat, Burial, Four Tet, Bonobo. Moderat and Bonobo live were both AMAZING.

BR4DSH4W: HOW DO YOU LIKE TO BEGIN?
More important than how to begin is that you actually begin. I used to think that it was always best to prepare and to plan as much as possible. This kept me from starting a lot of projects and made me very hesitant. Planning and preparation are great, but when it comes to productivity I now think that you just simply have to begin. Begin and then keep going. Even if it’s a little bit at a time. Grab some paper and a pencil, fire up After Effects, whatever. Just start. Get some ideas out. Maybe it’s rough, maybe it’s pretty. Just go.

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BIOGR4PHY: Brandon Sugiyama makes success look easy. Humble and thoughtful, yet ambitious and good at just about everything he chooses to take on. He is equal parts world-champion wushu martial artist, party-machine rockstar DJ, video effects creative genius, and all around nice guy.

DI4LOGUE: 4 Questions for My Nana

BR4DSH4W: WHAT ARE YOU IMPRESSED WITH?
I think I am impressed by the beauty of things not man made. A gorgeous sunset, a wonderful moonrise, the new buds on our trees, and the flowers so abundant in the gardens and parks I see as I drive by them. I also love the completeness of single flowers and the whiskers on the cat.

BR4DSH4W: WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION?
I find inspiration in listening to music and singing, and laughter.

BR4DSH4W: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
I listen to hear God’s directions in every task I take on.

BR4DSH4W: HOW DO YOU LIKE TO BEGIN?
I begin each day, each task, each new experience with expectancies of good, and say, “Thank you, Father-Mother God, for all Your blessings and Your love.”

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BIOGR4PHY: Pat Bauer is my grandmother. She has a fiery wit, passionate spirit and a lovely heart. Whereby, many of my fondest early memories were crafted around our adventures together.

DI4LOGUE: 4 Questions for My Papa

BR4DSH4W: WHAT ARE YOU IMPRESSED WITH?
All of God’s creatures, from people to bugs. This could not have been accidental, it had to be divinely planned.

BR4DSH4W: WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION?
From my loved ones and my surroundings along with past experiences.

BR4DSH4W: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
If you mean music, anything relaxing, otherwise mostly my own conscience.

BR4DSH4W: HOW DO YOU LIKE TO BEGIN?
By thanking my maker for all the good that has come into my life, “that he was loved and respected by all who knew him”.

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BIOGR4PHY: Edward Bauer is my grandfather. And while he is not the Eddie Bauer you’re probably thinking of, he is happy to discuss the benefits of rugged clothing or Ford Explorers on the phone if you happen to mis-dial a phone number in Southern California. He carries a quiet strength, witty sarcasm, and a fantastic golf swing with him at all times!

DI4LOGUE: 4 Questions for My Roots

BR4DSH4W: WHAT ARE YOU IMPRESSED WITH?
natural beauty. there are all these sublime things that surround us that so many of us take for granted. trees, clouds, grass, birds, a grove of bamboo or a fruit tree. even more grandiose things like human bodies, waterfalls, mountains, rivers and the oceans. man-made objects can’t touch that stuff.

BR4DSH4W: WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION?
it’s probably what most people say, but i draw most of my creative inspiration from music, films, words and visual art—mostly music. the bass and the drums are really important to me. given just those elements, i can hear worlds of sound happening on top of them.¶ the best way to get my mind going is to watch a film that leaves a lot unspoken, or listen to a piece of music that makes me ask questions about how and why it was created. i tend to prefer things on the experimental or avant garde side, and that’s why, i think. i especially like minimalist pieces of music and art that exist as just structure—shapes, noises, colors and stark images. if you approach something where the interpretation doesn’t really matter, you’re left with a blank slate and you can make it whatever you want. i like to view those things as building blocks.

BR4DSH4W: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
it changes every week but right now i’m really into modern psychedelic rock. there are some really incredible bands making this heavy, droney, head-nodding music right now. some of my faves are Earthless, Dead Meadow, Wooden Shjips, Deerhunter and Lotus Plaza. i listened to a lot of early Pink Floyd as a kid and i never really grew out of that “pastel wash” cosmic thing. ¶ lately, i’ve also been craving laid back sounds like Little Joy, The Donkeys, Jesse Sykes and John Zorn’s filmworks. ¶ of course, there are always heaps of reggae, soul, jazz, brazilian, and whatever else fighting over the remaining space on my iPod. i carry it everywhere and it’s usually always on shuffle.

BR4DSH4W: HOW DO YOU LIKE TO BEGIN?
as early as possible. plain black coffee or a chai tea with soy milk. it all depends what i did the night before.

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BIOGR4PHY: Michael Calore is a technology writer and musician living in San Francisco. He has been true to his core since we met 23 years ago. His effortless, fun-loving spirit and vividly creative attitude are infectious, and I am fortunate to continue to spend the better part of my life learning and growing as his friend.

DI4LOGUE: 4 Questions for My Gram

BR4DSH4W: WHAT ARE YOU IMPRESSED WITH?
I am impressed with freeways. We wouldn’t get anywhere without them.

BR4DSH4W: WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION?
I find inspiration in my church Bible lessons. I feel protected and comforted by them.

BR4DSH4W: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
I hope I am listening to God to be guided each day.

BR4DSH4W: HOW DO YOU LIKE TO BEGIN?
Begin what?

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BIOGR4PHY: Gertrude Petersen is my great grandmother. She has seen the world change drastically over her 99 years, yet still cherishes each new day with a smile. And I can only hope to experience and enjoy all the things she has in her life with the same joyful sense of wonderment.

DI4LOGUE: 4 Questions for My Socialite

BR4DSH4W: WHAT ARE YOU IMPRESSED WITH?
I’m impressed with people who just have an idea and then they’re like, “fuck failure, I’m just going to do this.” Like, I definitely had that mindset of going balls to the wall on projects, and for the most part I can say that has done me really well. I’m a little bit more reserved in both ideas and projects and writing over the past couple of years for a lot of reasons—all of which are all in my head, really—and I want to be like my friends who are like, “you know what? I’ve written two novels. Fuck this shit, I think I’ll go to med school and be a burn unit specialist.” (I dated one of those. It’s equal parts amazing and depressing.)

BR4DSH4W: WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION?
Pop culture. The Internet. Awkward silences.

BR4DSH4W: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
Oh man, as of right this second? The Bird And The Bee. Albums I have purchased or downloaded lately include Adele, Vampire Weekend (yes, late bloomers for the both of them), and Jane Lui (a fantastic, local, SF artist with musicality similar to Tori Amos).

BR4DSH4W: HOW DO YOU LIKE TO BEGIN?
Like begin my day? Gah. I wake up, I turn on the TV and watch the Today Show on the one channel I get since I don’t have cable. I check my e-mail, make something simple for breakfast and head off to work.

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BIOGR4PHY: Ernie Hsiung is an award-winning blogger and social-networking entrepreneur. After a four year run at Yahoo! as a Web Developer and Social Media Consultant, he currently works as an OpenSocial Developer Advocate for Ning. His cutting-edge social media projects set trends which you and I will continue to follow for years to come.

DI4LOGUE: 4 Questions for My Partner

BR4DSH4W: WHAT ARE YOU IMPRESSED WITH?
I’m impressed with people who blaze trails. People whom had no one to follow, no bread crumbs to mark the path traveled and still traveled anyway. On top of all that most of these people were told at almost every turn (before they were famous) that what they wanted to do couldn’t/wouldn’t happen. Specifically these people for me are Bruce Lee, Quincy Jones, Albert Einstein and Malcom X. Of course there are alot more but these are the guys that stand out to me.

BR4DSH4W: WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION?
People and culture are a great inspirations to me. Life can catch up with you at times and you can begin to believe what the boob-tube tells you to believe. Culture always reminds you of the abstract and the picturesque. I think this is why I love downtown in ANY city across the globe and everywhere in big metro cities. You can find people who let loose and have forgotten how to hide themselves from the world. They have taken the opposite approach. The have be so much themselves that they tend to repeal those who aren’t authentic and attract those who are as to surround themselves with a network of their own living vision. It’s a beautiful thing!

BR4DSH4W: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
Black Milk and Nicolay stay in my rotation at all times of the year. Music from the soul is always my weakness and honestly without certain chords and feeling it’s almost impossible for me to get into it. Soul has zipp to do with genre and everything to do with what you’re putting into the music. Little Brother, Jill Scott, Prince, Musiq Soulchild, Illa J, Reel People, Rich Medina and Nonagon are all in the deck as of right now.

BR4DSH4W: HOW DO YOU LIKE TO BEGIN?
Who knows! I get visions of what to do. They aren’t always clear but are always hard hitting. From there it’s a matter of trying it out and seeing what it looks and feels like before I either keep it for something I’m going to do more of in the future (is tied to a passion of mine) or pass it on to someone whom will make it grow and blossom the way it should (because it’s their passion).

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BIOGR4PHY: Rai-mon Nemar Barnes is an indie-lifestyle advocate, and the founder of LEGENDmag. He brings unimaginable energy to everything he does, inspiring everyone along the way. If I could attain only a a small fraction of his passion, I would be set for life.

DI4LOGUE: 4 Questions for My Rockstar

BR4DSH4W: WHAT ARE YOU IMPRESSED WITH?
As the quote goes, “most men lead lives of quiet desperation.” I’m impressed when people take action to bring them out of that mode. People who are “naturals” at their trade or craft. Our President.

BR4DSH4W: WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION?
Kids, for their total lack of fear, sense of wonder and propensity to always ask “why.” We should be doing more of that as grown-ups.

BR4DSH4W: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
Proton Radio on iTunes. Earlier in the car it was an “all NIN” playlist, and while working it’s usually Secret Agent radio. All that lazy, swingy, Henry Mancini stuff is brilliant. Going to go set up a Mancini station on Pandora… brb.

BR4DSH4W: HOW DO YOU LIKE TO BEGIN?
“Three, four!” because counting the band off with “one, two, three, four” takes too long. For the work day, it’s coffee, a light breakfast, music and the right lighting. When meeting people, I like to repeat the person’s name back to them, to help me remember their name later. It sometimes works. 35 minutes of cardio at the gym.

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BIOGR4PHY: Charles Hunt is a musician, coder, traveler, and dreamer. Despite being such a level-headed guy, he has lived a rockstar lifestyle most of us can only fantasize about. And yet whenever I get stuck in a rut, he is the first person I call for a sanity check.

DI4LOGUE: 4 Questions for My Mother

BR4DSH4W: WHAT ARE YOU IMPRESSED WITH?
What impresses me most is integrity. I am in awe and want to emulate people who totally live in their honesty and integrity. It isn’t easy, and when push comes to shove many cave in to the moment or to the masses. I hope I never do that, in any way that diminishes my integrity and character.

BR4DSH4W: WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION?
I look to nature and the world around me for inspiration. The birds and the sky at sunset, and the gorgeous flowers that God made. How pure and pristine they are and how simple. I love to get lost in gardening and smells of the earth. It is basic.

BR4DSH4W: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
I am always trying to listen to my inner voice and heart, as I feel that is where the Omnipotent Creator speaks to us all. We all have that still small voice that is guiding and inspiring. We just have to tune in.

BR4DSH4W: HOW DO YOU LIKE TO BEGIN?
I guess it depends on what I am beginning. My day, with prayer. My job with order and joy. My relationships, with listening and interaction. My housework with a groan, but determination.

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BIOGR4PHY: Diane Bradshaw trods the globe—loving, giving, and watching—to help others with a fresh smile. She has taught me how to love and trust and “go with my gut”—which is exactly how all this got started.

DI4LOGUE: 4 Questions for My Father

BR4DSH4W: WHAT ARE YOU IMPRESSED WITH?
The resiliency of people. It sometimes takes us (individually or collectively) a while to find out or accept “what is”, but when people do, they are remarkable at adapting and responding to situations, emergencies, or the environment. At our best, we are resourceful, self reliant, resilient, and responsible.

BR4DSH4W: WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION?
My visit to Arizona reminds me how inspirational nature is. I love the scenery. I love traveling by car or especially by motorcycle. I feel best when I feel closest to nature. Other than than, people who give of their time and energy to give back to others. For instance, I’m impressed with organizations like Habitat for Humanity. People who volunteer and give back selflessly helping people who need housing.

BR4DSH4W: WHO ARE YOU LISTENING TO?
I assume you mean musically. My tastes are very eclectic. Classic rock is my favorite, but I’ve been listening to all types. Some country. No rap or hip hop. Just looked at my most recent music purchases and I bought some old stuff… Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, Mahogany Rush, Bread (didn’t have any and wanted to add it to my collection/haven’t listened to it much), Rush (Feedback). I’ll hear a song I like and want to hear more from the group/artist. I don’t listen to much music over and over.

BR4DSH4W: HOW DO YOU LIKE TO BEGIN?
As people, we have the tendency to want to start in the middle. Conversations, arguments, solutions, politics, tasks, etc. In conversations, I have been trying to go back to the start of the issue rather than discuss the middle. I try to remember some of our most challenging problems will not have simple solutions. As for tasks, I have been trying my best to start at the beginning AND to finish. My goal is very little stuff left undone (this may be too big a task to accomplish in one lifetime).

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BIOGR4PHY: Keith Bradshaw is an avid motorcyclist and lives in Southern California with his wife Verna, their cat Harley, and their dog Sadie. The older I get, the more like-him I become… and nothing makes me happier.