Hopzilla (Coming Soon)

It’s that time of year again. Last year I dove into brewing beer, putting together a few batches that actually weren’t as bad as I anticipated. During studying and learning what I could, a friend gave me two small hop plants (both Centennial) . Since the hops were transplanted in September (and they were a seedling) they needed a year to become more mature. Last year I was surprised since both plants produced an ounce or two (although not very full) but still were vacuum sealed (basically for showcasing my first crop ). In January that same friend was moving from his house and didn’t have room for some of his hops, so he gave me three rhizomes (Nugget and Yakima Golding). This year I’ll be watching all five plants with excitement, especially since they’ll be added to some brew later in the year.

Centennial #1

Centennial #2

Yakima Golding

Nugget #1

Nugget #2

The Yakima Golding is the runt, but hopefully she’ll catch up.

Cheers.

No related posts.

As of Monday, I am now officially a Board Member for the Friends of the Ridgefield Wildlife Refuge. After thinking about this for sometime, I wanted to retrace my steps on how just one year ago I moved here, not knowing a soul other than family, and now knowing just about my entire community around me.

When I first moved to Ridgefield, I had just graduated college days before and was full of ambition, but also full of a “I’m gonna relax for a little while and then conquer the world” attitude. After helping out my family for a few months, reading tons of books, and while doing side jobs here and there I decided that it was time to get my entrepreneurial attitude and do something with it. So that’s when I decided to follow a passion of mine and start Graticle and stop talking about theory and start doing. (I always keep this quote from Albert Einstein in the back of mind “Reading, after a certain age, diverts the mind too much from its creative pursuits. Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking.”

What I also started doing was noticing what people twice my age were doing with their lives (basically the retired). I mean if anything was more important to look at, it is in my opinion, this. People this age are finally getting to do what they want to do (after grueling through 30+ years of their lives), and I thought recreating this in my own life it probably an important step. What I noticed first, was that people wanted to be a part of something and make a difference beyond their own life. This comes in different forms of course. You don’t have to be a full fledged advocate for a cause, only a simple voice that expresses their opinions at an outing with friends and family (there are always extremes but it’s important to note the stuff in between as well).

So what I noticed a lot of people doing, were joining organizations or becoming board members for a non-profit, profit, or otherwise.

Shortly after observing this, a note came in the mail that said there was an annual meeting for the city of Ridgefield, where you could get an overall update for what’s been happening and what will be happening in the community. So I thought what a perfect event for me to attend, since a) I knew no one outside of family and b) I should know what’s going on in the community. So I attended the meeting and realized I actually did know a couple of people from the community — from the bank that I have my business and personal bank accounts at. So at the door I already felt welcome and very interested in seeing what’s going on. During the meeting they announced they were looking for volunteers for a Ridgefield Junction Neighborhood Association and thinking about standing up, I chose otherwise. That is until the manager at the bank that I had met before announced that I should stand up and give it a shot. So I stood up, explained who I was and sat back down. The Board had a vote and next thing I know, I was on the Board and people were coming up to me left and right to introduce themselves. I was completely in awe and very excited to be part of the community since I had just moved there a few months prior.

During the same time I was also doing some research on the community and came across the Friends of the Ridgefield Wildlife Refuge’s website. I knew from the past from non-profit college classes and actually volunteering for a handful of non-profits (including the Fresno Comunity Food Bank and helping with their website) that non-profits are always in need for more help. And by the look of their website (and hopefully without offense) this was the case.

So I sent an email to the Friends and explained who I was was and wanted to help with their website. I got an email back from the Director explaining that she would like to meet with me to discuss this further. So another person and I completely re-designed their website (which you can view here) while I still continue to create and maintain it. I volunteered a ton but had a great time, met some great people, while also learned a lot about myself and even more about the community and the refuge.

After months of volunteering and the vacancy of a Board position, I was invited to see if this would be something I would be interested in. After attending a few meeting (and basically knowing most of the people) I decided I would like to ask that I be considered to join the Board. So this Monday I attended a meeting and was voted in as a Board member.

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So what can you take away these events in my life?

1. Find out what you want to do (business, lay on the beach etc.) and spend some alone time with yourself to see what you’re going to need to make this goal a reality. This is easier said than done. Some people (like me) need a wake up call, or something in their life that says “alright, you’ve wasted enough time – now do something.” Fortunately for me, this came in mid college rather than ten years later down the road.

2. Start making baby steps toward that goal. For example, do you need to send an email to someone to get the ball rolling? There’s nothing more powerful than being held accountable for an action from another person. Also, don’t think about all the steps it’s going to take, only the next step. As famously put by Martin Luther King Jr.: “Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.”

3. Work hard. There’s no remedy here. Work your butt off.

1. New Blog
2. Custom Fields in Wordpress

First the obvious: price.

The numbers are pretty large when you start looking at getting just about anything off of a contract. If you want something even close to being a “cool” phone, it’s going to upward of $400. Now this isn’t a huge chunk of money, but owning a business, I could spend my money in lot more productive areas.

Now price doesn’t stop with just the phone itself. You’re also looking at accessories (now that you’ve got a cool phone), data plans (I have internet in my office), and let’s not forget the almighty apps. So my bill has just reached at least $600 just about any way you look at it (ie. iPhone, Nexus One, etc.). (Note: I didn’t mention the total of a data plan with a two year contract)

Okay lets talk: time.

So now with my new phone I would be able to access the internet anywhere, surf the net in line at the store, and fact check the guy that always seems to outstretch his “did you know’s.” Well guess what else comes with that equation? E-mail. Something I avoid. The last thing I want to do is walk around wondering if I have any new e-mails, or hanging out with my family and passing the time doing pointless emailing. When I get out of the office, I get out of the office entirely, that means no laptop, no work, and certainty no business calls. So far my phone is causing me more of a headache than I thought.

What about buyers remorse?

Now that I have this cool phone guess what happens next? In just a few months, my cool phone just became a relic. You know exactly what happens at this time, it’s time to get a new phone because the Jones just passed you in the slow lane. This is a never ending cycle that get’s you nowhere and thinking about nothing else than what the world thinks of you.

Now for the upside in a pay-as-you-go phone.

Price.

This phone cost me about $60 with shipping. So far I have saved at least $540.

Time.

My phone doesn’t do anything impressive or distracting. I have still saved $540, plus I don’t have work following me around in my pocket.

Buyers Remorse.

Absolutely none. This phone probably won’t even have another version, although I could care less if it did.

1. The Real Equation We Should Be Using When Buying

Making It or Breaking It with Design

In this post I am going to explain how to create visually appealing elements in your graphic and web design. I will do this by dissecting an the image above from a current project of mine and explain how and why I did what I did.

This project’s goal is to reflect a modern image of the company, while also make is very for users to navigate the company website. While this may sound generic, the design is certainty not.

The first thing you’ll notice are the edges on the red banner. The banner is filled with a gradient that fills from a lighter red into a darker red (giving it the appearance that light is shining from above with a three dimensional feel). It provides your eyes with an assurance that this is the edge of the object that you are looking at.

The edge used is one pixel in width and created from the lighter red color which wraps nicely around the banner. It disappears at the top (since they are the same color) but reappears as the gradient darkens.

To make the banner look like it is on top of the blue frame, a slight drop shadow was added and offset vertically to a negative value. This keeps the design consistent with the image (light shining from above).

The next thing you’ll notice is the sharp edge on the blue container. The container is filled with a dark solid blue without a gradient. I didn’t add a gradient because I wanted the blue container to be set in the background and not take away from the heading / red banner. The edges were created by using a slightly lighter blue as it’s immediate edge, followed by a dark grey (almost black) edge. The light blue edge combined with the dark grey edge gives the sense that the image has depth, complimenting the three dimensional feel of the header but like I said, not taking away from it. Also, the hard edge assures your eyes that this is a solid container and allows you to read the contents inside of it easily.

And now for the text. When you zoom in closely like the picture above, you’ll notice there have been two drop shadows added (without blur) to the text. This gives the text an inset feel as if the text is inset into the object. You’ll notice the dark shadow acts as a shadow, while the lighter drop shadows acts as an edge that the light hits to complete the look. Take a look at the original image and you’ll see what I mean. It’s amazing how easy this effect is to create while how realistic it can look to the human eye when zoomed out.

Lastly, take a look at the shadow for the white container. Chances are, you didn’t even notice this the first time around, but it can make all the difference in the world at completing a design like this. The shadow is created at a negative vertical offset (again, completing the lighting) and giving the container depth as well. It makes the container look as if it’s just right above the blue container as a separate object.

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The most important thing you can do taking away from this is paying attention to the details in your designs. Designing is not just about grabbing a rectangle and filling it with color. It’s thinking through the entire design such as lighting, depth, and attention. Always make a mental image of what your design would look like in the real world. Where is the light coming from? What are my materials that I am working with?

When it doubt, always check for a real world example. Look at the keys on your computer right now. How is the light reflecting and where are the shadows being casted?

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As always, if you enjoyed this post share it with your friends

1. Three Note Coil Ascending Picking Patterns [Guitar]
2. Custom Fields in Wordpress
3. New Blog

This post is about myself finding a solution to backing up files online. It is not about buying Sugarsync and is certainty not an affiliate blog post with affiliate links. Simply, a story of how I went from thinking in just a monetary sense, into thinking time saving and ease of use. Enjoy.

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Lately I’ve decided rather than burning DVD’s to backup my files, to go with an online backup provider, specifically SugarSync. Now I can’t believe I didn’t do this sooner.

I think that the reason it took my so long to make the transition was because I just hadn’t been exposed to an alternative, until now.

I got my first PC about 13 years ago. At that time your only method was floppy discs and a couple of years later by CD. Either way, there wasn’t an option for backing up your stuff online that I knew of (and probably 99% of the population). So when I started hearing about companies offering online backup solutions in the last few years, I thought it was cool, but I really didn’t want another alternative. I was paying 25 cents per DVD, and I couldn’t see a solution more cost effective than that. So a friend of mine pretty much sold me on Sugarsync one day when I found out that not only could I backup my stuff online, I could also share a folder from my computer that he could access at any time.

So came the real equation:
Time, Ease of Use, and Convenience

Now there was a lot more going into this than I originally thought. The 25 cent DVD, with about 30 minutes to 1 hour of time, the hassle of loading a program and navigating — while also the “I’m backing up files, so I can waste time and browse the net since this ‘ has to be done.’ ” So now that 25 cent DVD was actually looking quite a bit more expensive, especially with time added in.

I find out all I have to do is sign up (under 1 minute), install program (under 3 minutes), select the folders I want to backup (under 20 minutes — this will be different for everyone), and I’m ready to rock n’ roll. Now everytime I open up a file in a folder I have chosen to backup, that file is automatically backed up within about 10 seconds of me hitting the save button. I also I find out I can access all of my files online at any computer with an internet connection. Oh and one more thing, about the friend I mentioned earlier. Now we don’t email files anymore, we share a folder and give instructions on where to find the file we have just created or updated — all for $5 a month (30 Gig’s).

You could say I’m completely sold and will never go back.

I was even considering buying a physical terabyte of space so I could basically do the same thing. When considering this $150 (average at the time) up front cost vs. $5 monthly, my SugarSync will last me 30 months or about 2.5 years before I reach that amount of money (plus, how long would that hard drive last anyways?). Obviously not the best scenario for someone with a ton of data to backup, but if you’re an average Internet user or business owner, it’s probably going to float your boat just fine.

Okay I could go on about this forever, but I want to drive home a very important point to you. It’s not just about money. It’s about time, ease of use, and convenience. In college I used to shop for toilet paper (getting a deal of a lifetime) $5.00 for 1,000 rolls, and guess what happened when I got home. I found out that my cost was just offset with Preperation H. Okay, that was a little far — but really, have you bought cheap toilet paper? The stuff is basically transparent.

Anyways, make sure you find out if a product or service is actually going to help you more than the ability of telling your friends that you kept your wallet a little fatter. Good things cost more money based on the equation that we were all made to believe. If X costs $10 and Y costs $5, buy Y because you’ll save money. But when something takes you more time to complete, or makes you jump through extra hoops compared to the alternative, it’s actually costing you more.

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I’d like to hear what you think about the equation of money, time, ease of use, and convenience. Do you have a better idea? If so, I’m all ears — I love learning.

1. I’m Gonna Have to Say No
2. New Blog

Stevenson, Washington and the Columbia River

Yesterday I came across a method to update your webpage or blog posts through the Wordpress interface, rather than going into the code. For example, you have a jQuery slider on your homepage, but in order to update it you have to go into the template (or page / post) and edit it there. After staying on that road for sometime, I knew there had to be an easier way to do this through the Wordpress interface, rather than diving into the code (and defeating the purpose of using Wordpress altogether).

So I stumbled onto Custom Fields. Custom Fields are those little boxes below the area where you update your post, that I’m assuming most people glance over once and never look back. After searching for a method to update the slider for a project, I found a method for doing this via Custom Fields.

Open up your Wordpress panel and make sure you know what I am talking about in the first place. Click on the picture below for confirmation.

Now that you know where Custom Fields are located, enter in a name and a value. If you’re familiar with programming, the “name” will be your variable name, and “value” will be the value of that variable. If you’re NOT familiar with programming, a variable is used as a container that holds a value (remember Algebra anyone?). You can later specify the name of the variable and the value will be displayed.

For instance, for the “name” you entered example and for the value you entered “This is the value for the field “example.” Now remember when you call example the value that you entered will be displayed, including any pictures that you decide to enter.

So now, you have to enter a php script for this value to be displayed in your post. Also, this post is meant for people that have a general understand of Php and Wordpress, but if you don’t, head on over to the Wordpress Codex and start reading up.

So find the spot where you would like your “value” of your Custom Field to be displayed and enter it, as in the picture below.

The only part you will need to change in the code is where it says $example and ‘example‘ (it is listed in three places) as this is the “name” of your custom field. If you remember, we used this as our example above. So change that to the name of your custom field.

And now you’re set to go. Feel free to enter in as many custom fields as you would like, and enter them in the same template or page and start making life a little easier on yourself.

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I’m also very interested in hearing your opinions of this method. If you have a better option, I’m all ears.

1. New Blog
2. Designing Visually Appealing Artwork

So lately I have been freeing up some time to practice playing the guitar. Over the last ten years, I have averaged about an hour a day playing, but keeping it more of a fun thing to do with the occasional creation of a song. Now, I’ve started putting myself to the grindstone and doing all of the exercises I used to do when I first started, by going through The Exercise Book. So yes, scales galore (as you can see above). This time it’s actually a lot more fun though, because it is really increasing my knowledge and love of music. I was telling it friend that it’s weird because I’ve always just played what sounded good, rather than looking into what I was playing — Now I’m counting the notes as I go through them and pushing my skill (or lack of) to the limit.

It’s been a fun experience and although my fingers are getting sore again (it’s been at least 9 years since that’s happened) I’m pushing myself to become better which is ultimately making myself feel a whole lot better at the end of the day.

Three Note Coil in F Major

1. New Blog

The Columbia River

After putting a lot of sweat into Graticle and another side project (I’ll be announcing soon), I’ve decided to create my own  homepage. There are a few reasons for this, which I’ll explain. 

1.

It’s fun. I can use this as more of a journal of my experiences and my all around interests (ie. music, web design, hiking, fishing, etc.). 

2.

To keep in contact. I can use this as my own personal platform to keep in contact with the world, rather than explaining how to find me, just go to my homepage and contact me there. 

3.

To help out. I’m currently pushing myself to the limit in all aspects of my life and know that at least a hand full of people out there can benefit from these experiences. 

So let me introduce myself

I’m 25 years old and I own an Internet Marketing company (Graticle). I love just about anything to do in the creative field, especially music and design. Backpacking, fishing and just about anything outdoors also get me pretty excited as far as hobbies go. In the design field I really enjoy designing and (believe it or not) programming online. For music, I’ve been playing guitar for about 10 years and still enjoy every second of it.

What you can expect

You can expect to learn from my errors and accomplishments as I go through life, either through a new time-saver while designing or coding, or about the new backpacking location that I just stumbled on. I will try to stay within the areas that are my passion, so you will know just about what you will get when you show up. I want this to be fun for both you and I, if that means straying off topic once in awhile, so be it.

Say hello

If you get a chance, post a comment or a question when you think of one. I do not anticipate this being a one way communication (old media) but rather a two way conversation in order to help both you and I.

Enjoy.

1. Custom Fields in Wordpress
2. How To Take Over The World, Now
3. Designing Visually Appealing Artwork