Just so I can be the last guy on the internets to link to this (thank you Luke and Josh); here is the coolest commercial you’ll see this weekend.

Baby, it’s hot outside. I plan on taking the advice of the immortal EPMD who told the world “You Gots To Chill”.

I am here to help by offering a Nice 6 mix of the most-chilllingest songs I could find. I recommend finding a quiet, cool corner of your house (preferrably with a pile of your relaxtion-inducer of choice) where you can just be for a while. Enjoy the gauzy/spacy/fuzzy guitars and remember to think cool thoughts.

Click here to download the Nice 6 #6 .zip

1) Man Called Sun (live) – Verve
2) Feels So Good – Spacemen 3
3) Glósóli – Sigur Rós
4) Then I Just Drifted Away – Spectrum
5) Summertime Rolls – Jane’s Addiction
6) One In 7 – Engineers

After a slight delay, Tom Bihn announced the availability of their new shoulder/messenger bag, The Imago.

I have a couple of different Tom Bihn bags so I can totally vouch for their reputation for durability and functionality. I’ve been waiting for the Imago to come out because I think it’s exactly what I am looking for. I love my Large Cafe Bag but it’s a little too small when I have more than a lunch to bring to work. I also find regular messenger bags too big for what I need on a day to day basis. I bought an Empire Builder back in the winter and while it’s probably a perfect bag for someone who has to carry a laptop every day it turned out to be *way* too big for me as an everyday bag (in fact, I’m trying to sell my Empire Builder so if you’re interested, drop me a line). It makes one heck of an overnight travel bag, too.

My guy, Robert X. Cringely, writes a weekly column for PBS.org. I’m not sure why I never mentioned him before. He’s smart, knows the right people in tech, and connects the dots. He’s written some great columns about Google, like this one and this one. Apple, too, as seen here and here.

This week’s column is about how the telcos aren’t looking out for you, how communities should treat internet access as a utility, and what Microsoft should do with the rest of its life.

Frankston points out that we build and finance public infrastructure in a public way using public funds with the goal of benefiting economic, social, and cultural development in our communities. So why not do the same with the Internet, which is an information infrastructure? Well we did that, didn’t we, with the National Information Infrastructure program of the 1990s, which was intended to bring fiber straight to most American homes? About $200 billion in tax credits and incentives went primarily to telephone companies participating in the NII program. What happened with that? [The telcos] took the money, that’s what, and gave us little or nothing in return.

But just because the highway contractor ran off with the money without finishing the road doesn’t mean we can go without roads. It DOES mean, however, that we ought not to buy another road from that particular contractor.

Adam Morrison sez.

I agree. Especially about the muscle car part.

I’ve mentiond my love of silkscreened goods before. Well, now I have a new hobby (read “obsession”). Aaron Horkey makes the best posters I’ve ever seen in person. I’ve been a longtime fan of ‘lowbrow art‘, mostly from reading Robert Williams’ Juxtapoz Magazine. By and large, these artists are highly skilled but they get discounted in the “proper” art world because, well, I’m not sure why. Good-looking art is good art, isn’t it?

Anyway, Aaron Horkey is most impressive when he is using his skills to draw letters. They are ornamental to the extreme, almost to the point that they don’t look like letters anymore. I think it’s cool as hell. Click on these thumbnails to see the bigger versions, and prepare to be amazed!

As always, I am late to the party so all of these posters are sold out. I was able to get in on the tan Sunn/Boris Thistle poster the day it went on sale. I also grabbed that amazing black and silver “Over the Atlas” print on eBay. It’s the best silkscreen I’ve ever seen in person, by a mile. Once I get it framed you’ll have to come over and check it out. The level of detail is stunning.

Sadly, the rest of his posters have run right out of my price range. I love that pink Arcade Fire tour poster so I will always keep an eye out for it, but my hopes are not high.

Check out the semi-automatic rubber band gun on Google Video. It’s free, for now.

[Thanks, Critchie.]

No, it’s not a noir masterpiece from our buddy Chris.

It’s the new collection from AdHouse Books featuring the art of Paul Pope.

Here’s the item.

“After eleven years as a band, Sleater-Kinney have decided to go on indefinite hiatus.
“The upcoming summer shows will be our last. As of now, there are no plans for future tours or recordings.”"

I really liked their last album but I don’t love this band like a lot of you guys do. Sorry to break the bad news.

Here’s a bird’s eye view of Pat’s Velocity Comics then and now, courtesy of Microsoft’s local.live.com

I get the feeling that, since it’s in the realm of free services, Google v. Microsoft is going to be very fun for us.