The Weekly Wrap - Twit, Hangouts & the Internet #382

photo: i don't want realism

1. Watching people lose their buz-ness on twitter thinking that you wont see it but really you do. Hilarious.

2. Hanging out with old friends. Such fun.

3. Obsessively emailing Ellen's staff to be on their tour of Australia in March . This will happen.

4. Writing stories of New York. 7000 words. Brain ouch.

5. I have been swimming at the beach 8 days in a row. Is this unhealthy?

6. This song. So ghetto. So good.

7. Everyday I'm tumbln'

8. Beyonce's tumblr. She gets it.

9. Replying to tweets on twitter. New fav thing to do.

10. Every time.

11. Planning excursions abroad. Airpoints only get you so far. How do I work this?!

Morgs

Old Friends Throw Down #381

 

Last night some friends and I caught up for dinner at Nami in Hamilton. What was meant to be an innocent night of Japanese food and wine, soon turned into sake shots and faking a hens night. But, all the best stories start with "I faked a hens night, came home with cowboy hats, an extra phone (apologies to the person pinning for your baby, it's at the police station), and LA Lakers memorabilia."

For those of you that recognize Haylie in there, of NY Manifesto and MASH fame, we tried to film some footage for a sort of NYM special edition. Let's just say that footage is like watching animals try to make human noises. Hilarious, but not good.

A list of AWESOME for YOU to be EXCITED about #380

Photo by Sydney Fife

1. All things DAKOTA GORDON. I am obessed with this girls photos.

2. All things K.O.C. My buddy Patrick is launching his blog on my birthday (22nd of Feb. cough. cough. Don't forget). But in all seriousness I am excited Patty. I wish you well on the interwebs.

3. All things MASH. TELL ME WHAT YOUR PROJECT IS?!

4. All things A$AP Rocky. Because he's so humble. 

5. All things Ellen DeGeneres. I am using every resource I have to get a media pass to her March tour of Australia. Why? Because Ellen is awesome.

6. All things Oprah Lifeclass. Because.

7. All things Saigmeister & Walsh. 1. Because my buddy Ryan is interning for them. And 2. Because of this hilarity and 3. Because they are the best at what they do.

8. All things Diaz Grimm. This guy is going to go far - maybe it's not for everyone. But I support the craft. And he's from Cambridge. Support.  

9. All things thisismorgs. Why? because this year is about to get HUGE! 

Morgs

The Weekly Wrap - Interviews, Books & Planning #379

1. ALL OF THE ABOVE HAPPENED TODAY. I am exhausted. Swimming against currents is not as easy as it used to be. #OldPersonProblems

2. Also on today's list of awesome - The Sunday Star Times published an interview I did with them a while back. Thank you for the wonderful write up. You can quickly go out and get a copy or read it online here. 

3. I have the opportunity to work New York Fashion Week in Feb. Excite. Will I take it? You'll have to wait and see.

4. This Ed Sheeran fellow. Well. He writes intense lyrics doesn't he. He's like the British Frank Ocean. Oh no she di-in't *snaps fingers like a ghetto girl*.

5. Book research has consisted of looking at paper textures and different gsm's. I. CAN'T. EVEN. Argggh. 

6. A week of asking myself ridiculous questions like: Why are my friends getting married? What are children? Why do people want them? Are children really our future? Should I build a robot child as mockery? Would that be assholish? Am I an asshole? Do I need therapy? And so on.

Morgs

Suburban New Zealand - Everyone has one of these #378

Never go exploring in someones abandoned shed. You never know what you might find - such as a nest of whitetail spiders. Not fun.  

Morgs

A New York Meet-up in NZ #377

Last night I got to meet up with some of the cool kids I met in NY. Aghh. You guys are so f-ing awesome. In other news, I also witnessed two 90 year old men trying to beat each other with walking sticks in Ngatea. Note to self: don't pit stop in Ngatea - they're ruthless.

Morgs

People to Watch - Sean Vegezzi #376

I remembered a few months back I got an invitation to attend this book launch for a guy who was the same age as me. I thought it sounded pretty awesome and had every intention of going but - life got in the way. Fast forward two months and I'm standing in my favourite gallery in the Lower East Side, The Hole. The girl in the shop starts asking me about what I do, I tell her, she then reaches behind me and pulls out a book, "You'll like this. He's a young guy and he...". Before she finished I started screaming like an excited child who had just eaten a truck load of cotton candy and morphed into the incredible hulk. In the most polite way I snatched the book from her hands and said, "I'll buy it".

What's so exciting about this book you ask? Well it's by a guy called Sean Vegezzi. He's born and raised in New York, and has an exceptionally good eye for documentary photography. Since he's been able to hold a camera he's documented he and his friends growing up in the city. The focus for the book is on teenage adolescence and exploring places in New York that are no longer accessible to the public - namely the forgotten subway stops. This may not seem like anything new, but if you consider the guys age (22) and the quality of his photographs, along with the very contemporary design and layout of the book then it's easy to see why this is some next level biz-ness. I look at this book and only hope to make something that comes mildly close. It's exceptional. End of.

 

Also if you become a little bit obsessed like I am then check out this interview he did with MoMA.

Sean's website

Morgs

Fav Photos I've Taken - Ruby Frost #375

I was editing some photos and found this from a few weeks ago. I think it's one of my favourite photos I've ever taken. Why did I not see this the first time?!

Morgs

The Weekly Wrap (and all that) #374

 

This picture 1. Accurately depicts how I feel when I have tomatoes in front of me, and, 2. It show how beauts AJ is. End of.

1. I climbed three mountains this week - Papamoa, Mount Maunganui, & Karangahake. My calf muscles hate me. Like they really hate me.

2. Swam in the ocean so much that I find sand in every crevasse of my body. Let's not take that any further.

3. I have lost my car key countless times. I then stand still, and silently ask the universe to return them. Magic - they appear. Doubters gon' doubt.

4. I rapped this for 45 min straight (on repeat) from Waihi Beach to Tauranga. I was rapping so intensely that I began to feel faint and started getting gag reflexes. Excellent. 

5. I went hunting for graffiti in Tauranga. Best idea I've ever had. More graffiti hunting will be done. Check out this 12 foot portrait of Biggie.

6. Yes, I went to Spookers. Believe it or not it was fun. I pee'd. There's definitely a bogan/stipper/teen demographic that goes there. I'm not sure where we fit in to that - Stripboganeens? or just perpetually bored and run out of options?.

7. And I'm working on that book. And, and,  and,  P + H copies are taking a little longer than expected. I may have to fire my American printers. Raaah. 

That's all for now :)

Morgs

On My Road Trip Playlist #373

Kate Moss on a car - SO MUCH SUN!

Tonight, over kumera chips and aioli, my friends and I decided we would road trip from here in Waihi Beach to Auckland to go to Spookers. Don't judge us. Our first option was Rainbowsend but apparently they close at 5pm - sadface. On my iPod I have a dedicated playlist for such spontaneous occasions, it consists of:

M83 - Midnight City
A$AP Rocky - Goldie
Kanye West - Lost in the World
Kanye West, Big Sean, Jay Z - Clique
Florence + the Machine - Shake it Out
Jay Z & Kanye West - Ni**as in Paris
Nas - The Don
Pooside - Harvest Moon
David Bowie - Heroes
Beyonce - I was here
Jay Z - Hard Knock Life
Bon Iver - Holocene
Bon Iver - Towers
The XX - Heart Skipped a Beat
Rizzle Kicks - Down with Trumpets
B.I.G - Juicy
Miguel - Adorn
Miguel - Candels in the Wind
Kanye West - Big Brother
Tom Petty - I won't back down
Creedence Clearwater - As long as I can see the light
Lou Reed - Walk on the Wide Side
David Dallas - Pay Off
Ruby Frost - Porcupine
Azealia Banks - 212 

and most recently added 

Solange - Losing You 

Those are just a few. I'll be putting the rest on Spotify if you want to subscribe :)

Also I sent this tweet earlier. I feel I identified the Spookers demographic fairly accurately. Agree? 

Morgs

I climbed a(nother) Mountain#372

I climbed Karangahake mountain today and I am feeling like a baked potatoe; therefore I am going to sleep. Coupled by the fact that I just played a four hour game of Monopoly, and won, I think it's deserved.

Night y'all

Morgs

Graff Hunting in Tauranga pt 1 - Owen Dippie #371

Today I went on a graffiti hunt around Tauranga and started with what I call the Simpsons fence (see first picture). After staring at it for a while I read what it said, "Gallery behind Mount Surfshop on Totara Street". So, naturally, I listened to the fence and went there. Well, let me tell you we should all listen to fences more often. Funny story, this morning I decided I'd wear my Biggie t-shirt unbeknownst to me I was going to come across an 11foot portrait of Biggie. I tweeted a pic that I was, "weeping over this Biggie portrait". Looked down and realised I was wearing the t-shirt. I looked like the ultimate fan girl. Shout out to  P-Money for informing me that all this amazing art is by Owen Dippie. Owen, dude, you're amazing - I'm sold - make our city even cooler.

 Morgs

Approving Layouts - That Glam Thug Life #370

Surprise, well not really, but I'm putting together a book of this past year. It includes all the funniest things that have happened to me aka falling off a bunk bed and landing upside down on my neck with my legs in the air. And that time I spent like 2 hours sitting with Macaulay Culkins family, and untold stuff like when I had dinner with this family who I did not realize were the parents of one of the biggest pop stars in the world. And, that time I nearly died in a shootout (exaggerated for effect). Or when Paris Hilton stopped and posed for me and I had no idea who she was. Also included are a plethora of poems I wrote on the subway whilst watching crazy people talk, dance and shit themselves. Oh and lastly there are a tonne of photos I took such as the ones below which are actually double page spreads. Awesome. Don't ask for a deadline because this is turning out to be quite a lengthy task. Just know I'm committed to it. Possibly in the next month or two if this publishing shizz sorts itself out.

Morgs

People to Watch - Dakota Gordon #369

21 year old Sydney fashion photographer, Dakota Gordon, is one of the coolest new artists I've come across. Her work is so amazing that it makes me want to weep and scream "I'll never be this great" whilst rolling down a grassy cliff-face. Seriously. What got my attention was the work she did for New York streetwear brand ONLY NY. On it's own, ONLY NY is pretty awesome but putting the two together is like coming across a litter of unicorn babies - unbelievable. 

Hopes and Fears - Stories from New Yorkers (FADER Issue 83) #368

One of my favourite magazines, FADER, just released their 83rd issue and included short snippets from a bunch of New Yorkers talking about theirs hopes and fears for 2013. It's a pretty good read. The profile below of a guy named Christopher I think sums up the attitude of most models I've met. There's this reluctance to their profession but the money affords for a lifestyle many would love to have. It's an interesting complex.  

Christopher Michael Jackson, 22

"Right now it sucks cause I'm always broke. I don't go out in New York, it's too expensive. I don't talk to my family at all. I'm not close to them. But I totally miss Texas. I'm just here because I'm really hoping to be successful. I really feel lonely in New York all the time.

 I want to be an actor, but I don't even know where to start. I have patience, I'm sure it will be slow in the beginning, so I'm just, like, modeling to begin with. But I don't like it - I just see it as a better way of life. I hate that models get treated like we're nothing. They see us like we're objects instead of being a person. I'm living the high life and the low life."

Doing some sneaky work on a sneaky project #367

Well this is a tad bit scary so I'll let the picture speak for itself.

I have so many projects on the go at the moment.
Details soon.

Morgs

Published Copies of PEARL + HAMMER #366

My American fellows finally got their a-into-g and sent me my test prints of the mag. Looks pretty fancy. There's still a bit of tweaking to do with image resolution but it's looking pretty darn fine. I'm going to make a few copies available through thisismorgs.com in a week. Look out for it!

Morgs

The ONE YEAR Blog Post - New Zealand Life #365

Let's be real, New Zealand - this isn't my life anymore. I don't know if it's yours - maybe it is. That's ok.
After this year I find that I don't relate to any of my close friends anymore. And, I don't think that's such a bad thing - we've all changed - for the better. I just had someone tell me that, "At your age I had the same dreams. You know. I liked the same things and went for big shit. But you know we get each other. We come from the same stuff." In my head I'm thinking did we really have the same idea about where we want our lives to go? I don't think so. I know we definitely had a similar upbringing but we're going different ways, dude. And I respect that. I was having this conversation with Ruby the other night about how the traditional New Zealand way of thinking just doesn't get the ambition 'creatives' have. And it's true. Unless you're out there 'doing' something and not just talking about it then you DON'T have an opinion. If you're going for something bigger, never fear there are people out there that get it - move to New York. My advice - go for it. Stop talking - start doing.

And that would be my last rant for 365 days. Thank you so much for following me and reading what I have to say. Now that my 'blog everyday for a year' goal is complete I think I may just keep going. There may be a few gaps here and there but I'll try as hard as I can. Tonight I get to sleep and not think about what I have to write for hours on end - that feels good. But, in all honesty, thank you for following my blog. I appreciate it. This 'place' for writing down my ideas has lead to so many awesome experiences and new friends - I'm so thankful for that.

Have a good night all. I know I will. Y'all are amazing. Goodnight Nana.

Morgs

This one time when I got lost in New York #364

True story. I was walking through the West Village and walked off on a side street - bad idea. It took me two hours to figure a way out to get back to the subway. My phone was dead but I still had my camera. Below are the results. Note to self : The West Village is cray cray and always charge your phone. 

Morgs