lowercase people

I won't lie. Lowercase People is a site that I stumbled onto unexpectedly. I have a tendency to go to websites and scroll down to the bottom where I find random links and associated sites. Through a chain of events I came to this web page. It's colorful homepage reads "The Online Magazine for Artists in Action". "Okay", I thought, "let's poke around".

First of all, before I even started reading the archives of music interviews and social justice journals, I went to the "about" tab. I have to know the background of a site so I can understand where they are coming from and why they do what they do. So this is what I found out:

"lowercase people is a daring new endeavor to revolutionize the way we view beauty, truth and humanity. lowercase people includes: lowercasepeople.com, lowercase people Apparel, and the lowercase people Justice Fund whose purpose is to serve third world communities around the world in partnership with Geneva Global. Beneath the overarching banners of beauty and truth, lp brands focus collectively on the appreciation and promotion of noteworthy artists and art, and the advocacy of important issues of social justice."

Alright! If you are anything like me, you get fired up to see a write up with the opening line using words like "daring, revolutionize, truth, and humanity".

I am not quite able to say that I have had much experience with "online" magazines, so this was something entirely new for me. I figured it really couldn't be a bad idea since usually you pay six dollars for a magazine that gets cut up, torn, and lost (Not to mention, you don't have to deal with half the pages being useless ads). So, I dove into Issue 1 and went to the featured article in the "words" section. A well written article on the sax player John Coltrane kept my attention for five minutes before my trigger finger got going again.

One of the first things I always look for on a website like this is a "Get Involved" link. And to my pleasure, there was a link right at the top under "Justice" (fitting). There is an opportunity for anyone to donate to a mentioned cause after a short article explains what is going on and where the money will be placed.

Of course, the best part of this is the opportunity for artists and writers to submit their work and be part of something bigger than themselves. Since this whole organization is fairly new, I'm sure they are looking for fresh talent, and big hearts to develop their community and engage their mission.

TOMS Shoes

Inspired by an Argentine shoe with a hundred year history and the continent's poverty and health issues, TOMS was created with a singular mission: To make life more comfortable. TOMS accomplishes this through it's ultra lightweight design and the company's commitment to match every pair purchased with a donated pair to a child in need...there are no complicated formulas, it's simple.you buy a pair of TOMS and the company gives a pair to a child on your behalf. The vibrant colors and patterns in the debut collection depict Blake Mycoskie's life changing experiences in his travels to South America where he embraced the lifestyle wholeheartedly and therefore gave back by creating TOMS - shoes for Tomorrow.

So far since their inception into the culture at Eastern, there have been a handful of pioneers who are trying to popularize the sporty kicks. I spent a few minutes interviewing one of these catalysts and here is what he said:

me: So, just give me your initial thoughts. Why do you like TOMS?

Martin: Well, first of all, they're eye catching. You will be walking around campus and all of a sudden someone will be like, "Hey! What are those?"

me:Are they comfortable?

Martin: Yeah. I mean, the design is different than what most people usually wear. It's kinda a thick sock that conforms to your foot. It's very lightweight and flexible.

me: So do you suggest that people purchase TOMS?

Martin: Yeah. They're comfy, stylish, and they feel great. Of course, the best part is that they are for a good cause. You can't beat giving a pair of shoes to a kid every time you buy a pair for yourself...

(a pair of customized TOMS from an ECSU Student)

Staff Picks:

Nate:
"I particularly enjoy the Tyler Ramsey shoes which he personally painted himself. They're unique and no two are alike. I enjoy specialized things like that and they're just an all around fresh look. Very summery too..."


Martin: "My favorites are the Green Madras Woven TOMS because they're pretty low key. Nate likes those flashy things that make you look like a walking art canvas. These go with almost anything, and on top of that they're one of the newest styles! Very sheik."

The Office (Part 1)

So, today I walked into the office before the temp hit 100 degrees. As usual I came in hours before the other community service guys even woke up and got working. Lately I've been trying to come up with a performance strategy for the leadership (and whoever else is interested) of PHP to look at and implement as a potential "next step" in our structure. (Click to enlarge)
This is just a test to make sure links and pics are working.

Test

This is only a basic test to check the layout and design of the up and coming PHP blog site...