What We Did Before 9am

EOFF Promo Spot #3

2008-05-03T00:20:00.001-07:00

The third installment. EOFF( Eastern Oregon Film Festival) Coming Soon. Website to be launched in 1 week. Our mission: To bring emerging filmmakers and films to Eastern Oregon and provide a celebration of ideas through motion media.

EOFF Promo Spot #2

2008-05-02T14:43:00.001-07:00

Another effort at lightly spreading the word of the Eastern Oregon Film Festival. More details to come as we finish up the website and details. For information visit www.eofilmfest.com and sign up to receive updates about the development.

EOFF Promo Spot #1

2008-04-17T20:54:00.001-07:00

So we just could not wait to start putting some ideas together and laying down some foundations for a film festival here in La Grande. The Eastern Oregon Film Festival (EOFF) is under development and can use your support. As we start adding films to the roster, asking for submissions, and try to get the word out, your support and efforts can help make this event really shine. Enjoy our first epic PROMO SPOT. This is what we did before 9 am.

Welcome to the Satellite Gallery

2008-03-08T15:35:00.000-08:00

So we have had many inquiries from friends outside our valley to show off one of the main endeavors we have going on in Eastern Oregon. The Satellite Gallery is housed in the front of Cold Coffee Media at 116 Depot Street, in beautiful downtown La Grande. Promising to be a venue for cutting edge, contemporary exhibitions of work from local, regional and national artists. The gallery concept and space are the result of a collaborative effort between Cold Coffee Media and Waypoint Studio, a local artist’s collective.

We decided to put together a little video tour with you host Mike Surber. The video displays some work from our "Winter Invitational" featuring the work of Brenna Tyler and Doug Gisi. We just wrapped up the show, but if something catches your eye I am sure we can help you purchase it.

There is a lot going on at the Satellite Gallery, new shows, regional and national call for entries, wine and cheese receptions and a great creative spirit that is helping an entity like this survive. So if your drive I-84 and you stumble upon La Grande, stop on by and see some incredible works of art and visit a beautiful art minded community.

So with the morning glaze still in our eyes - we give you, without further adieu - Satellite Gallery. Heres what we did before 9:00am.

Social Security and Private Anxiety (Guest Blog by Greg Rawlins)

2008-02-22T10:06:00.000-08:00

Mike here. My phone sounds a lot like my alarm clock, and vice versa. So as I'm coming out of one of those dreams about wandering through my high school in a bunny suit, the school bell rang which turned into my alarm which turned into my phone ringing. The early morning caller was Greg Rawlins, my musical cohort and all-around bff. He's visiting from Bremerton, WA and somehow ended up sleeping in his truck right outside the house. So as he stood outside my bedroom window we looked at each other through the glass and talked on the phone...

MIKE: It looks cold out there.
GREG: It is.
MIKE: Whatcha doin?
GREG: Standing outside.
MIKE: I know. I see you.
GREG: It looks warm in there.
MIKE: It is. Wanna come in?
GREG: That would be good, pardner.
MIKE: Ok, but only if you write a guest blog entry for the Cold Coffee website.
GREG: Ok, but only if you open it up with a really long-winded intro.

Here's what Greg did before 9am:

For the record, it's 10:39am and my Coffee is tepid and actually becoming Cold. Far out.
As a man on vacation, sojourns to this valley are invariably one long, noteworthy bender of boyhood fun, howdown magic and honkytonk bootscootin'. I have a series of destinations and checkpoints every time I come back here, probably ninety in all. Last night covered at least fifty.

Having never beheld the final product that is The Cold Coffee Media HQ and Satellite Gallery, last nights art walk made her look like a Prom Queen. Her three-pronged pendant above the entry way cracked mysterious and alluring colors, her diamond plated wristbands made her regal. She was elegant in that the horses and iron circuitry of her bosom stood motionless, poised, but seething and prepared to charge. Everybody brought their glass slippers and each fit, like conversation, in their own respect. An eight dollar bottle of wine, four dollar box of Ritz, and artwork that far exceeded each posted price were open to the public to consume. Accolades to Doug Gisi and Brenna Tyler (the current exhibiters) ---- I was awestruck by the diligence and thought so apparent in your works.

Onto another checkpoint: Waypoint. My heart rate always increases when I cross the tracks and round the corner to get within earshot of the members of Test Audiences at Waypoint Studio. Each step toward the rehearsal space beats like snares and my eyes dilate and bounce like keys in hopes and preparation for a night of music. Sure enough, as constant as the train that practically rolls through their building, a bass, keyboard, drums and voices resound and I am very, very home.

I wait for the current song to end before whistling both my want of encore and entrance. Up the stairs and into the loft, an immense wood structure as old as the town, with nostalgic junk and dilapidated treasures who ooze whole compositions from their walls until all you really do is pick them up off the dusty floorboards and allow them to play you. Or at least it seems they way all too often. My dear friends of Test Audiences are among the most serious and driven musicians that I can claim to have met. Having been an active observer in their varied cast, their digressions, debates, directions, doubts, convictions, liberations, and overall evolution, I extend my excitement and cohort support for a group that has harnessed a real ground-breaking sound and fought hard to do it. So, before 9am, I heard two new songs of theirs and have been reverting back to them constantly in effortless fascination.... oh yes Test Audiences, you are some hungry folk. Thanks comrades.

Charmparticles Music Video

2008-02-07T10:57:00.000-08:00

I've just had the pleasure of directing a music video for the fantastical Portland band Charmparticles. Last Thursday they rolled into town just in time for a tour of the closing end of Longbranch before hitting the sack and spending the next three long days shooting.

For the characters in the story, I casted two very close friends/talented actors/media consultants from Seattle, Joshua Johnson and Bridget O'Neil. If you haven't seen Bridget's Lilylulay vlogs on Youtube, you should.

So in the midst of a hectic shoot, Bridget snuck backstage and made a vlog entry for the fans from on location.

What I did before 9am today is edit, edit, and edit the music video. But I'm not ready to show you that, so I ~~stole~~ embedded Bridget's video from on location. There's much more where that came from, so check back here soon. And be sure to check out Bridget's other videos on Youtube. WARNING: You will probably fall in love with her.

Places to Think in La Grande, OR

2008-01-23T08:13:00.000-08:00

We have been working a bit on Google Maps for some clients and thought it would be fun to start creating some solid MAPS in La Grande. So here is our first experiment: A map of spots in La Grande that are worth visiting if you are in the mood to think.

La Grande has a lot of nooks and crannies that hold value to some while others stroll by without ever noticing. These are the places you might go to chill, to clear your head, to read a book, to have a quiet conversation with someone, or maybe even to have a quiet conversation with yourself.

We have opened this MAP up publicly so that any one can contribute their favorite spots. Please feel free to stick a couple markers down where you find yourself in the middle of the night or maybe even on your lunch break, doing your best to clear your head.

More mapping to come... this is what we did before 9:00am.

View Larger Map

Furnice: A groundhog with a thirst for Coors Light

2008-01-17T07:01:00.000-08:00

I compressed some video for a local artist. - and thought I would share a small clip of something that I was able to enjoy for the last 14 hours... this is only one character of about 10. Take a minute to think about this and comment whether or not you feel this in just genius or if I have just been up all night and my vision is skewed.

I would love to share all of it with you - so if the response is good maybe we can talk Charles into letting us watch em all!!!

Good morning by the way and...
Here's what we did before 9am today.

Auld Lang Syne

2008-01-01T00:01:00.000-08:00

It's hard to start the first entry of the new year without saying something like “I can't believe another year is...” or “2007 was a year of...” or something like that. But here we are. Looking at what happened last year, what didn't happen, what we did, what was done to us. Hopeful for the new year and new resolutions. Trying to smile at the ones we made last year but never touched.

Years are precious. We only get a handful of them, as far as we know. I won’t even get into what 2007 was for Chris and Mike, but for Cold Coffee Media it was our entrance into the world in our current form. Our birth year. We’re still learning how to breathe oxygen and eat without an umbilical cord, but the birth is over. We have a whole new year to try out new things, get better at the old ones, to learn, to teach, and to make some friends along the way.

So here's some 2007 timelapse footage and a brand-new homemade version of the classic New Year theme tune, Auld Lang Syne. Seemed appropriate.

Here’s to another year. May it be full of what you want and need.

Here's what we did before 9am today:

Dreamt of a waitress named "BETTY"

2007-12-21T07:33:00.000-08:00

I call it "WORLBLING".

Last night - after hosting a small reception for Thursday's Art Walk in La Grande, and after a brief visit to the Long Branch, then after watching "The Snowman" with family and friends I found myself hard asleep.

I dreamt of a waitress named "BETTY" who was present to take my order. There was no menu - the menu was my mind - creative mind - and the kitchen was stalked with all the right ingredients for whatever it is I wanted to manifest. I thought for a moment and asked Betty, "what do you recommend?"...to which she replied...

"To the talking tickers of time, the dancers of destiny, the fiery faeries of fate, to the frequent flyers of fantasy, the dreamers of desire, to the tip-toed Tally-Hoers who temp the tempest of all...
May I offer you the pancakes."

I call it "WORBLING" - Information has been downloaded...although conscious - not yet.

Here's what we did before 9am today:

TEASER TRAILER

2007-12-20T08:58:00.000-08:00

On my last birthday, Heidi asked me what I wanted to do for the big day. Go to a show? Have a party? I said I'd like to make a movie. Actually, I crossed my eyes and clapped my hands like a little kid and said "I manna make a mooobie!" I'm pretty sure she thought it was cute.

The plan was to come up with a quick idea, grab the camera, and shoot a little movie just for fun. So we got right on it. But my little idea evolved into more ideas and I kept writing more scenes and having to round up more friends to act, and it got a little out of control. Things usually do.

That was six months ago, and I haven't even touched the footage. So today we thought we'd pull it out and put together a teaser trailer for my birthday short movie, entitled Tom's Words.

Here's what we did before 9am today:

OPENING DAY

2007-12-17T09:00:00.000-08:00

Friday (14th) marked our "Launch" - Satellite included. And man oh man what a great event. 200 or so of the good hearted came out to view the works and rant-babble about current state's of affair. It was notable.

Mike came up with the idea of putting out a place setting (wine and dine) table top appetizers of soupy acrylic and a buttered black. We provided a wall-scape. As hoped people plopped paint on the wall, while music played, and wine flowed and topics - not so topical - were discussed in good cheer.

In reflection of the weekend - and after a very brisk (15 degree) round of frisbee golf, and after a toasted (2-type) jelly sandwich on rye (not me, but her) and K-boy with the 1/2 biscuit and gravy - we wandered back to the ruminants of the Fridays gathering. Paint still splattered freshly on the table - and the wine glasses looked like candy - and Jes began to paint. It was then that I recognized we have began something great!

Here's what we did before 9am today:

THE TRIBUTE TO MR. THOMPSON

2007-12-05T06:52:00.000-08:00

A red-eye road trip to Boise brings out the wanderlust in Chris and me...

...and In a dazey late-night banter-session aimed at keeping the driver awake, it's easy to drift into thoughts of Hunter S. Thompson and his chronicles of paved stretches.

Luckily I captured pieces of our rants on audio, so this morning I took my first crack at a Garage Band mix.

Here's what we did before 9am today:

THE HEADSHOTS

2007-12-03T08:49:00.000-08:00

First day of the new deal. We decided to meet at seven so we could start work by nine. Coffee ensues. There's much do be done before the things that have to be done... have to be done.

A discussion about the creative itch merged with one about getting the bio page done for our site. The camera came out. Gotta have headshots to go with a bio, right?

Here's what we did before 9am today