come and get your cootie shots

I've found that one of Kyle and I's greatest strengths is the ability to improv. The video I just uploaded is something I thought of before but never fully drew out. After 2 other ideas for today's update fell through, I decided to go out on a limb and start this project. The Circle Circle Dot Dot Diaries. We'll see how it turns out...

So it's the time for people to be heading home and visiting their folks just for the holidays. Nice. I'd totally be in the Christmas spirit if I wasn't working 60+ hours a week, also the exclusion of snow on the ground really doesn't do much to spread the holiday cheer. I haven't had a Christmas without snow and it's weird to think that alot of my friends are spending their vacation in sunny places. Sometimes I wish I could join them if I didn't think Hoth was the ultimate in December getaways.

What's everyone wishing for for Christmas? I'm wishing for time. I want more time to spend with friends, more time to talk to people I've grown apart from, and more time to travel and see what else is out there. Hopefully soon the IT guys will be heading out to some diverse areas to make some comedy happen, lets cross our fingers... I hear a trip to Chicago is in order soon.

Ever been jealous of LeVar Burton? Us, too...

My video submission for the contest mentioned below...

Being on tour puts quite a strain on what I can carry around the country with me, which can present quite a challenge when making puppet videos. When filming with puppets, it is standard practice for the puppeteers to view their work using live feed on television monitors to show them what the camera sees, but living out of a suitcase, it is impossible to travel with such equipment. We are also poor.

Recently an opportunity presented itself to win a pair of Myvu personal media viewers (or to put it bluntly, video glasses)... and I did! This new (and in any other circumstance, expensive) tool will soon prove invaluable in helping us create better quality puppet videos - and look cool, too!

In addition to more puppet adventures, in the dawn of 2010 you can also look forward to seeing mimes, nazis, singing along with us about food, and more potentially hazardous and precarious social situations.

Meanwhile, celebrate and enjoy whichever holiday you prefer and keep checking back for more fun!

Serendipitous Media Exposure!

A few weeks ago I took Yancy to the National Banjo Museum in Oklahoma City. While unsafely filming inbetween lanes of traffic, our attention was suddenly drawn toward a frantic woman beckoning us to finish crossing the street for an interview. Not one to pass up an unbelievably well-timed opportunity (it was November 10 - the day Sesame Street turned 40), I traversed the remaining lanes and safely arrived on the sidewalk. Within moments I was given a microphone to wear and the camera was focusing on my cloth-covered hand!

We spoke for a few minutes about what I do for a living and what Sesame Street means to me, and as I settled into this impromptu interview I realized how crazy lucky the entire situation seemed. After a mere few minutes the interview was over and we parted ways... Talk about being in the right place at the right time!

Yinzer Quikkies - it's a wrap!

If you're reading this I'm back from Pittsburgh shooting a series of short sketches and I made it out of there in one piece. I'm not sure if you're aware, but after both Pittsburgh football teams lose in the same weekend the city deteriorates into a wasteland of sadness and depression.

I'm being serious.

Though I wasn't able to get footage of everything I would've liked, I'm really happy with the stuff we were able to capture. Even though I'm sure my cast mates and I offended several members of the late-night study kids at the Cathedral of Learning, happiness was had by all. Now it is just a matter of assembling all of the raw footage into 2-3 sketches and probably a TON of outtakes and behind the scenes segments.

Look for the sketches to be published online sometime after X-mas but before the new year. I'll leave you with the keywords: Nazi, evil genius, blow up the moon, and POV.

~ Aaron J.

I got hit by a car

I'm not sure how I can further capitalize on the image of me getting hit by a car. This isn't the first time it has happened either. I believe this is the 3rd one.

So this is the Facebook Droid. I like the idea of him and while this vid is short and sweet, we definitely have more footage. The problem is the wind and quality of our cam, etc. Hopefully if our videos take off we can afford better equipment? Please help us sell out. We're all about selling out for money.

This weekend is my vacation! I'm driving down to Pittsburgh, PA to see friends and film 3 improv sketches at different Pittsburgh locations. We're calling them the "Yinzer Quikkies." Hopefully everything goes for broke down there. I'm lucky enough to film with some friends from Point Park University and the Univ. of Pittsburgh so nothing can go wrong right? Even when we're filming in the Cathedral of Learning with nazi costumes...right? That's right: Nazis and the Cathedral of Learning. That's what Imaginary Trends is all about folks.

There's also a Jonathan Coulton concert going on in Southside. If someone shouts "Jonathan Coulton" from across the room then I automatically sprint over mouth agape waiting for more info. I'm lucky enough to see one of my idols in concert and well...those 2-3 hours alone could be my only vacation for the next 6 months and I'd be happy.

Expect Kyle to be uploading more videos of Yancy in action and next week I'm prepping a review of the new movie "Avatar" by James Cameron. Yep...just you wait.

If you're at the Jonathan Coulton concert this saturday in Pitt, come up and say hi, I'm going by myself...

Quick Rough Update... (insert your own innuendos here)

Sometimes updating technology isn't fun... I purchased an HD camera the other day and spent the entire day on the phone with all sorts of technical support. In lieu of something pretty, Sam and I just wanted to let you see some of what is currently in development on our end right now.

Check out some demos and rough cuts from our upcoming album "The Menu" on Sam's youtube channel.

I've also been backloading a bunch of the Yancy videos to the Imaginary Trends youtube channel, so you can get caught up on almost a year of random adventures. This video also shows a bit of what the next puppet will look like. Using my hands as his hands, I plan on getting into a lot more trouble and aim to make it quite unlike the cutesy and lovable Yancy.

Keep it classy and I'll check in on you all soon!

~K

Black Friday

I haven't heard any ridiculous news reports (thus far) about serious mishaps occurring on this glorious retail day, so I will assume that all is well with everyone.

Thanksgiving used to symbolize the time of year when families recall that they're all supposed to do stuff together... but growing up kind of changes all that. This is not the first year I've been away from home on Thanksgiving, but it was the first time I had to go out for my meal... and that was definitely an odd experience.

Not one to take things lying down, I decided that such an odd event required an even odder response, so Yancy came along to celebrate! Within 20 minutes I was able to throw together an appropriate outfit and we took Cracker Barrel by storm!

Click here to view the video on youtube and be sure to share it with friends!

So in this time of togetherness and the celebration of families, please remember that Aaron is working two jobs today... and I got to sleep in. Send some love!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hitchhiker's Guide to TMNT

Gosh, it's Turkey week already eh? Funny how that whole calender thing works out. It's also my birthday this week but I'm not really one for celebrating being a year closer to being OLD.

Tuesday's offering is another episode of "I Need Friends" with me playing Christian Bartholomew the 3rd. I've told Kyle this and I don't mind saying it, but this week I'm thankful for not playing Christian for a week. You see, we have several other projects to unveil soon to appease your rich feisty appetite and Christian is not one of those characters in the projects.

I love Christian to death, but I've been playing him for 11 months now, a week off will benefit the brain. Multiple personality disorder here I come!

Also, if you guys like the videos then share them with your friends! Put them on FaceBook, add them to StumbleUpon.com, and just spread them like swine flu! (NOTE: Imaginary Trends does not promote the spreading of Swine Flu.)

But seriously, Sam Rockwell was/in the first Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie. And yes, I must spell it out because when Kyle said he was watching "TMNT" I naturally thought he meant the animated 2007 offering in theatres. This was not the case, and in my mind incorrect. "TMNT" and "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" are very different movies. Had he been in the same room as I, he would've been slapped. I'd rather not relive such a tragic night though, so I'll leave it at that.

So are you guys watching the video? Double click it and head to our Youtube Channel and subscribe there. That way you can always be in the loop for our latest shenanigans.

Also, if this isn't the best thing you've read all day, then kudos cause you're having a better day than I am. (Courtesy of Kyle)

I can't count on both hands how many people have divulged their dirty secret that they intensely love Miley Cyrus's "Party In The U.S.A." which has attacked radio waves with healthy vigor. It's sad that I actually know how her life works when she puts on the wig and becomes Hannah Montana. When you watch the Disney Channel with your nephew quite often you tend to become educated on items that ritually help you lose your "dude" points. Either way, people should hit up the video at this link if you'd prefer to watch it on our exclusive YouTube Channel.

~ Aaron J. (the birthday boy)

Sense and Sensibility and Upload Errors

No one ever said it would be easy, but providing new content for our viewers every Tuesday and Friday seemed like a more than managable task. I wish I could say I was ready for anything but last night's attempt to upload our latest video threw me for a loop. It was fully edited and done by 9 PM but then was resistant to just about every form of uploading I tried to make it participate in. I tried manually uploading it, I tried uploading it in HD and other various formats, and then at 4:30 AM this morning I thought it was done. Late, but done.

Then I woke up this morning to see that none of it went through at all. Fun.

So I decided to concede the effort to upload the video in HD (which I think is what the problem was all along) and just have it be a regular YouTube standard size. Next time I'm coming for YOU HD! Just you wait!

Anyway, the new video is about my alter-ego, Christian, as he explains why Taylor Swift should be dating him and not Taylor Lautner. Their relationship is just a constant reminder that without abs, you may as well be the lonely kid at lunch. Though Christian does have a few good points...

Look for Kyle's update on Friday, until then, stay classy.

~ Aaron J.

Video coming soon!

Hey guys! Aaron J. here! The video I had planned for today's content upload was nearly done but then I was hit with a wave of inspiration and decided to start over on a new video. I'm sorry the content upload will be late tonight but I promise it'll be worth it.

Keep a look out later.

~ Aaron J.

irregularly scheduled programming

What's this? Imaginary Trends is going to begin updating on a constant Tuesday/Friday schedule? I've never heard of such a thing!

So how we all doing? :)

Like our new web-site? It's nothing fancy, but we'd like to think our work speaks for itself. You can view our latest videos at ThisGuyAndI.us every Tuesday and Friday. Who knows what video will pop-up next!? Will it be a behind the scenes thing? Might it be a video showcasing the adventures of Yancy? Or perhaps it'll be LAN'ded related? Life is a vending machine of awesomeness here so keep stopping by for candy figurative metaphors.

The video offering we have for you today is the story of a boy named Christian who may or may not be related to our soon to be produced web-series "LAN'ded." The video may or may not include the release of "Star Trek" on Blu-Ray. I may or may not like to be ambiguous about what the video for today's update is. Maybe you should just click on it and watch it?

All the cool kids are doing it.

~ Aaron J.

Lots of changes coming...

You may have noticed that our web-site www.thisguyandi.us looks a little...different.

Well, the decision was made earlier in the week to bring about changes. Big changes. Changes only made possible by sentient robots hard work and dedication. We're making a promise to the people of the world that Imaginary Trends will update with new content every Tuesday and Friday!

What this means is that if you're at work at your boring desk job, then every tuesday right after you get yelled at for not having the correct stationary for the memos, you can head to ThisGuyAndI.us and watch a new funny video or read about what we're up to. Or say you're sitting in computer class and the teacher is trying to make learning about Powerpoint exciting, well have no fear! Just type in ThisGuyAndI.us into your browser and do your best to make it look like you're paying attention! See? Everyone wins!

This also means we'll be pumping out content at an alarming rate. We're talking about putting together videos and projects faster than a fat guy running after a truckload of cupcakes.

Stay tuned tomorrow for new content, in the meantime, check out the new ThisGuyAndI.us (subject to change cause I didn't actually OK it with Kyle...YET)

~ Aaron J.

Imaginary Trends News Alert! - Dorky Rockers Release New Album Today!

When I think of dork rock, I think of Weezer.

When I think of dork rock, I do NOT think of snuggies, but y'know what? Weezer apparently thinks they're pretty fly for a white guy and have decided to endorse the product. You can purchase Weezer's new album "Raditude" in a few different versions, the most expensive and lavish of which contains a special zebra print Snuggie. I don't think I have to tell you what is going on MY Christmas list now.
Support the creators of dork rock and buy their album! And if you're pirating, at least make it discreet. Head to www.Weezer.com to purchase the new album and maybe even a Weezer-branded Snuggie!

~ Aaron J.

imaginary trends crew quote - our real intentions

Kyle - "Have you looked into the Insights thing on the IT fanpage? We have more female fans than male fans... ITS WORKING PERFECTLY!!!"

Though we are a performance troupe that tries to focus on geeky subject matter, I gotta say that maybe we had our demographic wrong? Perhaps girls are starting to think that geeks and dorks are sexy?

If this is one of the signs of the apocalypse, then consider me one of the four horsemen.

~ Aaron J.

P.S. Thanks for all of your support this past week guys, you've no idea how much it means to us.

Imaginary Trends Update 10/23/09 - Revenge Of The Fallen & I Can't Get Up!

Hey everyone! Aaron J. here with the very first Imaginary Trends newsletter. The way to keep you in-the-know, in-the-loop, informed, educated, and satiated in all things dorky.

(Sorry, I get long-winded when I have caffeine in my system this early.)

So, what's been going down? Quite a bit...

Kyle, Sam, and I like to test people's tolerance for performance mimes and it looks as if we've found a way to incorporate them into the world of LAN'ded! An ingenious way to insert them into the show is underway! We'll be launching a small YouTube channel later this year along with more information.

Details are currently being worked out for the first annual "Masochist Gamer Charity Event!" I'm pleased to say that supporters of Imaginary Trends from all over the country will be helping out with this event too! Over 72 hours we will be playing the very worst games ever made live via web cam in hopes that the Internet viewing public will feel pity and donate money! All proceeds go to benefit the Child's Play Charity. For more info, check out www.ChildsPlayCharity.com!

Have you heard the new hit single from Felicia Day? If you haven't, hit up YouTube and search for "Do You Want To Date My Avatar" and prepared to be overridden with geeky sentiments of finding love in an online game. While the music video does its best to distract me from work, I'm happy to say that we've been able to find a way to remix it! Resident dope beat mixer and tall guy Sam has laid down some tracks for a remix and soon we'll be splicing together a music video set to debut on the LAN'ded viral YouTube channel (www.YouTube.com/ChristianInTheWired).

Also, we're trying to organize a way to get an interview with geek rocker Jonathan Coulton. Not familiar with him? Check out his website @ www.jonathancoulton.com!

That's about it for us here at Imaginary Trends for now. Remember that we update the viral YouTube page at least once a week with more of Christian's internet activities and that we're hard working on projects not even listed here!

Peace out & sayonara
- Aaron J.