Danica Dow dot com » 2008

A few weeks ago I did something that really hurt my heart. I threw away a ton of magazines. Yes, my name is Danica and I’m a magazine feign. Though it was difficult, my bookshelf was completely overflowing and I figured that the top of the year was a good time to clear out the unnecessary magazines (and make way for the clutter of 2008). It was an interesting way to look back at my reading habits. Basically, the magazines that I regularly read fell into the following categories:

1. Hip-Hop: Vibe, XXL

2. Music: Rolling Stone, Blender, Fader, Giant, Spin, Nylon

3. New York: New York, Time Out NY

4. Women’s Mags: Jane, Vibe Vixen, Missbehave

5. Men’s Mags: Complex, Nylon Guys

6. Technology: Wired, Fast Company

There were also some gossip weeklies that we won’t talk about. Here are some highlights:

Jane magazine

Jane was easily my favorite magazine ever. I once met Brandon Holley (Jane’s last Editor in Chief) at a MediaBistro forum and almost went groupie status. Instead I talked to her, exchanged info and got some great advice.
Nylon Guys

Nylon Guys is not just for guys (though I do feel a little awkward reading it on the train). This quarterly is irreverent, informative and it has great cover subjects (Pete Wentz, Nigo, Adam Brody, Joaquin Phoenix).

Vibe cover mistake

I also found the infamous issue of Vibe with the glaring spelling mistake on the cover. Can you find it?

Shock Magazine

Lastly, I found a copy of the short-lived Shock magazine. I don’t think it was horrible, just terribly behind it’s time.

Filed under: Magazines, Collections

What Ever Happened to Vote or Die?

Posted January 21, 2008

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Diddy Vote Or Die
I know I said this isn’t a hip-hop blog but I have to get this off my chest. Today at work we ended up having a rather enlightening discussion about rappers and accountability. It was sparked by Martin Luther King Jr’s ability to rally the troops to bring about social change and our (the young, hip-hop generation’s) lack of a leader.

Naturally, people look to trendsetters like Jay-Z or P. Diddy to devote their time (and possibly their money) to an issue, be it healthcare or politics, but that is problematic in my eyes for two reasons. First of all, the only things these guys are experts in are making music and making themselves moguls. Admirable? Absolutely. But that does not mean that these people are inclined or equipped to lead a generation of young people.

We need leaders that want to be leaders, not guys that desired to dance around in shiny suits. We need leaders that possess the knowledge and speaking ability to move 200,000 people with one speech.

Secondly, anytime a hip-hop personality gets behind an issue it comes across as contrived. Russell Simmons only cared about censorship in the weeks following the Don Imus controversy. Diddy only thought voting was important enough to die for last election. This time around he is nowhere to be found. And that’s cool because I would much rather hear Diddy telling me why I should drink Ciroc and Jay could tell me which color blue I should rock (powder blue Rocawear suit, white Nikes or perhaps Jay-Z blue?).

These guys are masters at gauging what’s hot and hopping aboard for the ride. They also have a knack for making things hot simply because they have a financial interest in the company. I hate to break it to ya but Jay doesn’t promote Budweiser, Ace of Spades or HP out of the goodness of his hip-hop heart. Dude is getting paid and that’s great. But let’s take these guys for what they are, opportunists who are good at entertaining and making moolah. Let’s not put the future in their hands just yet.

If, by chance, a hip-hop celebrity decided to actually commit himself (or herself) to an issue and ride with it until policies are changed or new officials are elected I’m totally down. But in until then, excuse my French, but F a fair-weather leader.

Filed under: Music, Politics

Mama Needs A Slingbox or 3 Reasons I’m Anti-MacBook Air

Posted January 19, 2008

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This week, everyone has been all caught up with the new MacBook Air but not me. Don’t get me wrong, I think the 3 pound laptop that Steve Jobs announced at MacWorld is crazy impressive and convenient but I’m not quite ready to buy into the hype, for three reasons.

1. Kinks. I copped a first generation Macbook and had to deal with that whole Random Shutdown situation that Apple didn’t quite know how to fix. I’ll wait until you’ve got all the bugs worked out thankyouverymuch. There’s nothing worst than having a $1500 computer that just shuts the F down whenever it feels like it.

2. Durability. I just get the feeling that that bad boy might snap in half at some point. I also could imagine that if I had a 3 pound laptop of my very own I would carry it everywhere which means it would be banged all around. It might get thrown a little too hard into a cab or (gasp) dropped a few times. How is this frail little guy going to handle all the abuse?

3. Lose-ability. If I did, in fact, carry my little laptop everywhere the chances of my losing a $1800 piece of equipment would increase exponentially. That stresses me out.

The Slingbox, on the other hand, is one piece of technology that I’m down with. I spotted it over at Jeff Staple’s blog. Apparently, the Slingbox connects to your TV at home so that you can watch your TV (and anything that you’ve DVRed) on your laptop from anywhere in the world.

Slingbox

Dear Santa,

I neeeeed this.

Love,

Danica

Filed under: Trend

How do you take your Chipotle Burritos?

Posted January 17, 2008

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ChipotleOriginally uploaded by danicadow

Yesterday, while I was waiting to hit up the VH1 Storytellers taping with Mary J. Blige (it was excellent, by the way) I popped into Chipotle for some dinner. As I was sitting there on 34th St, across from Hammerstein Ballroom (where the taping took place) I starting thinking about restaurants and preferences.

There are those few incredible restaurants where one feels safe ordering anything on the menu but for the most part we always have “The Standard” at any establishment that we frequent. It could be as simple as the Subway sandwich that you always grab at lunch or it could be the, “There’s no way you can go to Nobu without ordering the Black Cod with Miso,” kinda deal. I think part of wanting to go back to a restaurant is because you experienced some excellent culinary feat and you retain that pleasure and want to repeat it. If you get something else, you’re taking a chance that it may not live up to “The Standard.”

When I think of Japonais, I want the freaking Crispy Shrimp and Salmon roll. At Bao 111 give me Lollipop Chicken and Mignonette with the Saigon Dragon to drink. I wouldn’t go to Primehouse without getting the Ceasar salad (prepared tableside) and when I go to Sugar Sweet Sunshine I want the Bob. I guess I am just a creature of habit.
Though I sometimes switch it up and get the chicken or a salad I pretty much stick with “The Standard” at Chipotle. Here’s what I ALWAYS get: Carnitas burrito with pinto beans, rice, pico de gallo, corn salsa and the spicy one (yes I’m greedy) and lettuce. No cheese, no sour cream, no guac (the price totally outweighs the benefit!).

What do you get at Chipotle?

Filed under: food

What is Danica Dow dot com?

Posted January 17, 2008

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I don’t blame you for asking. This is a question I’ve been asking myself for quite some time now. I probably first registered the domain back in 2006 or so because it’s always good to own your name. Then I charged myself with learning the ins and outs of Wordpress. I used this blog as a testing ground and once I had it all figured out, I built and wrote some blogs for other people. Towards the last quarter of 07 I decided to dust the cobwebs off and put something useful up here. The only problem was, I just didn’t know what that would be. I’m up to my ears in hip-hop in my career. So, though the majority of my day is invested in it, the last thing I wanted to write about was the minutia of the rap world. I didn’t want to get too personal and I didn’t want blogging to become a chore. Eventually I started throwing up posts here and there and I finally managed to figure it out.

Danica Dow dot com is simply about the things that I like and things that I do. It’s about travel and my love of New York City. It’s about trends and branding and blogging. It’s marketing. It’s streetwear and sneakers with a bit of couture sprinkled in there. It’s found art and read books. It’s my newfound love of photography and my rekindled love affair with video production. It’s food (recipes and restaurants). It’s music, technology and a little bit of TV.

Filed under: Uncategorized