Air Jordan XI (11) Commercial


In light of the Air Jordan XI (11) 'Concord' dropping this Friday at retailers everywhere, I'd like to leave it here. Remember this commercial?!



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J2: Why Jordan Brand sucks


I've been collecting J's for about 12 years now. And I've been wearing Swooshes and Jumpmen on my feet since I was born. Literally. I also still own and wear Air Jordans. So in light of that, the title may be a litte contradicting on my part. You also may be thinking, "What a hypocritical bastard, to say such a thing". Although I still wear J's on a regular basis, my statement still holds some truth. Because most of my J's don't suck, but the guys who make them do.

J2 is going to Las Vegas!

via fiftybest.com

Yep. I will be in Las Vegas starting Thursday at exactly 7:39pm MT. Pretty excited, but I don't know what to expect. It will be my first trip with a fairly large group of people. The last couple times I went, we were 4 guys doing whatever we wanted. This trip, although I myself, am single, seems like a couples retreat. Hopefully, it doesn't turn out that way but it sure is looking so.

J2: The NBA is Back

via RealGM

After a new collective bargaining agreement, the lock-out is finally being lifted! The NBA and the Players Association get ready for a 66-game 2011-2012 season. Thank God. I watched quite a bit of basketball last season, and because of the lock out, I'll be watching even more this season, albeit the short schedule. You really don't know what you have until it's gone.

J2: Random Pic



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The Wrestler


via ESPN

When I was a kid, I looked up to alot of people on TV. I used to watch WWF alot. I used to buy the magazines, posters, tickets for events, toys and of course, catch them on Monday nights and PPVs. Other than Bret Hart, I had very few childhood wrestling heroes. One of those few, was Razor Ramon. The first 'bad guy' or 'heel' (wrestling term for villain) that I liked in wrestling. Obviously, wrestling back in the day wasn't like what it is today. Wrestling, in my opinion, was so much better and Scott Hall was partly the reason why.

The Avengers Trailer

Sorry for the lack of updates. I've been quite busy as of late. The ball is finally rolling at work, which means I get home later in the day, where I have to do my article posts for Sneaker Files, eat dinner and play hockey. And in the in-between time, I'd devoted a few hours a day to playing NBA 2K12. Haha.

Any who, I'm working on a post, which I will have ready pretty soon. In the mean time, enjoy the The Avengers movie trailer.


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J2: Battle Ready


New visor. Because cages are annoying.




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J2: Pick-up vol. "Neon Air"


My newest. 
One of the hardest '97s for me to find. 
Yummy. 

Nike Air Max 97 "Neon" - Asia Exclusive

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J2: Random Pic



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J2's Guide to "The Fresh Prince" Sneakers


The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is probably one of the few shows I can watch all day. Watching re-runs during my sick days or lazy Sundays strike the thought of nostalgia every time. I guess growing up watching 6 seasons of DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince will do that to you.

I love the 90's. I love 90's TV. I love the 90's footwear. Did I mention I love the 90's? And in light of reading Complex's Complete Guide to Seinfeld's Sneakers, I thought I'd come up with my own "guide" to Will Smith's line up of kicks that he donned for 7 years on the show. Here are my top 30 kicks worn by the Fresh Prince. Enjoy.

Nike Air Mag "Marty McFly" vol "It's about time"


Since the 80's, EVERY Nike head has always dreamed of owning their very own pair of Marty McFly's Nike Air Mag. It's 2011 and all I can say is wow. It's about damn time. 

This classic from "Back to the Future", comes to us in a very limited 1500 pairs and will be auctioned off on eBay in listings of 150 pairs each day in a span of 10 days starting tonight, September 8, 2011 at 11:30 EST / 8:30 PST. Michael J. Fox, who has been battling Parkinson's Disease for a long time, hopes to raise awareness of the disease and hopes to raise money for the cause, as all the proceeds go towards the Michael J. Fox foundation. 

An unprecedented move by Nike to not only run an event for such a good cause, but provide us with the opportunity to own a piece of sneaker history. 





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NikeTalk: WDYWT? vol "Weekly Recap"



Been a minute. 
For the last week. Some were from the
week before. Later.

J2: Bo Knows



I love a good old school Nike release. Retros in the finest, original and nostalgic colorways are always something I am looking for. Why? Because they are the gems that aren't so much sought after, like Air Jordans are. Nowadays you can find the J's you want by hitting up eBay, NikeTalk or simply waiting for them to Retro over and over again in lower and lower quality. It kinda loses it's appeal after awhile (Why would you retro the True Blue IIIs THREE times in 8 years?!), which is why I kinda stopped buying Jordans. Most after the jump...

J2: Trainspotting


Took a stroll down the industrial for a few snaps. 
I like the monochrome look on some of these.
I guess they turned out okay. Still working on it though.

NikeTalk: WDYWT? vol "Battle of the Jordan Lows"



This edition of WDYWT? comes from a portion of my small
line up of Air Jordan tow tops. Here's a few from the
collection I wore LAST week. Another late pass 
and my Jordan Lows are crappy, but oh well. Enjoi.

"No one can do it better"; I check chedder, like a food inspector...



So, I'm going to Vegas for my birthday this December. With the flashing lights, entertainment, noise and parties (oh and strippers), mixed in with friends and family, you couldn't ask for a better birthday.

NikeTalk: WDYWT? vol. Weekly Recap 6


Another installment of my weekly NikeTalk WDYWT?
This week really has no theme, it is pretty random. 
If anything, maybe all from the Air Max line up. 
Another late pass from last week. 

SneakerNews: Battle of the Customs - Nike Air Force 1

via Sneakernews

This week on the Sneakernews segment called Battle of the Customs, features the Nike Air Force 1. A collection of the recently designed customs using the 1982 classic as a base. I (J2), along with other hard working customizers, collectively put in hundreds of hours to bring our designs and ideas into reality.

J2: Tee-Off


This weekend, we had the first ever Spartans Hockey Golf Tournament. 20 players, friends and guests were invited to play a relaxing and drunken 18-holes at Boulder Creek Golf Course in Langdon, AB. Not only was it an excellent turn-out, but we had a good time.

NikeTalk: WDYWT? vol. "I love the 90s"


I just wanted to wear all Nike Air Max 90s
last week, so I laced up a few. I love these.
Safari's are probably the most comfortable pair.
Enjoi.

J2: Random Pics vol. Concrete Jungle or Paradise?

I found myself browsing through my computer, cleaning up all the crap that filled up my hard drive this passed year, and I noticed I have quite a few pictures I've taken.

They aren't awesome by any means, but they're just snaps that have absolutely no meaning to them and considered as random. There will be no back story or background information regarding most of them, but I thought I'd post at least 1 or 2 random images a week.

NikeTalk: WDYWT? vol. Late Pass



Good evening! This is actually last week's WDYWT? 
It's been a busy week so I haven't gotten a chance
to post these. It's a late pass, but whatever.
Enjoi.

Gilbert Arenas: Greatest PLANKER Ever!

Gilbert Arenas & Dwight Howard

In light of G's stint with his controversial Twitter comments regarding his blind date (which was funny by the way), Arenas takes planking to a whole new level, again, which is quite hilarious.

Jerry Seinfeld's Sneakers


Jerry Seinfeld - writer, actor, comedian...Nike head? Yessir, Jerry Seinfeld is quite the unique Nike head. While sneaker celebrities like Greg Street, Wale and Fat Joe collect and wore special edition Jordans, Dunk SBs, Foamposites and regular 'hypebeast' heat, Jerry Seinfeld was OG. Rocking the 'under-the-radar' gems that true Nike heads fiend for. Nike Trainers, OG Jordans, and Nike Runners were on his feet on the daily during numerous filmings of Seinfeld. Complex Magazine was nice enough to compile a list of his wearings. Here are some of my favorites:

NikeTalk: WDYWT? vol Weekly Recap 5

Another WDYWT? recap, week 5. 
Didn't wear much this week, recycled a few as well. 

J2: People I Find Extremely Annoying


Every so often, a list like this will show up on my blog. Some of the things I write in here are heavily influenced by the dumb things I notice every day but never, ever point out in real life. I devote a small portion of my time  into compiling a useless list and then posting it when it is good enough to share.

A couple of these are inspired by the little facts of life that my favorite comedians point out, which I find very funny. And it's never positive by the way, it's always stuff like the tiniest things that are devastating or socially awkward moments. In light of that, it's interesting to share because YOU experience the same (in most cases). So again, in no specific order:

J2: Hiking in Grassi Lakes


Took a hike with the family to Grassi Lakes this past Sunday. It rained, but I was able to snap a few while I was up there. It's nice to get out and get some exercise. This was one of the better hiking trails, in a sense that we actually did some 'hiking' through rocks, boulders and steep climbs. There was even a rock slide that rained on all of us - dangerous stuff. Probably the only time in my life where I ran to a nearby cave for cover. But anyway, enjoy.

YouTube: Thousand Pounds Fight Team - "Femme Fatale" Ultra Combos

I am very impressed by the Thousand Pounds Fight Team and their work. I love the old school style choreography, video game effects and sounds and overall production. It's always satisfying to see amateur film teams create something like these with just a Canon 7D, a computer and hard work. These videos are kind of old, but I ran into them again, and they never fail to amaze me every time.

J2: Pick-Ups vol "3 pieces of iD, please."


Got 3 pairs of Nike iDs ordered from the US recently.
After 4-5 weeks, they finally came to my door last night.
Again, thanks Wei for the order and for shipping to my house!

J2: Slacker

I've been late for work every day this week. I haven't been keeping this blog up to date. I haven't been watching TV and I barely get through writing entries for Sneakerfiles. I also skipped overtime a couple times and I had planned to hit the driving range this week and I completely put those plans down the shitter. All because my cousin introduced me to this piece of shit time waster:

J2: Technology Oversight


One of my sisters kept reciting this for no apparent reason one day - Genie, Jafar, Aladdin, Abu. That's a stage code for Super NES's Aladdin. Seeing as it was a lazy Sunday afternoon, we wanted to get into some retro-gaming. I begin digging through a bunch of boxes until I found my old Super Nintendo console, which I pulled out, along with games and cords. I installed the system into my entertainment unit and plugged everything in, luckily, technology isn't so far advanced that I couldn't still plug in RCA cables.

J2: "Oh he/she was in that movie?!"

Have you ever seen a movie or TV show when you were young and then re-watch it YEARS later into your adulthood and leatn that some of the cast are actors/actresses whom you didn't know starred in it in the first place? Or when you're watching something current on TV and a person watching with you goes "Hey, did you know he/she played whoever on some TV show?"

I find either of those happening many times when I put on a throwback film or watch a TV show that stars someone familiar. It makes me go "Oh shit, he/she was in that movie?!". It was kind of interesting, so I thought I'd share some with you. Some are more obvious than others, but at the time, I had no idea. Haha.

NikeTalk: WDYWT? vol Weekly Recap II



Congrats Boston! Stay Classy Vancouver...

Source: The Score

I wasn't a huge fan of this year's NHL Playoffs, partly because I didn't have a team to cheer for. But I do have a team that I loath and hope would lose and they did. That being said - Congratulations to the Boston Bruins for winning the Stanley Cup and big ups to Tim Thomas for winning the Conn Smythe Trophy with a SHUT OUT in a must-win game 7.

Meanwhile, in Vancouver, this is happening...

Nike Air Max 90 "Stash" - by Dank Customs


I'm always a very happy to see custom sneaker work that turned out great. There are artists out there who execute their concepts, color blocking, painting and overall attention to quality and detail into a custom sneaker very well, and jwdanklefs of NT is one of them.

J2: When Old Meets New


I love it when modern twists are brought upon classic things. I actually really dig the look of the new Dodge Challenger. I like the throwback blue/green on the Vancouver Canucks jerseys. And I like classic movies from the early 90s and 80s brought back in high definition in Blu-Ray.

What I love even more is modern technology on classic sneakers. When it's done right, of course. No one messes with a classic, it often turns out bad in the end, in my opinion. That's because, for me, I appreciate what they are and it's sentimental value for staying true to the original. But this was done RIGHT!

Congrats to Dallas, TX


Photo Credit: bigsupa @ NT

J2: RITHNTDWA


Here are some randoms that I haven't posted before. Just some images that I really didn't fit anywhere in any of my other posts. Sometimes if I'm bored, I'll pull the camera out and take random snaps of stuff. I only have 2 lenses to play with, my 50mm prime and a cheaper 18-105mm. I do what I can with what I know. Which isn't alot, but I enjoy it. One.

NikeTalk: WDYWT? vol Weekly Recap


The Finals: One more game

One more, fellas.

Dirk deserves the ring. He's worked hard all his career. Never sold out, never one of those players people really hated. His drive to win, his attitude in the game and his skill-set as a whole during the entire playoffs are unparalleled. Combine that with the contrasting sense of humility and soft-spoken persona, you have yourself one of the greatest players to ever play the game. Disagree? I dunno, I could Wiki some stats, but why? He was the best overall player in the Western Conference this post-season. And this is still with Kobe and Durant on their respective teams. It would also be nice for Dallas' veteran players to finally get one as well. More after the jump.

J2: Pick-Ups vol "Impulses & Denims"


Got these in the mail today. 

Nike Air Force One Premium "Denim"
(Dark Obsidian/Bronze)

I got a second pair of these 'cause the price was too good to pass up. 
Thanks Wei (Team AM Fam) for these!
2007 Nike Foamposite One Retro "Penny"
(Dark Neon Royal/Black)

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J2: Work Rant vol. KNOW YOUR SHIT, N00B!


Being a young lead designer has it's pros and cons. One of the best things about it is the fact that I have opportunities to advance much quicker than some junior and intermediate designers. I also gain more personal and professional experience in things like - project management, delegation, employee/client relations and communication.

My professional goal is to sit in a big ass chair in an office with a window and a plant - if you don't work in an office, these 2 items are somewhat symbols of high status, believe it or not. But for now, it will get worse before it gets better. I honestly didn't know how I landed in such a position with only 4 years of experience. Upper management must have more faith in me than I do. But now, I think I have an idea why.

Unlaced: Episode 9 - Monday, May 30, 2011



What's good? Unlaced: Episode 9 is up! I've been pretty busy, so I haven't gotten a chance to embed our episode on the blog. So, click the image above for a preview of this weeks' topics and to listen to the episode.

This podcast contains language some listeners might find offensive. Discretion is advised.

Playboy's Top 23 List

The list is here, click Nice Kicks for the list and if you wanna see the 'goods' click Playboy.com (NSFW).


I have a lot to critique about this list. But maybe we'll discuss it on the podcast. The list isn't half bad, but it's missing a few key pieces to make this list top notch. And I probably would have rearranged the order of some of them. But some things are obvious, the Air Jordan XIII was released in 1998, not 1988. Having said that, is it gay that I noticed this discrepancy first and NOT insanely hot Jamie Edmondson? It also would have been miles better if the "Solemates" wore the shoes. It would have made for great wallpaper at the office. Haha.

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Following Lebron James' Career


"Yo Kobe, I'll see you in NBA Cha....nevermind."

In light of the Heat going to the Finals, I'll write about the element that got them there. I've noticed Lebron grow throughout his career from St. Vincent-St.Mary in Akron Ohio, to the rough and great times on the Cavs to taking his now-undeserved talents to South Beach, Miami. Throughout the years, I've seen players switch shoes and shoe companies, sign with teams, get tattoos, shatter records, do unbelievable things and accomplish incredible feats... and get Championships. For Lebron James, it's been something else these past 8 years. Have you ever noticed Lebron is still mortal? Dumb question, but although he has Superman talents on the hardwood, he still suffers the Kryptonite of insecurity. Let's take a close look at what I'm talking about:

NikeTalk: WDYWT?



Air Max 90 "Vivid Blue"