Last Dispatch is a new documentary featuring the band, Dispatch, who went from a garage group of three... to touring the Northeast college circuit for ten years... to a final concert three years ago that drew 110,000 fans without any radio airplay or marketing. The two weeks leading up to this incredible concert in 2004 (as each of them moved into solo careers) were chronicled in the film.

Brad Corrigan of Dispatch has become a dear friend of mine... working on his website and the Relief Project... as well as getting to know and working with his former guitar tech, Jon-Erik Borgen (who can be seen in the film with a camcorder in hand up on the stage). At the prompting of Brad (to get the word out to a few friends), I spoke with the producer of the film this week, Brady Nasfell, and here's how he described the movie:

"This is not your typical band documentary, you know, sex drugs rock and roll. Three guys have a dream together, you see why they get along and why it ends. Then you see 110,000 fans at the final show in Boston. It was really incredible to see what most people would call a fluke. The film shows things that are common to the human experience: being a part of a team and the struggle you go through to get there."

I watched the film this weekend with several friends, including Pete Francis and his family, here in NYC. Next week, Last Dispatch heads to Chicago for one week only... this is a must-see!

I'm pleased to announce the launch of a new site for Calvary-St. George's Church, an Episcopal parish in New York City. The parish was ready for an updated and modern look (compare to their old site), but without taking away from the rich history and traditions of their community. As their crest is a strikingly bold red banner, I maintained the theme of red throughout the site. And I was heavily influenced from a few good sites that brilliantly use a combination of serif (Georgia) and san-serif (Lucida/Verdana) font families, which read very easily. I made a major update to their parish campus map with a friendly look (a la Colonial Williamsburg's map) and some sensible, practical features (a la the directions/map I produced for Haven). For the first time, I produced a page in Arabic, highlighting one of many excellent outreach programs this parish takes on throughout the year. Altogether, I'm very excited about the outcome: check it out!

While we're on updates, I've added a selection of links to the bottom of my sidebar, to which I owe all inspiration from Khoi Vinh. It's a brilliant idea that I hope catches on. Aaand to that extent, you might notice that Refresh now has its very own favicon, grandly appearing in your browser's address bar (thanks, Charlie for prompting me to do so). Enjoy!

O dying souls, behold your Living spring;
O dazzled eyes, behold your Sun of grace;
Dull ears, attend what word this Word doth bring;
Up, heavy hearts, with joy your joy embrace.
From death, from dark, from deafness, from despairs,
This life, this light, this Word, this joy repairs.
-Robert Southwell

Michigan's hometown hero, singer-songwriter Sufjan Stevens, is pouring his clever charm and dynamite compositions into an ambitious new project. He is working on what promises to be fifty albums: one for each state in America. His first two (Michigan and Illinois) were received with solid, if not surprising, critical praise. With a style echoing Garrison Keller and Walt Whitman, it's no wonder that Sufjan's comforting and friendly storytelling is so appealing:

Our step mom we did everything to hate her
She took us down to the edge of Decatur
We saw the lion and the kangeroo take her
Down to the river where they caught a wild alligator

Doesn't that just make you want to know the full story? (See the full lyrics of Decatur, Or, Round Of Applause For Your Stepmother!... or just buy the album.) What state will come under the magnifying glass next? His label Asthmatic Kitty Records provides some clues: "Sufjan began to intimate at other songs for other states, the American Dream, the national anthem, the continental rigmarole, the Delaware shuffle, Florida flamenco, California swing, all dramatized in song, the great epic symphony, in 50 movements, in 50 years! Lord help us!"

I presented the inspiration for The Haven on Monday night. Haven is my community of creative professionals - artists of all types (actors, musicians, filmmakers, writers, models, photographers, designers) - here in New York City. Every week, we have worship, prayer, time of thanks, and meet in small groups with an interesting discussion topic. And we feature an artist each week with an inspirational presentation that relates to our current theme. This week, that artist was me.

We're about to start a new dialog on our calling in life. So it was important to introduce this theme broadly for everyone, but with just enough detail to keep folks interested. In recent weeks, I've been working on a personal project that just happened to fit this very niche. The result was a music video for Brand New Colony by The Postal Service.

I introduced the four-minute piece by considering just how many decisions we make in a day and how those decisions are all led by God's powerful hand. When you put all these little things together, you start to see the bigger picture for your calling in life, as I've started to see moving to NYC, working for the Museum, doing freelance work, and helping out at the Haven.

But it's not always completely clear. I definitely don't have it all together and the journey I'm on can be pretty blurry sometimes. Yet I have a hope that God is in the details and the promise of what's to come is so incredibly clear. You just have to look for it.

I'd be remiss not to say that I was quieting some major butterflies on Monday night. There I was, standing in front of 150 of my peers and closest friends being completely vulnerable and open about my calling. I'm usually fine about speaking to crowds: I used to give the announcements to Haven every week, and I share my graphic design on the Haven website every day. But I was nervous on a different level because I was sharing a piece of art that isn't my profession (I'm not a filmmaker or editor, but there I was, standing in front of several accomplished film professionals, sharing my work).

And then, oh how my heart sang! The Haven roared with applause and shouts as the piece ended and lifted my spirits (as it never fails to do) with hugs and sincere compliments. Sometimes, the Big Guy Upstairs finds a way to give you glimpses of the beauty to come, and that night He did it in an incredible way.

Only on the Lower East Side can a five minute walk between a club on Bowery and a diner on Second produce such a diverse crowd. From the super-sophisticated, super-kawaii (super-cool) Japanese hipsters and the slamminly middle class giddy/giggling artistic types (that's us), to the grunge-heavy-metal-extreme-punk crowd and the all-too smoky and spirited gay bar scene, to the trash-talking thugs standing on the corner and the tired, shifty-eyed locals dragging themselves home from a long night shift. Another moment brought to you by Only in New York.