Seven Point gets a redesign

Energized on the outside. Relaxed at the core.

How To Adapt Nike+ To Any Shoe

The one downside to the nike+ run sports kit is that it's made to be only compatible with nike+ shoes. I do very much like the seamless integration of sports, music, and technology aspect of the whole thing. However, I already have a couple of pairs of relatively new running shoes that i should be wearing so it got me thinking....how can I attach the nike sensor to my existing shoes?

...that was when I found a double use for my Knog Frog light!

Just follow these simple steps to convert your micro light into a nike+ sensor suit:

1. remove the LED light from the silicon outer.
2. put the nike+ senser in place of the LED light
3. loop and hook the frog light outer around your shoe laces and voila!

Or if you're not so into that idea, Marware makes a neoprene/rubber sportsuit that holds the nike sensor and using velcro, attaches to the shoelaces of your favorite pair of running shoes. (cost: $9.95)

The Race Is On

I can't believe theres only 21 days left 'til the dirty du. The colder weather and shorter days have made it a bit more challenging to get outside but overall, the training has been going really well. I've been biking lots, sometimes to and from work. I'm feeling pretty confident about that part of the race. No worries there. However, i've never been much of a runner so that has been the goal for the past month or so; to become a better runner. When i first started training, i remember losing my breath after running for only 3 minutes but things have improved since. I've learned that the keys are to be efficient, pace yourself, run with good posture, and most importantly, BREATHE. It makes a huge difference. Every step must count. Performing the Energy Flow seven point warm up before running has upped my athletic performance. Not only can i run longer and faster, but I finish feeling energized and free of any muscle soreness.

My competitive nature tells me to push myself harder so i can win this race (or at least place in the top 3) but being my first race i think finishing will be an achievement in itself. We shall see what happens......

I'm excited.

Knog Frog

It is so true that the checkout counter is the perfect place to trigger impulse buys. One of my most recent and best impulse purchases was the Knog Frog Micro Light.

Designed by Knog, this micro LED bike light is compact, lightweight (12g), and unobtrusive. Characteristics that'd be desired by those who want to travel light. The flexible silicon body encasing the light resembles a frog (hence the name), is waterproof and stretches, making it easily mountable on objects 10-32mm in diameter. With a press of a button, it can easily be set to continuous or flashing mode.

I tried it out last night and found the light to be very bright for its size. Perfect for my 25 minute ride home. Of course this is no substitute if you are looking for a light that'll illuminate the road for you. Its main function is to help you be seen. This is especially effective if you use the flashing mode. Nobody's gonna miss you. It also has a lithium battery that claims to have a 160 hour battery life, which is pretty sweet too. I highly recommend getting one.

Price: $9.99
Available at Duke's Cycle @ 625 Queen St. W.

Fibre dosage

During my travels through the Loblaws bread section, i came across a new product:

Oroweat Whole Wheat Tortillas

These pack as much as 8g of fiber per tortilla and are great for eating on the go.

Take these ingredients:
• grilled chicken breast or turkey
• organic spring greens
• jarlsberg low fat cheese

....and wrap them inside the tortilla
If you're a fan of melted cheese, microwave the roll for 30 seconds. Enjoy :)

Fruit of the Tropics

I've always had this thing for tropical fruits. A recent favorite of mine has been papayas.

Packed with nutrients and easy to eat, papayas have been said to be one of the healthiest fruits. Greenish yellow on the outside and golden orange on the inside, they are a rich source of antioxidents such as beta carotene, vitamin C and E, folate, and potassium. Papayas also contain an enzyme called papain, which aids in the digestion of proteins, making it the perfect fruit to eat after a meal.

A ripe, medium papaya is about 100 calories can pack as much as 5g of fiber.

---------------

Eating tips:
For those of us who don't like peeling fruits, the easiest way to eat a papaya is to cut it lengthwise, remove the seeds, and eat it with a spoon.

Another personal favorite is papaya shakes. Peel and cut the papaya into cubes and freeze then blend together with 1.5cups of 1% milk or soy milk.

The Dirty Du

Back in August of 2005 I set a goal for myself. I told my trainer that i wanted to lose weight and become an all round superstar athlete. A year has gone by and the results have been amazing! I lost 30lbs, totally reshaped my body, am stronger, leaner, more flexible, and faster.

My program consisted of 2-3 Energy Flow workouts per week and cardio in the form of rollerblading and cycling with lots of beach volleyball in the summer.

TODAY i decided it was time for a fitness challenge. Something that will rev my training and help me realize my full athletic potential. I'm going to compete in my first dirty duathlon. I've been wanting to do this for quite a while now but have been putting it on hold for various reasons. It was just a matter of finding the perfect time to jump into it.

The du will consist of a 3.8k run/10k bike/3.8k run and it's 8 weeks away.

Let the training begin!



* In case you should feel the urge to sign up as well:
http://www.eventsonline.ca/events/runnerslife_dirtydu/

Virgin Festival 2006

On Sunday a bunch of friends and I went to Virgin Festival at Center Island. We had a great time and since we were there relatively early, we got very close to the front of the stage, 4th row center to be exact.

Wolfmother put on an awesome show! I love them even more after seeing them live. Their sound was mindblowing!!

Sam roberts was surprisingly good too. He was so into it that it looked like the veins on his neck were about to pop :S

The Strokes were ok....& for some reason there was a lot of mosh pit action, which was totally unexpected. It wasn't the type you'd encounter at a Ministry concert, but more of the bumping-grinding-claustrophobic assortment. I couldn't resist the urge to just push and elbow the people aside. It was gross! I must say, pushing that annoying girl next to me really hard felt unusually satisfying. *YAAH*

We left part way through and went to the Futureshop stage.

Zero 7 was great. They had a nice chilled, down tempo set. The lead singer was so high & mixing drinks on stage between sets. I'm so glad they played Somersault!

The Raconteurs were on at the same time so we tried making our way back to the first stage to catch the last half of their set. There was so much drama/confusion with the ‘crossing of the bridge’ that we totally missed them. All the entrances were blocked and nobody was allowed back into that area. We made a security guard cry too, we tried running past her & a lot of people were screaming at her. Pretty intense moment.

In total, we were sent back and forth at least 4 times until the cops finally resolved the issue.
It was past 10 and we were all starving too, partially because we didn't bring enough food. All i ate was a banana within the 12 hours we were there. I was tempted to just leave the island so i can go home and stuff my face. On the bright side, we arrived in time to see the last half of Broken Social Scene then made a mad scramble to beat the crowd and catch the ferry back to TO.

Ahh...good times.

Thanks winnie for letting us use your camera for all the photos!

Come Together

The last two weeks have been filled with parties and seeing old friends. Everytime one of us comes back to TO, leaves, graduates, passes an exam, or gets a new pet justifies a reason to have yet another get together or throw a huge party. It's inevitable. Anything goes, really.

Lots of fun was had along with good laughs, and some major catching up sessions. Not everything was documented on camera but here are some pics:
album 1
album 2

High Fives, Low Digs & Scorpion Dives

Last weekend I played in the Toronto Not So Pro Beach Volleyball Tournament; an event i've been looking forward to and training for all year. This time I actually got my own team together as opposed to just joining someone elses. The only thing missing was another girl to complete the team. Unfortunately the girl that joined ended up being a one of the worst players i've ever seen & kept complaining about how we didn't 'respect' her space & let her hit the ball. What-EVER. She said she was an advanced level player so we thought she'd be up to par but little did we know. Oh well...i'll never see her again...though she seems to think I'm her new special friend. Hmmm...why do i always attract these kinds of people?!

Competition was tough as we were up against a bunch of competitive/advanced level teams. Not many games were won but we all had a great time. Nothing beats the feeling of diving into soft sand!

The FLOW Team > from left to right: the 'gayle' corpse, loaded top gun, flowmaster, sageman, beach ball rugby oz, the hun, & scorpion diver

beach part-ay

Also known as Jen's fabulous going away party. What better way to send Jen off in style than to hold a good ol fashioned beach themed party.

I had lots of fun and will never forget getting shot several times with the mini supersoakers, spiking the beach volleyball across the room, dancing and the drama that followed, which may have unintentionally been one of the defining events of the evening. The person involved shall remain nameless. You just had to be there to witness it.

A big thanks to Andy and Friends of Lamji Inc. for planning and providing an apartment space for us to trash. Jen, you will be missed. Of course, lots of pictures were taken so let the reminiscing begin...

view pictures

New Favourite Band

I recently went to see the Editors live in concert and what a great show it was. Watch out for this band cuz i think they may be next hottest thing. Their music is fast paced, infectous and combines a raw and distinct sound with a rock edge. Tom's voice can be compared to the likes of Peter Murphy and Ian Curtis of Bauhaus and Joy Division, a couple of goth bands prevalent in the 80s.

Standing at the front of the stage was one of the highlights. And of course the experience wouldn't be complete without a horribly misplaced tall person getting in the way. This one woman standing in front of me was tall, had big hair & was snapping 10 photos/second. Maybe its my moshpit conditioning or aggressive side coming out but i had this urge to elbow her sooo badly. Yes, the tension between us was pretty intense. (haha! jess)

At the end we snagged the set list off the floor of the stage so for those of us who want to create an Editors concert playlist for the iPod go right ahead cuz here it is!


oh, and above is a picture of me and my date. haha i'm kidding...no that's Tom Smith, lead singer of the Editors. We met him in a dark alley and he was nice enough to sign all our cds, posters, and take pictures.

Stay tuned for photos and videos from the concert.

Energy Flow on the Beach

At 36 degrees and feeling like 47 with the humidity, today's temperatures reached a new record high and coincidentally was also the day of the Energy Flow Workout video shoot. It's been said that heat increases blood flow and helps loosen muscles and joints thus making you more limber...so maybe the heat isn't so bad.

We were shooting on location at Ashbridges Bay. I was asked to come take some promo shots during the shoot. The day started off pretty early. I got up around 6:30am, which is unheard of for me. Then headed over to the beach around 7. The sand was oh so soft, beach was void of people, there were rows of volleyball nets as far as the eye can see and of course the weather was beautiful. Probably the BEST time to be at the beach. volleyball anyone?

Everyone including Lola arrived around 7:45am and so the shooting began. It got hotter by the hour but there was a nice gentle breeze coming from the water. Lotsa camera lovin' for both the Energy Flow team and Lola, who stole the show! You guys were great!

view photos

A Nook For Your Book

I was hired by BookNuk creator, Yuval Susskind to design the packaging and identity of his newest creation.

As a result of several hours of hard work, revisions, approvals, and phone calls between Toronto and Israel, I'm very excited to announce that this project is in production now and will be the newest travel accessory to hit stores this summer.

A BookNuk, at its core, is a travel guide book carrier. Worn like a messenger bag, it protects and keeps your guide book handy and accessible at all times while freeing your hands to take pictures, look at a map, eat, or perform self defense moves on the local pick pocketer. Well, maybe not that, but it can be done.

Targeting a more mature audience of seasoned travelers, this package design is clean, simple, and practical. The use of a fresh, vibrant colour scheme and imagery evocative of traveling is happy and appeals to the senses. The illustrations play an integral role in depicting the product in use as well as highlighting its various features.

Fact: The illustration of the guy holding the BookNuk is based on a picture of Yuval, only I added some hair and of course the BookNuk. That'll be a secret 'til he finds out.

That's all for now. Watch for it in the travel section of Chapters Indigo Stores in August.

5 Days in NYC

Good food, good shopping and good times! Here are all the photos from my trip.

Check 'em out {here}
...oh wait, there's more!

Enjoy!

Yes, I'm still alive.

Hey everyone,

I just got back from NYC 3 days ago. I don't think i've ever shopped and eaten so many desserts in such a short period of time! Probably not something i'd want to be doing for an extended period of time but it was all worth it ^^ Good times!

Feels great to be back home in TO. If I haven't talked to you since getting back, I will get in touch soon. Never thought i'd admit that i'm happy to return back to my routine, not necessarily the work but I do miss my work outs and fruits/veggies...hmm does that make me sound like a health freak? Oh well, maybe I secretly am one.

The last two days of the trip were jam packed and the weather was gorgeous! Perfect for walking...just make sure you don't make the mistake of wearing new shoes you think are comfy...you'll see what i mean as you read :) This whole trip felt like a shopping tour of New York more than anything else. Jenny and I were on a mission. I needed to get some more preppy clothes into my wardrobe while she wanted to get more colour and funk into hers. The rule for her was 'no black or white tops & no solid colours!' I, on the otherhand didn't have any governing rules.

Between getting back to the hotel late and working, it didn't leave much time for updates so here comes my massive update on what we did...

day three :: soho

After having shopped and overspent at Woodbury, we all decided that from this day on we will wear ALL the stuff we purchased at least once so we can soil them and not have to declare them at customs just in case they do a search. Winnie was pretty paranoid about that 'cause she's seen it all. I've never experienced the ugliness but I don't think i'd want to after hearing her stories.

We started our day with breakfast at Tasty's (local deli) then walked to the MoMA museum, where there was an exhibit on art from the Dada: one of the twentieth century’s most influential avant-garde art movements that came as a response to WWI. Very interesting indeed.

We then had lunch at Payard's, a really nice french restaurant on Lexington Ave. The ambiance was very warm and cozy, reminiscent of a classy restaurant you'd find in Europe. The first thing you're drawn to when you enter is their huge selection of desserts. Very drool worthy. I had a cold asparagus soup and warm chicken salad - delicious! And of course we all had to try one of their many desserts.

Continuing on, we took the subway down to Bleeker Street and walked around the Village. Lots of cool shops, restaurants and historical architecture. We went to Atrium looking for True Religion jeans for jenny. They didn't have the pair she wanted and I tried on a white TR jean skirt that had some bead details on the pockets (yeah, sounds tacky but can be thrown into the category of being beach-y, summer-y and fun...therefore cool). Jenny tried it on too....We both bought it. That's one step away from preppy for Jenny.

Next stop was Soho. OMG there were soo many good shops there and not enough time to see them all! Lots of locals were selling jewelry and art on the streets as well.

We went to Peep, a trendy thai restaurant on Prince Street in Soho. The pad thai there was amazing *drools* and the presentation of the food was oh so nice. Prices were very reasonable too.

The washroom was 'the mirrored door on the left.' It was this small dark room with a screen above the sink showing foreign films, which unfortunately was also the only means of illumination. Whats weirder is that once behind the mirrored door you can look out and see the dining room and the random guy who checks himself out in the mirror. Interesting concept.

Most of the shopping was window shopping but i did get some shirts at the Ben Sherman store, that'd be one step towards the preppy look for me. And I also got some tshirts for working out later on. Gary tried on a bunch of funky jackets throughout. Some retro, and others that just made him look like he belonged on broadway or dancing with mary poppins. I have pictures...oh wait i only have one.

Afterwards, we had dinner in korea town. Forgot the name of the restaurant...but the food was really good there.

We then walked back to the hotel. I wanted to try out the hotel's fitness facilities but ended up spending the evening and wee hours of the morning working on the BookNuk project. It's finally going into production and will be sold at Indigo so i'm pretty excited about that. I think i even slept with my computer that night...no, not because i was excited but because i was working in bed and then drifted.

items acquired: TR skirt, gentle fawn tank & 2 tshirts, Ben Sherman jacket & shirt


day four :: lower manhattan

Today i got up at 7:00 realizing that i didn't get around to uploading some files so i quickly did that and then we all headed out for some breakfast at Burger Heaven. We had eggs and potatoes *again*...funny how i always end up eating eggs and omelettes for breakfast whenever i travel.

Next, we went to times square and tried getting some last minute tickets to a broadway show. That didn't work out too well so instead we went shopping on 5th avenue and Saks Fifth Avenue.

That was when i noticed a hole at the tip my left shoe. And I've only had these shoes for 2 months...cole haan's gonna be hearing from me.

At Saks, Jenny found a pair of comfy COH jeans and I bought a bottle of Bliss shampoo and conditioner based on her rave reviews. I tried it out when I got back and i must say that my hair felt really shiny and smooth after using it :) Now i wish i bought more!

Next, we took the subway to Canal St and walked for a bit in chinatown. It was so crowded there! Even more so than the one in TO. It's even worse if you get stuck behind a person with really bad BO, which we did...ewww. We continued walking and ended up little Italy. There was definitely some FIFA fever happening there. Every other guy on the street was wearing an Italy soccer jersey.

We were all hungry and looking for a place to eat so we went to the first Italian restaurant we saw that had seating available. We ate some pasta and salads at Cafe Napoleon on Mulberry Street then afterwards we passed by a bunch of Gelato stands. Very tempting but everyone was too full for dessert. Continuing on, we explored the lower east side of Manhattan, which is said to be the new hot spot for cool artsy shops, fine dining and night life.

The hole in my shoe was getting bigger so out of desperation i got a pair of flip flops at the nearby swimwear store to change into. They were comfy.

I have to say, all this shopping provides good mind stimulation. Just seeing the variety of products out there has been really inspiring. At some points I'd see something and think 'omg i could have done that' or 'that could've been done so much better.' So it really got me thinking that i should put my creative juices to work and start some kind of money making venture. Definitely something I want to be doing in the near future.....starting NOW :)

Moving on...

Gary's a big Moby fan so our next destination was Teany at 90 Rivington Street, a vegetarian and vegan teahouse opened by Moby and Kelly in 2002 that serves 98 teas and tasty desserts. It's a nice cozy, contemporary space that's a great place to meet up with friends. Toronto can certainly use a place like this. I had an iced vanilla green tea with a slice of apple berry crumble. It was worth skipping the gelato for! Everyones desserts looked so delicious. Again, i have pictures.

Afterwards, we somehow ended up back in Soho. New York's one of those places where you can just keep spending and spending without really thinking much of it. I got a ring at Teno. There were so many nice ones to choose from. The guy helping me looked a bit like orlando bloom but with really curly hair. His name was Hector.

We then headed back to the hotel to drop off things and get changed for a night out or as Winnie would say, 'to soil more clothes.' Jenny wore the funky pink diesel top i got her in Woodbury and i wore the white shirt I got in soho and these white Geox loafers i got. Rockin' the prep, Jenny style! Though I did feel a bit overdressed compared to the others, especially since we were just going for dinner at the deli.

Anyways, we walked via timesquare to Carnegie Deli, which was a good 20 blocks from our hotel. My shoes were killing me! The back kept jabbing into my heels. By the time we got there I had a couple of blisters...gross!

The sandwiches at Carnegie were HUGE and so were the cheesecake slices. I had a corned beef sandwich and the meat was stacked at least 3 inches high. Some of us had to save half for the next day. Imagine ordering a sandwich with 'extra meat'...one guy did and it was almost double in size. I think i saw him taking some video footage of it. There was also a woman who ordered a slice of cheesecake and refused to share it. It was a 3x4 inch slice...biggest slice i've ever seen! The 4 of us ordered a slice, split it 4 ways and still couldn't finish...probably cuz we were too full. It was gooood cheesecake though!

We took the longer route back as we walked on 7th, 6th and 5th avenue, went through Rockefeller Centre along the way - which was beautiful at night, then we walked on madison avenue. My shoes were getting so unbearable that i had no choice but to step on the back of shoe, which made it much better!

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Note to self: never buy Geox shoes again! They're highly over rated and not exactly the most comfortable shoes. Not to be worn for any extended period of time that requires continuous walking. In other words, wear it to look good at the office.
=====

11pm, we got back to our hotel room. The evening was still young, for me anyways...it was almost bedtime for the others. I finally got to try out the hotel's fitness facilities, which was tucked away behind the eating area on the mezzanine. It was a nice clean space fully equipped with free weights, an exercise ball, matts, treadmills, and a lat pulldown and leg extension machine. They even had lemon water and towels. Just perfect! I also had the room all to myself which made it all the better!

I felt so energized afterwards that i stayed up most of the night.

items acquired: shampoo/conditioner/soap , 2 flip flops, a ring

trip stats:
Money spent
hotel/valet: $300
purchases: $1300
gas/tolls: $30
food: $200
cheapest meal: $5 breakfast @ Tasty's
most expensive: $29 lunch @ Payard
meals: 12
eggs consumed: 8
desserts: 4
water: 10 servings
hours worked: 6hrs
earliest morning: 7am
latest night: 5am

Ok this update took a really long time to write. I hope it provided some entertainment value and didn't put anyone to sleep.
Pictures will be coming soon so stay tuned :)

~ E.

I heart NY

We just got back to the hotel room and i'm feeding off the free wi fi access :)

A quick update on the events so far...

Day one :: departure/arrival

I woke up at 5:30am and we headed for New York around 6:35am.

Traffic was moving well and jenny was driving fast, so we made it to the boarder in about 1hr then had lunch at the half way point.

Aside from the bananas and bran muffins we had for breakfast, McDonalds was the first meal we had upon entering the US. I had an asian chicken salad, which was surprisingly good. very fresh....The decor inside was nothing like any McD i've seen. It had a grand piano in the center of the room and was decked out in a Victorian style musical theme. interesting...

3:30pm we arrived at our hotel and checked in. The hotel room we got is definitely one of the nicest i've ever been. Very clean and modern, living up to all the photos and reviews I've read.

After unpacking, we walked around 5th avenue for a bit then went for dinner at Sushi Yasuda. Probably amongst the best sushi you'll ever have in NY especially if you like sashimi. Very authentic stuff. The service was amazing too. The minute you finish the food off your plate or put your chopsticks down, someone would come take it away almost instantaneously. One of us also dropped a chopstick and the waiter, who happened to look like a guy straight out of the Matrix (short of the cool shades), picked it up and gave a replacement pair within seconds.

Then we walked the streets of New York some more, snacked on some fruits from a local deli then headed back to the hotel.

items acquired: AX tank top


Day two :: woodbury

Today we got up early and went for breakfast at the hotel Mezzanine.
It was all you can eat for $12.95. So much good food but not enough stomach! They had bagels, salmon, lots of fruits, yogourt, cereal, pastries, croissants, spinach frittata etc. I wanted to try it all but was full after the frittata and bowl of cereal/berries.

We then drove to the Woodbury outlet mall, which was about a 1.5hr drive.
There was a lot of crappy stuff from several seasons ago in some of the stores, as is the case with any outlet but we still managed to buy lots of nice stuff. There were some really good deals that were hard to resist. Especially on shoes! and with the exchange rate at $1.11, it's even sweeter! I spent way too much $$ & it's only day 2 of our trip.

items acquired: jeans, furla handbag, 3 pairs of shoes, & soccer socks

NYC here i come!

With only 4 hours left 'til the trip, I'm lying on an inflatable mattress...surprisingly comfy btw, and burning a bunch of music mixes for the road trip ahead. Good music always seems to make time go by faster, and thus the trip shorter. Though, so does driving fast. Hopefully I'll get a turn at the wheel :)

Although it's only a 5 day trip, it's going to be filled with several hours of walking each day, good food (and no that does not include mcdonalds, haha! Jay dot), lotsa art lovin', picture taking, broadway shows and of course shopping!! Sleeping will be secondary, at least til the 3rd day. I dont think i can go that many days without sleep but i do want to get the MOST out of this trip. We'll be exploring a different part of New York each day.

I packed real light this time....3 skirts, 3 tanks, a tshirt, long sleeve top, pair of shorts, comfy shoes, and anything i forgot will have to be bought!

We've got accommodations at the Hotel Roger Williams, a boutique hotel located in Midtown Manhattan, on Madison Avenue. It looks absolutely stunning in the pictures and is close to SoHo and the fashion districts...sweet! They've also got a newly built fitness center, so that's something i'll have to check out.

I'll be bringing my computer with me because i love y'all so much and *surpise* i've got some work to do! Yes, no vacation is complete without work. ironic indeed...

I will add updates throughout my trip so check back.

See y'all in 5 days!

Stell

Happy Canada Day!

NIN all the way!

9:15pm . molson amphitheatre . sect 405 . row A . seat 6

I used to think that 400 section seats were all crappy but apparently they're not! Especially if you're in the first row of section 405. It puts you right in front of the stage, elevates you above the crowd, and best of all, lotsa leg room, which is ideal for those of us who have uncontrollable urges to dance or jump to the music. Though of course the mosh pit option is always preferable esp for songs like march of the pigs!

Luckily i was able to smuggle my camera in cuz without it i wouldn't have been able to bootleg (errr...i mean 'sample') parts of the concert and go crazy taking pix. It was a close call though. The short lady seemed pretty skeptical when i told her it was low on battery and that i'd 'promise' not to take any pictures. HA!

What an amazing concert it was! A definite feast for the eyes and ears. It'd be a waste not to capture any of this on camera. The layering of lighting effects juxtaposed with the smoke and video footage was absolutely mesmerizing. I'm inspired. You have to see it to fully appreciate its effect. Too bad they didn't play every day is exactly the same. That song's the soundtrack of my life...haha i'm kidding. But I do love that song very much. Anyways, enough rambling. You're probably anxious to see the visuals so here they are...check 'em out!

Enjoy!