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A SHORT STORY BY STINA PAGLIERO

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It says it should be over here. Just a little further.

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Ok Peter but we’ve been driving for 30 minutes so I would expect us to arrive at this so called monument if it’s as easy as you said it was.

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Yes I know, just a little closer. Kid, keep your eyes open. 

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The station wagon pulls over. The top is filled to the brim with everything imaginable to live a life of someone who might take a spontaneous road trip, but planned a lifetime of convenience for it. Sleeping bags even though they are always staying overnight at hotels. A coffee grinder because you never know if the 5 star centrally located city spas will brew espresso just the right way. A solar operated headlamp for the later 6-7PM drives.

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Dad, you said there would be things to see here.

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All places have space but all spaces do not have place. That’s how bad it got in the year 2157. The government in response was so smart that it designed the place Earth for space as a moving target of vacations to help incentivize people to live ephemerally. You could take a vacation back to Earth to feel. Earth was Disney World for “Outer Space”, which was the only thing humans really used the word “space” to equate any geographical meaning to in the English vocabulary when they lived there. 

Now it lives as a place, an emotional Pokemon Go time capsule in reverse. As soon as you collected the feeling after being in the place, you moved on to the next. Museums had been doing it for hundreds of years and pyramids before that. People in every day relationships created places and spaces called boundaries subconsciously all the time. 

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How do we relate to space? 

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As the car doors slam and the dust settles, a younger woman dressed like an astronaut comes out of a small toll booth.

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Welcome to SMH - The Space Museum and Monument for Humans.

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Welcome to what? I don’t see anything.

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The astronaut gestures.

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It’s here. It’s everywhere. It’s nowhere. It’s wherever you see it to be. Any questions?

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Well what do you mean it’s here squeals the woman.

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We didn’t pay 1.5T bitcoin to have someone hand gesture. We came to make memories at this place. I’m calling the travel agency on this one. Going straight to their voicemail naturally. Now what Peter. You said we would see things.

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Ok Wendy let’s just wait. Maybe this lady can help us here.

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The dad motions to the woman in the exact coordinates that the brochure mentions as the destination. As if she didn’t understand English, his voice raises a decibel and he goes slower.

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It says here that there should be a telephone booth. There’s no photo though. How do we know what it looks like? What is a telephone booth?

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I’m not at liberty to talk about that sir.

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The woman says.

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There is one rule I am here to enforce at The Space Museum and Monument for Humans. And that’s you will know the space when you see it. But first you must see it.

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Oh great that is so very insightful thank you.

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More shrugs from Wendy.

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Dad look what about that man over there. He is smiling and looking at something. 

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So it is that the family and the architect meet. A place is a location created by human experiences. The meaning we give to space correlates with the distance from human to the place.

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Ahoy Sir! We are looking for a telephone booth. Do you see it?

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Of course I do. I never left Earth. Where are you from?

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We are from Galaxy Tesla.

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The architect snuffs under his breath. There are a few who appear looking for him to solve the same problem. It’s why he stayed back on Earth frankly. More likely to run into people who recognize the space when they see it. Even it means running into these types. Here and at all the SMH locations in the SW of the USA.

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So he begins.

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Space is internal expansiveness. It is not a place. The place is the knowing inside you which brings your ability to find it. Which it sounds like you don’t know you have or are in and therefore can’t use it to find what you’re looking for. So you should probably call the travel agency and ask for your money back. You won’t find what you think you’re looking for yet. You aren’t here.

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Wales from Wendy and the kid resounds.

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The fantastical people pleasing radar from Peter is in full overdrive.

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Now wait wait just a second. We ARE here. The hologram brochure riddle lists the coordinates, then says here, ‍“The telephone booth therefore is where you least expect it. Frankly you didn’t have to leave the galaxy or your own mind to find it. But we’re not here to tell you how to live your life. You did so you did. All we can tell you is it’s here. It will appear when you see it. It is never in the same space for everyone, but it is always in the same place. See?”

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The architect is ready.

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I know what the brochure says and that’s why if you already are asking me, you won’t find it.

He points to the space in front of him and shakes his head.

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Where are you? You must know where the space begins here and then you will see it. And then we can talk.

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Dad, if it’s what he says, how do we know where it is? Can we go home yet? This isn’t fun. I really want to see my friends and play video games. 

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Peter, honestly, we don’t have time for this. We have things to do and people to see. You can’t find it this time again, ok? Let’s just get out of here.

Wendy’s middle name is Contempt with a capital C.

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Inside him, something is building. He has lived his whole life doing the exact opposite of what this man has just said. Not relating to the space. Not creating the space. Not even knowing there was space. HA.Relating only to the other space. Others space. Outer space. Just like that, the need for space becomes even more crucial and yet disappears entirely. What is between where we and another begin? How can we always see it? 

Somewhere in the distance a telephone rings.

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Hello Peter.

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STINA PAGLIERO

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Stina Pagliero is an American product builder, teacher, and writer who relocated from Brooklyn to live and work in Copenhagen. She is currently building product experiences at an edu-tech start up Labster and teaching a PM course at a global training school General Assembly. This has taken her all over the world—from the US to the Middle East to Europe.
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Outside Empirical and GA, you can find her: spending time with loved ones, outside in nature, working on her book of short stories, or learning a new skill or in an art museum.

Growing up, Stina read every and any book she could get her hands on in libraries, shops or family homes. She never adapted to the form being taught. She encourages everyone to tell their own stories and keep finding new ways to relate to themselves and the world through reading. To those reading this now, never stop turning the pages.

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WE LOVE TO CONNECT PEOPLE

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WRITER Stina Pagliero

INSTAGRAM @stinzitas

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ILLUSTRATION Chelle Toulouse

INSTAGRAM @chelletoulouse

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PHOTO Jakub Jezny

INSTAGRAM @jakubjezny

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A SHORT STORY BY STINA PAGLIERO

The doorbell to the flower shop clinks. The day has just begun. Three funeral orders are in progress. The woman ushers herself in and stops at the magnolias. Her eyes glaze over, staring into the shop space. She inhales. The scissors meet the lily’s flower stem he is cutting. There’s buckets of fresh flowers everywhere. A stack of blue and white porcelain urns sit in the background. A jungle of random plants surround her, the ones that need lots of sunlight and ones that don’t. He’s standing behind a large old wooden counter with a worn-in cutting board and lots of tissue paper.

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She doesn’t have much time. Clears her throat. Excuse me. He doesn’t look up, but she can tell he’s heard. She shifts her weight. Dressed all in black. Hands folded over her Birkin bag. Poised and ready to ask for what someone else wants. Jeff is waiting in the car. It was his last wish after all and she’s here to fulfill even that one. She steps forward. I’d like to know how much. He looks up to follow her eyes to the specific bucket. Her eyes are looking at him. He doesn’t blink and is about to go back to cutting the stem when she firmly says it. For the shop.

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His gaze stops mid way and he looks back up at her. He’s never seen her in here. The shop is not for sale, he says blankly. Not because it isn’t for sale, but because this is not part of the script of the day. People come in and ask for a particular kind of flower. If he sees them before they walk in and depending on their entrance, he asks if they need help. If it’s a busy day, he acknowledges them and carries on, waiting for curiosity to interrupt. He has been doing this for decades. Every day the same routine and transition. Always him and the flowers and the customers. And not once, not once has anyone ever said this.

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My client is prepared to make a considerable offer. She stands in the same position, not changing her eyes from his gaze. Is this what it’s like when death is coming for you and you’ve been unconscious the whole time? The soft music plays on in the shop. Erik Satie today. His parents work in finance. They moved here to open a flower shop and then struck it big in the stock market. How do you say “ I inherited millions and if money was no object, I would be a performance artist. So here I am. The flowers are my puppets now, you are my audience, and I am the ventriloquist”.

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The doorbell clinks again. It’s the delivery guy with today’s shipment. Hundreds of thousands of dollars of flowers. Maybe .003% will sell from the cemetery. The money isn’t what it’s about. He’s always felt safe here. The cemetery being across the street and all.

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It’s not that you could say she is cold. But they spent all of their life together. She knew nothing else. So in many ways, he is still here and no one else really is. Except somewhere she knows he’s not. After they met, his favorite thing was to come to this flower shop. Owning it is what he wanted. It all happened so fast. She had come here before they were together. Several times. Late for a meeting. Needed to pick something up for a dinner party. The man and woman working in the shop always obliged to help. Even when she couldn’t afford them, the flowers were an escape. Jeff noticed this right away when they met. Your apartment has no photos and no tupperware. But always these flowers. How do we want to be preserved? How do we want to preserve? Oh these, I picked these up on the way home. They never brought it up again.

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They didn’t have to. Each time the doorbell rang, his hands contained .1% of the most expensive flowers in the whole city. She knew because they only sold them there. And if you were someone who wanted flowers and to just viscerally feel like you were escaping your circumstances just for a moment, you knew where to find the best ones in the city. They never discussed what happened after to the flowers he brought. Where they went.. No the ending was never considered. It wasn’t romantic. Save a petal in a book so it stays forever. There was only the routine anticipation of what flowers would come with him, their subtle symbolism not lost on her. They found a way to communicate through life itself. She never gave a thought to life without flowers or life without him. Why would she. And so when his life was taken, there was only one thing to do.

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So here she was, asking this man behind the counter to buy his business for which she had no prior knowledge of simply other than for the fact that it was the last big bouquet her husband wanted to give her forever. Death after all is the thing for which we place the most significance in visualizing.

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The man behind the counter stayed silent in thought. His parents were still young. Death did not run in his family so he couldn’t quite say if this feeling in the left part of chest was grief or sadness he witnessed so often here. Because of the cemetery and all. He thought he might have felt it when he was eleven. He had broken one of his mother’s most expensive porcelain vases. No it wasn’t that. Plus he had meticulously glued the pieces back together. Not that his mother had even noticed. That wasn’t what it was about. Every year since then, they had exchanged a collection of them. Each opened by the house’s wait staff, lined up on the shelf and dusted daily. But that feeling was in his stomach now that he thought of it.

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Why? 

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It was a simple question. 

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That’s not your concern. 

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It was so eloquently put. A presentation of everlasting devotion to revisit. Surely there must be another way to grieve. There must be more time. Buy an immortelle. It requires less water than a business. What could he have possibly wished her to have with this shop? Couldn’t she have taken the bid up with his parents or the family estate? Why him? He wants to scream. Something is building inside him. Of course he has a right to say no. He always has. It is his. But something tugs somewhere deep.

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Ok. 

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Great the team will be in touch to draw up the contract. 

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The doorbell clinks. We leave the same way we came.

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STINA PAGLIERO

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Stina Pagliero is an American product builder and writer who relocated from Brooklyn to live and work in Copenhagen. Currently she oversee the digital product experience at a flavor company called Empirical and teach a course in Product Management for people looking to up-skill or transition careers at General Assembly. This has taken her all over the world—from the US to the Middle East to Europe.
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Outside Empirical and GA, you can find her: spending time with loved ones, outside in nature, working on her book of short stories, or learning a new skill or in an art museum.

Growing up, Stina read every and any book she could get her hands on in libraries, shops or family homes. She never adapted to the form being taught. She encourages everyone to tell their own stories and keep finding new ways to relate to themselves and the world through reading. To those reading this now, never stop turning the pages.

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WE LOVE TO CONNECT PEOPLE

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WRITER Stina Pagliero

INSTAGRAM @stinzitas

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ILLUSTRATION Jim Brunnestom

INSTAGRAM @jim_brrr

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PHOTO Jakub Jezny

INSTAGRAM @jakubjezny

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Who is Jon Doe?

Jon is an LA-based DJ, wedding biz owner (@veilandvinyls), and foodie who reached out to us because he'd love to curate one of our playlists. We love to connect with new people and, of course, didn't hesitate to say yes.

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As we have gotten to know Jon, we have found that his life revolves around his brilliant wife/ partner in crime @janesdotyu, personal growth, DJing, health, and fitness. He is curious about anything that has to do with personal development. He seems to be continually working on how he can be a better human being than he was yesterday and finding ways to impact the people around him in positive ways.

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Like us, Jon is a big fan of the book Mindset by Carol Dweck. Understanding the growth mindset concept was a game-changer for him—being a learner is everything.

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As a former NYC resident, Jon has had the opportunity to take inspiration from the best of both coasts and has blended a selection of sounds that influenced him throughout his life. As an open-format and multi-genre DJ, he doesn't let any particular genre define him but likes playing the music that moves him, including Hip-hop, R&B/Soul, Dance/Electronica (EDM, Disco, House), Pop, Top 40s, Funk, Reggae and everything in between.

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Enjoy!

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WE LOVE TO CONNECT PEOPLE

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NAME Jon Doe

INSTAGRAM @whosjondoe

BUSINESS @veilandvinlys

SOUNDCLOUD whosjondoe

TWITCH whosjondoe

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A SHORT STORY BY STINA PAGLIERO

He’s sitting outside the door in the same place he always sits. It’s 10 minutes til open. He watches the movement inside as the sun beats down. He rubs the side of his cheek and his jaw adjusts. His blank stare is indifferent at best. The librarian unlocks the door. She knows what’s coming and so does he. She has watched the same movement each week for as long as she can remember. She has said the exact same words to him. He walks up the stairs methodically, straight to Classic Fiction. Browses for about 5-10 minutes. Sits down for an hour. Eventually the time comes when it’s time to check out. He walks up to the desk with the book.

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‍“Sir I’m sorry but you can’t check out books without a library card”.

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And each time she feels more numb. More hopeless that something, she doesn’t quite know, is wrong with the system. He seems to process. It’s never been about the book for him. The human component is the routine ask after arriving somewhere. For a moment, he is like everyone else again. He stops. Looks puzzled and she can’t tell if he’s processed what she said. She never can. So she waits patiently. Watches families start to come in. Waves hello or smiles never quite taking her eyes off this man. She’s not afraid. She’s unnerved. Unphased to the extent she can be. He leaves the book on the desk. Turns around toward the door. Begins to walk. His jeans are worn. The faint smell of beer lingers. She doesn’t say anything more as he pushes open the door. What would he even do with the information? Perhaps the next donor will invest in cards that don’t require an address. She tries to reassure herself as she smiles at the next person walking in.

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STINA PAGLIERO

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Stina Pagliero is an American product builder and writer who relocated from Brooklyn to live and work in Copenhagen. Currently she oversee the digital product experience at a flavor company called Empirical and teach a course in Product Management for people looking to up-skill or transition careers at General Assembly. This has taken her all over the world—from the US to the Middle East to Europe.
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Outside Empirical and GA, you can find her: spending time with loved ones, outside in nature, working on her book of short stories, or learning a new skill or in an art museum.

Growing up, Stina read every and any book she could get her hands on in libraries, shops or family homes. She never adapted to the form being taught. She encourages everyone to tell their own stories and keep finding new ways to relate to themselves and the world through reading. To those reading this now, never stop turning the pages.

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WE LOVE TO CONNECT PEOPLE

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WRITER Stina Pagliero

INSTAGRAM @stinzitas

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ILLUSTRATION Katie Meade

INSTAGRAM @katiemeade

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PHOTO Jakub Jezny

INSTAGRAM @jakubjezny

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José Vaca is a California-based entrepreneur, artist, designer, dancer, photographer, and visionary—a full-stack creative, as he describes it himself, who thrives outside the boxes and refuses to be limited by titles and degrees. We were introduced to him by a NY friend, Will Nguyen Cao, a while back. 

He is one of those people that continues to surprise us in the good way. An optimist who firmly believes creativity has the power to change the world, with a passion for social activism, storytelling, art, adventure, and making the impossible possible. Oh, and he absolutely loves blueberries.

José grew up in Salinas with Mexican parents. Immigrants who worked extremely hard to provide for him and his sister—and give them the opportunities they didn't have themselves—for which he'll be forever grateful. He studied architecture because saying thank you didn't seem like quite enough. He wanted to build his parents a house, and still want to. However, as time passed, he realized that the only way he can ever start to repay them for his upbringing and the sacrifices they made would be by following his passion, continuously do good, and create opportunities for others.

José's roots and heritage is a vital part of who he is. His family comes from Michoacán in Mexico, and his indigenous roots are P'urhépecha. "Juchari Uinapekua" is a saying on the P'urhépechan flag, meaning "Our Strength," which is a great example of how the culture is ingrained in his mindset. He firmly believes in the strength of collectivity—the power of people and communities.

José is currently pursuing a wild dream that has yet to give him a single dollar—a project called bēkn.

bēkn is a startup with a social consciousness that provides tools for people to easily discover, connect and engage with their local communities, resources, causes, and each other—a space for people to organize, where all voices are heard and where everyone has a seat at the table.

When José isn't working hard to reach his dreams, you'll likely find him breakdancing and becoming one with the music. He's officially been a Soulshifter since 2015. The Circle of Fire x Soulshifters Crew is his extended family. He explains that Soulshifters is more than just a dance crew. It's a collective, a family of artists around the world. 

This playlist took us by surprise. It wasn't what we imagined or expected a playlist by José would be like, but we love it. A mix of electronic, ambient, neo-classical, house, hip-hop, and classic rock. Enjoy!

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WE LOVE TO CONNECT PEOPLE

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NAME José Vaca

INSTAGRAM @latinheat_soulshifter & @bekn.official

COMPANY bekn.org

PORTFOLIO josevaca.com

LINKEDIN José Vaca

ART jovabit.com

WRITING hello—poetry/ José Vaca

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The ClimateClock is an open-source project assembled by a team of artists, makers, scientists, and activists based in New York.

The project has recently gotten a lot of attention as the group has reprogrammed the Metronome in Union Square to adopt a new environmental mission.

Now, instead of measuring the usual 24-hour cycles, it's measuring what two artists, Gan Golan and Andrew Boyd, present as the critical window for action to prevent the effects of global warming from becoming irreversible.

On Saturday at 3:20 p.m., messages including "The Earth has a deadline" appeared on the display. Then the numbers — 7:103:15:40:07 — showed up, representing the years, days, hours, minutes, and seconds until that deadline.

The idea is to publicly illustrate the urgency of combating climate change and encourage Governments worldwide to take a stand and act against global warming, reduce greenhouse gas emission, and human-caused global heating.

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At the launch Boyd said:

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"The clock is telling us we must reduce our emissions as much as we can as fast as we can. The technology is there. We can do this—and in the process, create a healthier, more just world for all of us. Our planet has a deadline. But we can turn it into a lifeline." 

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The clock indicates that we only have limited time to undertake bold transformation of our energy system and economy in hopes of keeping global temperature rise under 1.5°C. 

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Right before the countdown began, Golan made the following statement:

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"This is our way to shout that number from the rooftops!"

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"Metronome" is a large public art installation by Andrew Ginzel and Kristin Jones, covering a 10-story-residential high rise located along the south end of Union Square in New York City. The work also includes concentric circles rendered in gold-flecked brick that ripple outward from a round opening. When it was unveiled in 1999, clouds of steam and musical tones were issued from the facade. Over the years, the sound and steam have ceased. However, the numbers kept moving. 

Allegedly, the original artists had already been thinking about reimagining the work to address the deepening climate crisis when they got a letter from the Boyd & Golan in February. Call it magic or beautiful synchronicity.

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When asked about why they put the number on public display, Boyd has said: 

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"This is arguably the most important number in the world ... A monument is often how society shows what's important, what it elevates, what is at center stage ... We hope this initiative will encourage everybody to join us in fighting for the future of our planet." 

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The ClimateClock will be displayed on the 14th Street building, One Union Square South, through Sept. 27, the end of NYC Climate Week. However, the aim is to arrange for the clock to be permanently displayed, there or elsewhere.

On climateclock.world it's stated that the clock is meant to draw the world’s attention to the urgency for action—if we are to survive, we need a constant, public reminder of our deadline—everywhere! The team encourage everyone to join the movement and help them put a ClimateClock in every major city in the world.

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BUT WHY IS IT VITAL TO MAINTAIN THE GLOBAL TEMPERATURE INCREASE BELOW 1.5°C?

This is the only way to ensure our world will suffer less negative impacts on the intensity and frequency of extreme events, resources, ecosystems, biodiversity, food security, cities, tourism, carbon removal, and global economy. IPCC Special Report on Global Warming clearly states that adaptation to change will be less difficult.

Future climate-related risks will be reduced by the upscaling and acceleration of far-reaching, multilevel and cross-sectoral climate mitigation and by both incremental and transformational adaptation.

To put it simply, maintaining the global temperature increase below 1.5°C  is in all our interest as it increases our chances of survival on this beautiful planet of ours—everything we do matters!

This project has inspired me personally, and I want to support the message. Therefore, going forward, you'll be able to see a ClimateClock whenever you enter LULU—LAND to continuously remind all of us to do better. Even the tiniest steps and small changes in our everyday lives count when it comes to creating a better future for everyone. Let's all take part in reaching this goal!

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/ LOUISE

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IT'S.

TIME.

TO. ACT.

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WE LOVE TO CONNECT PEOPLE

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climateclock.world‍

@climateclock.world

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THE SCIENCE

The ClimateClock shows two numbers. The first, in red, is a timer, counting down how long it will take, at current rates of emissions, to burn through our “carbon budget” — the amount of CO2 that can still be released into the atmosphere while limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. This is our deadline, the time we have left to take decisive action to keep warming under the 1.5°C threshold. The second number, in green, is tracking the growing % of the world’s energy currently supplied from renewable sources. This is our lifeline. Simply put, we need to get our lifeline to 100% before our deadline reaches 0.

This clock follows the methodology of the carbon clock made by the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (MCC) which uses data from the recent IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C. The report states that starting from 2018, a carbon dioxide budget of 420 Gt of CO2 gives us a 67% chance to stay under 1.5°C of warming.

“The concept of the carbon budget is based on a nearly linear relationship between the cumulative emissions and the temperature rise. Nevertheless, this does not mean that the earth would necessarily be 1.5°C warmer at the very point in time when the remaining carbon budget for staying below the 1.5°C threshold was used up. This is due to, among others, the fact that there is a time lag between the concentration of emissions in the atmosphere and the impact thereof on the temperature”.¹

MCC also notes that their calculations assume “that the annual emissions of years to come will be close to those of the year 2017, while latest numbers show that emissions are still on the rise.” If this trend continues, the time we have to act will be reduced. Furthermore, it is unlikely that earth’s climate warms at a linear rate. For example, potential climatic tipping points have been identified in Earth’s physical climate system that would cause large and possibly irreversible transitions in the state of the climate.² These uncertainties are why the IPCC report states there is a 67% chance that the carbon budget will limit warming to 1.5°C.

The IPCC Special Report on Global Warming is largely based on a research paper called “Global Carbon Budget 2018” published in 2018 by Corinne Le Quéré et al.³ This paper estimates the carbon budget in the units of GtC.⁴

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RESOURCES

1. Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change. “That’s How Fast the Carbon Clock Is Ticking.” MCC Carbon Clock. https://www.mcc-berlin.net/en/research/co2-budget.html (accessed September 22, 2019).

2. Lenton, Timothy M., Hermann Held, Elmar Kriegler, Jim W. Hall, Wolfgang Lucht, Stefan Rahmstorf, and Hans Joachim Schellnhuber. "Tipping elements in the Earth's climate system." Proceedings of the national Academy of Sciences 105, no. 6 (2008): 1786-1793.

3. Le Quéré, Corinne, Robbie M. Andrew, Pierre Friedlingstein, Stephen Sitch, Judith Hauck, Julia Pongratz, Penelope A. Pickers et al. "Global carbon budget 2018." Earth System Science Data (Online) 10, no. 4 (2018).

4. IPCC, 2018: Global warming of 1.5°C. An IPCC Special Report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emission pathways, in the context of strengthening the global response to the threat of climate change, sustainable development, and efforts to eradicate poverty [V. Masson-Delmotte, P. Zhai, H. O. Pörtner, D. Roberts, J. Skea, P.R. Shukla, A. Pirani, W. Moufouma-Okia, C. Péan, R. Pidcock, S. Connors, J. B. R. Matthews, Y. Chen, X. Zhou, M. I. Gomis, E. Lonnoy, T. Maycock, M. Tignor, T. Waterfield (eds.)]. In Press.

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You know when you see someone on stage, and you just know they were born to perform? Chance Croall is a force of nature like that – a solo rapper, musician, and drawing artist, based in tiny Lund, Sweden.

Music has always been his thing. Two years ago, his brother and two of his friends asked him over to a jam session. It's enough to see them live once to understand why they went from jamming to form the rap group, Mundane Experience.

Their raw talent, endless drive, and ability to stay focused on collaborating, developing, and creating, even in the toughest times, is something I believe we all can learn from.

The first time I got theMundane Experience was when they performed in a country house barn, somewhere wild and free in the very flat, but also very pretty Southern Sweden. You know that vibe when you've had all the food you could eat at the party, and it's hard to move? Everyone lazy-lounging with the countryside skyline all around, drinking drinks and talking talks. Everything changed when they started playing. The party resembled a "before and after" makeover experience. They give new energy—wavy jazzy hip-hop goodness.

Chance curated a badass playlist for us, and we're so thankful — a playlist for uncertain times. We hope it can bring out your inner strength, but also let you embrace things exactly as they are happening. Enjoy!

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Oh, and by the way this year Chance also released his solo EP, Split Mind.‍

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WE LOVE TO CONNECT PEOPLE

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NAME Chance Croall

INSTAGRAM @chancuu & @mundaneexperience

SPOTIFY Chance Croall & Mundane Experience

SOUNDCLOUD Mundane Experience

YOUTUBE Mundane Experience

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Will Nguyen Cao is a New York-based Vietnamese/American fashion designer focused on sustainable development within the fashion industry. He is from the Bay area and studied fashion design in Los Angeles at Otis College of Art & Design.

With ACRMNY, his personal brand, he doesn’t just want to promote sustainability as a culture, but he lives and breathes it. His supply chain is 100 % traceable, and he is relentlessly working on ways to lower the impact of the production. The identity of the brand is driven through dialogue and narrative - check it out here @acrmny. The first drop of jackets & hoodies will be launched online A/W 2020!

We've met Will online though our community and immediately seemed to connect - we are inspired by his masculine, raw and functionalist aesthetics as well as his courage to follow his own path and pursue his dreams whatever it takes.

Will’s parents are refugees from the Vietnam War and inspire him every day as they have taught him to be resilient and never give up.

We recognize a lot of ourselves in Will. He is a stubborn fighter, and juggle many projects at the same time. His creativity never seems to run out. We share an inexplicable love for New York City; the pace, the diversity, and the endless possibilities in the city that never seems to sleep.

We feel very fortunate that Will agreed to curate this playlist and hope that we will have the chance to meet up with him next time we are in New York. A mix of explicit Rap, Hip Hop & Soul – Enjoy!

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WE LOVE TO CONNECT PEOPLE

NAME Will Nguyen Cao

BRAND ACRMNY

WEBSITE willnguyencao.net

INSTAGRAM @willnguyencao & @acrmny

FACEBOOK @willnguyencao

LINKEDIN in/willnguyencao

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Tyler is a dear friend of ours and an incredibly talented American copywriter. For the past couple of years, he's been traveling the world while doing what he loves - writing!

Our paths crossed at Dojo in Canggu, Bali, last Summer. Tyler was curious about "Popcorn Brain" as he had been introduced to the concept by a mutual friend. Somehow, we immediately connected and have kept contact since then. We were supposed to meet up again in Barcelona before the world went crazy, and most nomads were forced back to their respective home countries. For the time being, he is located in L.A., California, U.S., and like the rest of us, try to make the most out of being back home with family and old friends.

Tyler helped us immensely when it came to defining and describing what LULU—LAND is. He is a genius at giving critique and putting creative ideas, thoughts, and concepts into words that actually make sense and persuade people to continue reading. Without much explanation, he understood exactly what kind of platform and community we wanted to create.

While you are at it, don't forget to sign up for his daily newsletter. It's good. Like really good – intelligent, entertaining, inspiring, unpretentious, and funny.

This playlist very much reflects his creative, calm, and thoughtful nature. Enjoy!

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WE LOVE TO CONNECT PEOPLE

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NAME Tyler James Koenig‍

WEBSITE tylerjkoenig.com

ONLINE TRAINING persuasionpillars.com

INSTAGRAM @tylerjkoenig

LINKEDIN tylerjkoenig

FACEBOOK @tylerjkoenig & @killercopycritique

TWITTER @tylerjkoenig

NEWSLETTER tylerjkoenig.com

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Alana is a Brooklyn-based marketing professional and badass DJ known as LALA. We were lucky to get introduced to her by a dear friend, Carl Carrell, who describes her as a NY homie. We reached out to her, as we would love to promote more awesome and talented females!

Fortunately, she loved the idea of curating a LULU—LAND playlist for you guys on our Spotify. A mix of hip hop, soul, and R&B – feel-good music during and uncertain time. We absolutely love it and hope you'll enjoy it too! We'll definitely go see Alana do her thin' when we are allowed back in NY.

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WE LOVE TO CONNECT PEOPLE

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NAME Alana "LALA" Garcia

INSTAGRAM @alanitabonita @swapmeetnyc @3rdrailnyc

SOUNDCLOUD lalathedeejay

BOOKING alanita.g@gmail.com

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Robin is another great friend of ours. He's an adventurer, a professional wakeboarder, an entrepreneur, and a genius at creating a chilled atmosphere and making people feel comfortable around him.

During summertime, you'll most likely find him in Copenhagen Cable Park (CCP), somewhere in the city on a skateboard, or welcoming guests in the evenings at the entrance of Gorilla or Pluto – some of the most prominent restaurants and late-night hang out spots in Copenhagen.

When the wake season ends, and the water in Denmark gets exceptionally cold, he usually travels far south to continue doing what he loves.

We know very few people with Robin's level of energy – but we absolutely love it! We admire his way of always being 100% true to himself, his courage to follow his own path, and do what makes him happy.

We feel very fortunate that Robin agreed to curate this week's LULU—LAND playlist on Spotify – a mix of chilled beach vibes combined with a bit of jungle fever. Enjoy

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WE LOVE TO CONNECT PEOPLE

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NAME Robin Leonard

INSTAGRAM @robin2hood

FACEBOOK @robin2hood

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SPONSORS

COPENHAGEN CABLE PARK @cablepark

LAKOR SOULWEAR @lakorsoulwear

ONE OPEN SKY @oneopensky

BODYLAB @bodylab

BANDAGIST.DK Bandagist.dk

MATE.BIKE @mate.bike

SLINGSHOT WAKEBOARDS @slingshotwake

THE ORGANIC ENERGI PROJECT @theorganicenergiproject

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Jamil is a Danish American soccer player, and a very dear friend of ours, who had a somewhat challenged and interesting path to where he is today.

He is born with music in his blood as his dad is the renowned Copenhagen based-American drummer Norman Fearrington, who played with, among others, Tina Turner, Santana, Billy Paul, David Bowie, and Ray Charles.

Growing up, it quickly became apparent that he hadn't just inherited his dad's knack for rhythm and music. He was also a talented athlete and a promising soccer player. Cutting a long story short, Jamil's soccer career became somewhat turbulent with its highs and lows. However, he refuses to let other people's preconceived attitudes keep him from living his dreams.

When we met Jamil almost 10 years ago, he was rootless, stumbling to find a foothold, and trying to figure his next move.

Today, he is still playing soccer and is educated as a professional coach. He produces music as a hobby and uses his experience and the lessons he learned, as a young adult, to teach challenged kids with difficult backgrounds in Copenhagen.

He has become a recognized voice in the Danish soccer world, not afraid to speak up when something isn't as it should be. For the past 3 years, he has put on his rainbow-colored captain band every time he has stepped into the soccer field to set focus on homophobia and discrimination.

Somehow, Jamil always seems to show up on our path exactly when he is meant to. He is one of the most supporting, loving, and considerate men we know. He didn't hesitate for a second to say yes when we asked him if he would curate a Spotify playlist for LULU—LAND – a mix of rap, soul, and R&B. Enjoy!

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WE LOVE TO CONNECT PEOPLE

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NAME Jamil James Fearrington

INSTRAGRAM @ayjustcallmejay

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‍‍‍Carl Carrell, also known as CRL CRRLL, is a Denver-based DJ, producer and content creator. He works with everything that moves him and has an open mind and open heart towards creative projects of all kinds.

We meet Carl in a somewhat questionable hostel lobby in Bowery, Manhattan, NY, less than a year ago. He was in the city preparing for a couple of gigs, and we just arrived, jet-lagged out of this world from a 30 some hour flight from South East Asia. Both of us were only there for the night. Luckily, we connected before he went out in the night, and we fell asleep.

We feel very fortunate that Carl agreed to curate our very first LULU—LAND playlist on Spotify – a mix of funk, soul and disco, with a modern twist. Enjoy!

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WE LOVE TO CONNECT PEOPLE

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NAME Carl Carrell/ Crl Crrll (Denver, US)

WEBSITE crlcrrll.com

INSTAGRAM @crlcrrll

FACEBOOK @crlcrrll

TWITTER @crlcrrll

SOUNDCLOUD CRLCRRLL

BOOKING booking@crlcrrll.com

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