The Boat

It has been said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. That may be true, but here at CloudKid, we go pretty nuts for lunch. And when it comes to our favorite place to get some lunchtime noms, there’s no doubt about it: it’s the BoatHouse Deli in Brighton, MA … otherwise known as “The Boat”.

At first glance, The Boat is slightly suspect. After all, it is a deli hidden deep inside a nondescript gas station. The term “gas station sandwich” conjures up all sorts of horrifying images — slimy pre-made subs tightly wrapped in plastic, sitting for days next to a greasy rotating hot dog warmer. Happily, the BoatHouse Deli is nothing like that terrifying vision. Quite the opposite, in fact.

Once inside The Boat, you are greeted by a veritable cornucopia of delicatessen deliciousness — freshly baked breads, crispy veggies, tasty meats and cheeses, warm soups, toasty slices of pizza, and a great selection of sandwiches made to order. The friendly staff expertly crafts every sandwich with an extra helping of TLC (and if you’re lucky, special sauce). A testament to their patience and friendliness, the ladies of The Boat have even humored a certain member of CloudKid who wanted to create and name his own custom sandwich. It’s called The Dinghy … order it at your own risk.

So if you happen to be on this side of the Charles River and are jonesing for a sandwich, sammy, san-doozle, or Adam Sandler, check out The Boat. Deli-cious!

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Whistle While You Work

Whether you’re struggling to hit a deadline, fending off burrito coma after lunch, or just plain ready to rock, the perfect mix of songs is sometimes all you need to power through the day. That’s why, here at CloudKid, we love to make awesome iTunes playlists for the whole studio to enjoy.

We usually start off with a theme: Saxy Time (sultry songs featuring the saxophone); our Inspiration Mix (songs guaranteed to get your blood pumping). Everyone at the studio sends in their favorite songs within the theme, and the rest is smooth sailing. Or sometimes just Sailing, by Christopher Cross.

CloudKid’s latest mix is the brainchild of our animation director, Mike Annear. It’s called Whistle Trax, and is comprised of songs that feature whistling (naturally). Here are a few whistlin’ ditties that really tickle our fancy.

Patience — Guns N’ Roses
Walk Like An Egyptian — The Bangles
(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay — Otis Redding
Jealous Guy — John Lennon
There It Go (The Whistle Song) — Juelz Santana

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Meet Jack, the Candy Pumpkin!

CloudKid is quite a magical place to work.  Colorful pictures and artwork adorn the studio walls; cheerful sunlight streams in through the windows; inflatable dinosaurs peek out from every corner of the room.  An amazing assemblage of people bring their talent and creativity to the office every day.  It’s too bad that none of us care about that stuff nearly as much as we do about our ever-present candy bowl.  His name is Jack.

Jack undoubtedly began his life in a distant plastic factory.  The hands of fate (or more specifically, an 18-wheeler delivering a Halloween shipment to Target) brought him to Watertown, Massachusetts.  One evening, our very own Dave Schlafman was doing laundry in his basement when Jack caught his eye — a dusty plastic pumpkin sitting on a half-forgotten shelf, glinting in the light of a single flickering fluorescent bulb.  Sparing Jack from a lifetime of lonely subterranean gloom, Dave decided to bring him to the studio here at CloudKid.  As for Jack’s name, it probably has less to do with the fact that he’s a jack-o’-lantern, and a lot more to do with the fact that Dave is obsessed with Jack Shepherd from Lost.

Before long, Jack became filled with all sorts of delicious candy, which was devoured by various members of the studio at an alarming rate.  Over time, the procurement of new sweets for Jack has sparked many heated discussions at CloudKid.  For example, who ate all the red Sour Patch Kids?  Why do they even make grape Jolly Ranchers?  Wait, you like those?  How many licks DOES it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop?  A fierce Airhead versus Laffy Taffy debate is currently raging, and the verdict isn’t in yet.  We’ll keep you posted.

When Jack’s head is filled to the brim with heaps of sugary sweetness, we’d like to think that he’s the happiest he’s ever been.  Rumor has it that if you drive by CloudKid on an especially eerie moonless night, you’ll see Jack glowing softly orange in the darkness, giggling quietly to himself, and eating all the red Sour Patch Kids.

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Remembering the Big Man…

TheBigMan

CloudKid lost a friend this week with the passing of sax legend, Clarence Clemons.  The “Big Man” died last week after complications from a stroke. He is best know for his rockin’ (yet smokey) sax-contribution to Bruce Springsteen’s E-Street Band, and he is prominently featured in CloudKid’s  musical playlist, Saxy Time. We think Born to Run best illustrates his brilliance.

NPR recently featured a story about the life of Clarence and the history of the sax. Whether or not you’re a true Saxy Time fiend, this one should not be missed. You can listen to the On Point segment here.

CloudKid asks that you take a moment of silence for one of the most influential horns in history.

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CloudKid Field Trip: Super 8

CloudKid is officially a baker’s dozen now (if you count Ryan Renyolds). We had two new CloudKids start this week: Tim Prendergast and Allison Gevarter.  Tim was our intern last summer and fall, and he recently graduated from the animation program at Massachusetts College of Art + Design. Allison joins us from the Harvard School of Education where she earned a master’s degree in the Technology, Innovation, and Education program. We decided to celebrate our new hires by taking off Friday afternoon off to all go see “Super 8“. Consensus: really awesome!

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CloudKid: A Year in Review

With 2011 freshly upon us, we took some time to look back and recognize the accomplishments over the past year.  There were many long nights, lessons learned, and of course, highlights.  Through all the twists and turns, we couldn’t be more pleased with 2010.

While it’s always great to look back, we’re even more excited about 2011 and what the future holds for CloudKid.  Sky’s the limit.

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CloudKid Halloween

Today, we had a little fun at CloudKid (I swear we do work).  We have been creating micro Halloween-inspired pieces of artwork, and today we had the chance to have a little show and tell – as well as a little Halloween merriment.  After all, who doesn’t love a juicy piece of Candy corn?  Enjoy the pictures, have a safe holiday, and remember to check underneath your bed before falling asleep.

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It’s Saxy Time!

It's Saxy Time

For the last week, we’ve been hard at work on Fizzy’s Lunch Lab and a classified project, but we’ve also been working toward creating the greatest iTunes Playlist in recent memory – Saxy Time! CloudKid has been searching far and wide for the greatest sax-infused songs of all time.  According to the official CloudKid rule book, a  Saxy Time-nominated tune must meet the following criteria:

  1. Contain lyrics
  2. >10 second smokey saxophone solo
  3. Conjure up images of Richard Marx
  4. Make you feel 30% uncomfortable

Please note: We collectively decided that only one Bruce Springsteen song can make the cut – We feel that the E Street Band abused the saxophone, but should be recognized for their contribution to the genre.

If you’re a soft-rock saxaholic, please join CloudKid’s mission and and share your stash.  You no longer need to be ashamed.  We’re not.

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CloudKid goes Apple Picking

We’ve all been working hard here at the studio, so we thought it best to get outside and get some fresh air.  What better to do in New England in the Fall, but pick apples!  We took a drive to Honey Pot Hill Orchards and snagged some awesome looking (and tasting) Macs, Cortlands, and Empires.  Check out the pics!

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