“Whole Foods Parking Lot” was the splashy debut of Fog and Smog, described on their web site as “a collective of creative culture vultures from The SF Bay Area and Los Angeles… directors, writers, producers, editors, composers, musicians, designers, deejays, and generally enthusiastic creative folks.” The principal performer in the video is DJDave, a.k.a. David Wittman, a Berkeley-bred, LA-based commercial and film composer. Wittman’s main cohorts in the video (and on its production)¹ include Jake “J Pusha” Pushinsky, DJ Spider and George Woolley.

WFPL went viral enough to prompt mainstream media coverage from outlets like The Hollywood Reporter and the Wall Street Journal. Fog and Smog were even hired to make a couple of TV ads for Hyundai. However, Wittman has expressed trepidation about F&S becoming a commercial venture; the group formed as a bunch of extended friends making something for fun, apart from their pre-existing careers in media and entertainment.

They have continued doing so, and have quite successfully produced more fun. If I had known before today about their second music video, “Yoga Girl,” it would probably have had its own spot in this top ten list… but I didn’t, so I’m including it here as a bonus feature. Enjoy!

I dig this lyric so much I wanna see it in text format:

We could hit up Rawvolution or the Urth Caffe,
Have a vegan cookie and talk about your day
Or we could take a walk down by the ocean,
I heard those hip openers release a lot of emotion
It’s all good though, you know, like either way…
You feel like going with me???
(Na, am-a-ste)

At fogandsmog.com or their YouTube channel, you’ll also find their third and fourth music videos. The third, “Berkeley Enough,” also came out in 2011 — but I gotta end this post sometime, and the fourth has gone into the hopper for 2012 list consideration.

I’ve been signed up with Focus Pointe and another couple of market research companies for well over a year now. They email me a couple of qualification questionnaires a week, and call me maybe once a month. Not once have I so much as qualified to be on one of their little consumer panels. I’m beginning to wonder if they are really conducting any market research panels, or if they just enjoy teasing me with illusory offers to pay me for my opinion.

• iPaddle — Attachable wooden handle for the iPad; available in table tennis or aquatic conveyance sizes
• iOta — Encyclopedia containing only miniscule specks of information
• iRate — Easily records your angry screeds about local businesses and uploads them to the web
• iKea-fy — Inoffensive but bland interior design generator; assembly required
• iAye — Maritime lingo dictionary and recorded lesson series
• iD — Consolidates all your sensitive personal information into one convenient, easy-to-steal file
• iTalic — Kink-in-the-neck therapy app; skews your entire screen image slightly to the right
• iDeals — Crawls your online and offline user history in order to detect your most deeply-held values, and returns a list of current market prices for the selling out of each. Currently in beta testing limited to the Los Angeles area.
• iDle — Inactivity generator
• iRish — Belligerence inducement app for the chronically meek; Plus edition includes taunts from rowdy Notre Dame fans
• iDog — Full-fledged virtual assistant for the blind; development currently delayed because of system vulnerability to cross-species biting attacks
• iRon — App that overheats your iPhone to the point where it can be used to press a garment
• iCelandic — iPhoto plugin for use on headshots which makes you look more gorgeous and Nordic
• iCon — Mugshot generator for the frequently arrested; Plus Edition includes both front and right-profile angles. Compatibility with iCelandic to come in v. 2.0.
• iVan — Driverless family vehicle controlled via Apple’s iCal schedule application; development currently delayed by pesky Russian accent bug in onboard voice prompts
• iSh — Approximate measurement tool

Here are Julie Wittner, Ryan Smith, and Johnny Markoudakis in WWJD a Music Video, directed by Kim Evey.

WWJD a Music Video

Ms. Wittner and Ms. Evey may already be on your radar screen if you have notched any of the 25 million plus views of their giggle-inducing YouTube series 2 Hot Girls in the Shower. Yes, it does sound like pØ®n, but it doesn’t stray beyond PG-13 range. It will shortly take up residence here in the C&B blogroll.

Darn it. If I’d been paying attention I could have saved $5 when I bought¹ $20 or more of Halloween candy.

____
¹ Yes, that’s right: $5, and one pronoun. Look at the flyer again.