Two creatives and a lawyer walk into a pizza joint in Silver Lake, and have one of the best artisanal dough-based gastronomy experiences of their lives. As soon as we entered the space, I felt like I got transported to somewhere in Europe that seemed familiar and yet brand new at the same time.  

The vibe was moody, soothing and welcoming and I thought to myself – even if the food is subpar, the space is worthy of a revisit purely for the ambiance. I could see myself hanging out here, working from my laptop, reading a book and making new friends. Fortunately, and somewhat unsurprising, the pizza was just as enjoyably. As soon as our silver platters hit the table and we dove nose-deep into the first bite, it became extremely hard to focus on the conversations because the flavors demanded our full attention. Just thinking about it and writing this is putting my mouth in a salivating state.

The bro’s went for the non-vegan options that left their carnivorous neurotransmitters firing on all cylinders. I went for the only vegan offering that wasn’t sold out (yes, they sell out of pizza styles) and man was that thing ‘bussin’. You would think we were boy band trying to harmonize in the back with all of the “ooh’s” and “aaah’s” coming from our table. I try to practice portion control when I eat (especially if it’s late) but after the first bite I knew this pizza didn’t stand a chance of survival. RIP - Rapidly Ingesting Pizza

The ingredients were super fresh as if they were plucked right from the garden and gently placed onto the fermented sourdough before being slid into the brick fire oven as if it were being kissed by the sun. Overall this was an amazing night filled with laughs and deep conversations over equally amazing food, sounds and atmosphere. I was so impressed with this place I had to buy a memento from the night. My pizza was $25, the shirt was $45, the experience with the boy’s was priceless.

If you’re in the neighborhood, I highly recommend that you visit Grá.

-Danny

Episode No.18 of the SS/OUND WAVES® Podcast just got release and guess what that means? I’ve already put out more episodes this year than I have in the past two years. I know this is a small victory, but it’s an accumulation of small victories that compound over time that result in us achieving our goals. Celebrate the small wins when you get ‘em and squeeze as much juice out of them as you can before reaching for another piece of fruit, because it’s better to savor the flavor than to chug and completely miss the taste.

There’s a lot of good parts in this conversation but one that really stood out to me was when we touched on making new friends, because this is something that I’ve been mindfully dabbling in lately. In my old life I was that popular dude with a camera and on any given day I could be found at my habitual watering-holes with friends all around me. These days I’m that guy with a book that’s usually sitting by myself at a coffee shop, and that’s been designed by choice. I really wanted to learn how to enjoy spending time with myself because it was something that was super challenging for me. I would always hear that shame inducing voice pop-up and say “only losers hangout alone. What’s wrong with you? You’re weird. Everyone is staring at you!” Little by little it started getting easier, and then it got fun, and now I absolutely love my solitude – almost to a fault. 

I’m not saying that I currently I don’t have any friends, in fact I have a handful of great ones that really enhance my life, and visa-versa. But I do know that life is about carefully fostering and cultivating enriching relationships and I want to be a little more open to letting new high-caliber individuals in. But where does one find these spiritual sherpas that also like to guide people (especially themselves) to this enchanting place called, happiness?

Kendal, definitely opened my mind when she shared how she uses the buddy-system as a means of establishing contact and connection with like-minded humans.

Listen to the episode here – Please be sure to rate, review and subscribe to the show :)

-Danny

I’ve noticed over the past eight months that something really beautiful happens when I mix my spiritual and creative experiences together on Sundays. I usually start my morning off at church and then kind of just go wherever the wind takes me. Sometimes it’s a coffee shop or beach or shopping or harbor and one time it was even a Nine Inch Nails show (don’t ask me how it happened, all I know is I said “yes”).

That’s the take away, being curious and saying yes to the things that come my way. Showing up and staying rooted in the present but also reminding myself to pull out my Yashica® T4 and grab a souvenir from the experience. In these moments it isn’t about capturing a ground-breaking photograph, it’s more so about taking a trinket home with me.

-Danny

In this episode of the SS/OUND WAVES® Podcast I touch on the experience I had with rediscovering and reactivating this blog. I reflect on the scared little boy I was when I left, and the strong loving man I became when I returned. 

I’ve found on this warriors journey of mine that the most fulfillment has come from the ability to love all of me, even the pieces that used to bring me shame, embarrassment or felt like they were unlovable. Accepting and celebrating all of me as equal parts has given me the propensity to repurpose my fear and turn it into faith. The facility to turn my old messes into my new messages and open up an undiscovered pathway to true creative freedom. Who you were isn’t who you have to be, and when you lean into your new story, you unlock all of your superpowers – you become your authentic self and an ambassador of love.

Listen to the episode here – Please be sure to rate, review and subscribe to the show :)

-Danny

Summer is coming, and so are the new trucker hats. Adorned with the phrase that I’ve had on my Instagram bio for as long as I can remember, it felt fitting that this design be the first article of our upcoming SS©23 offerings. Built for the long haul and made from a foam front and mesh panels with an adjustable size strap. This baby is perfect for fun in the sun and will surely be your new favorite accessory this season. 

I’ve been wearing and sharing the samples with the team and the response has been insane. I can’t tell you how many random people have asked me where they can get one. The amount of cashiers that are willing to give me their money rather than taking mine just so they could get their hands on this cranium cover always leaves me grabbing for my bags with a smile. 

Stay tuned for a release date.

-Danny

The interesting thing about this post is just how long it took me to find the perfect scent. And when I found it, it became an object that I wanted to capture – which made the whole experience become much more than just a fragrance. 

To the outside perspectives, one might simply see a bottle. For me, I see a three hour long fragrance hunt with my little brother. I see us smelling tons of different scents, laughing with the ladies that were helping us, taking a break to get a latte and then going nose-deep back into samples until I finally landed on the original fragrance that initially caught my attention. 

I keep a bottle on my desk and one in my car, and because the beach is one of my favorite places, it made sense for me to put a bottle in the sand. This isn’t just an object to me, it’s a representation of the experiences I’ve had and the ones I’m going to have. It’s the smelltrack of my life and it’s the remnant I leave behind after an endearing embrace, and to me that’s a beautiful thing.

-Danny

When I was a kid I had a dog named, Boozer, whom my dad named and looking back it’s quite fitting that that’s the name he chose. This big fluffy, dirty, mutt of a dog and I became instant best friends. I can remember him following me everywhere, looking for me if I wasn’t around and he always had to sleep next to me. When kids would make fun of me or laugh at me, he could sense I was hurt and would start barking at them. He protected me and he loved me and I sure did love him. One day, Boozer bit a kid for picking on me and although the details are blurry, the end result was that Boozer had to be put to sleep. I was crushed and didn’t think the tears in my eyes would ever run out. My little broken heart told me that I would never have this type of connection, friendship or love for a dog ever again.

Then one day I met, JR, who was this big beautiful Golden Retriever with the kindest spirit. I kneeled down and said “hey boy” as I looked at him in his sweet little eyes and ran my hand through his frost white coat. He pushed closer to me and lifted his head while my hand was on it as if he was signaling that he felt the same thing that I was, an instant bond. 

Every time I would see JR he would run up to me and start crying like a little puppy, though he was well into his twilight years. He would follow me all over the house, he would plop his big body on me or would at least have to place his paw on my hand when I was near. We would walk together and I even took him for a run while his old hips kept saying “stop” his youthful heart said “lets keep going”.

JR reminded me so much of Boozer and he transported me back to my childhood, back to when innocence and play was at the frontline of my existence. The small child version of me fell in love with the big fluffy aged version of him and in that bond, I felt a rare love for an animal that I never thought I would feel again. I don’t even have this type of kindred connection with my own fur-baby whom I love dearly. This was different, this was a brief expression of nostalgia mixed with magic, and for that he will always have a tender space in my heart. 

When I heard of JR’s passing, it affected me deeply. Not because he’s gone, but because he reminded me of ways to love. Thank you for all of the smiles, laughs and memories, Old Boy. 

-Danny

This episode with Jenna is probably one of my favorite conversations that I’ve had on the podcast so far because it was so real, authentic and transparent. This was the first time Jenna shared her experiences not only as a model, but also as a human. After the session I thanked her for being so vulnerable and brave and expressed that I’m grateful to have this new space that we built where a true friendship can organically grow.

-Danny

I’m pushing for 100 episodes this year and currently approaching episode No.18 of Season 2 of the SS/OUND WAVES® Podcast, which is astonishing to me because that means I’ve put out more content in the past four months than I have in over two years of working on this project. I went from recording on a small handheld Tascam® voice recorder, to a Rode® mic in my garage to now a set of Sure® SM7B’s in my dedicated podcasting space, aka, the Zen Den. I feel it’s only prudent for me to give a quick breakdown of why and how things shifted for me in this space. What held me up, and what lead me to freedom.

1. Self-Belief - I had to find it in myself that I’m capable of not only pursing a big dream, but that it’s also achievable.

2. Confidence - This is different than self-esteem (it took me years to realize that) and confidence is the fundamental superpower that allows you to keep saying “yes” when everyone else is telling you “no”. Even if it isn’t true ‘yet’, I always tell myself that I have the best podcast in the world. I say it so much that I actually began to believe it. That belief is like a canister of gas in your trunk for when you run out, and you will run out. – Believe in your product and sell it often.

3. Commitment - This was a game changer for me. I was always half in/half out because I wasn’t fully committed to this project, even though I knew the message was one of positivity. To sum this feeling up, I didn’t believe this podcast was mine yet and was too insecure of it to talk about it. Once I fully committed, this extravagant thing shifted in me, I fell in love with this project and I’m now so proud of it. I literally share it with everyone that I can, from the cashier to the stranger at the coffee shop to even my family (which is something that I’ve never done before). – Commitment in your belief will lead others to believe in your commitment.

5. Support - Speaking of telling and sharing my dreams, passion and purpose with my family; this is the first time I’ve let them be a part of my professional journey and man does it feel good to have them in my corner, rooting for me and believing in me. It gives me affirmation that the people who’ve seen my at my worst, acknowledge that I’m now at my best. It confirms that I am doing what I was meant to do. There hasn’t been an episode that I’ve released in the past four months that someone close to me hasn’t given me feedback. Either constructive or otherwise, its all positive and important because I know it’s authentic. – This also extends to the close friends in my life. 

6. Showing Up - Okay, this is probably the most common sense yet underrated or underestimated factor when it comes to not only chasing but also achieving your goal(s). You can’t enter a race, let alone win one, if you don’t first put on your running shoes and get yourself out the door. Showing up on a daily basis in pursuit of your mission is EVERYTHING. There are many episodes that I’ve recorded that suck and that will never get published. I was either tired, distracted, unmotivated or uninspired. The fact that I showed up and recorded them anyway is what gives me the edge for those magic moments when I’m in a flow-state and my message is told in an authentic and impactful way. There are no failures when you show up, there’s only lessons learned and muscles built. – Put on your shoes and run daily!

7. You Are Your Product - This actually needs to be its own podcast episode because there’s a lot to cover in this one. When I realized that I’m not selling anything, in fact I am now giving it all away for free, I realized that I am not only the product but I am also the packaging. Which means I can make this product as impactful, special, desirable and as high-end as I please. – What are you selling and why should people buy it?… And would you buy it for yourself?

8. Would You Do It For Free? - Speaking of giving away for free, I’m a firm believer that your passion, mission and purpose stem from the one thing you would do enthusiastically even if you never earned a dime from it. When your work or art is centered around your heart and is in service of others, the universe has a very endearing way of making sure your external life matches your internal experience. – Are you focusing on making dollars or making change?

9. Pay Attention - When I’m writing, recording, or talking about my aspirational pursuits, I can feel my physicality, voice and energy shift. I start smiling and getting excited. I get pumped up and feel this exhilarating energetic momentum take over my body. Are you feeling a dynamic shift when you engage in your work? – Our bodies tell us the things that our minds can’t say.

10. Move Your Feet - I used to do a lot of dreaming, a lot of talking and a lot of mental projections of future manifestations but always found myself disappointed or let down because these dreams weren’t coming into existence. Then I realized words that aren’t followed up with affirming actions forward are just that, words. Now I talk and I walk. I ramble and I run, because I know my words will tell people I coming but my feet will show people that I’ve arrived! – A winners words in lockstep with a winners actions will result in a winners experience.

I’m going to be honest, none of this was premeditated, I literally typed this entry in about five minutes with little to no effort on my end, which tells me that this was just as much for ME as it was for YOU. I believe in you, I believe in me and I know we can do this. Let’s go!

-Danny

Welcome back to the blog! I can’t believe I’ve left this thing on the back-burner for so long, and to be completely honest with you – I actually forgot about it until about an hour ago when I was listening to a podcast and the words “successful blog” was thrown out and I consciously caught them like an outfielder that caught the game winning catch (I’m not really into sports but felt this analogy sufficed). 

I mean, it’s been nearly two years since I’ve been active and posted on this thing, and yes there’s so many reasons and variables as to why I went M.I.A but to sum it up – I needed to heal some things and learn to love all of the pieces of me, even the old creative ones (like this) that I was trying to stifle and suppress because it reminded me too much of my old life. After a lot of internal work, I’m now in this really beautiful space within where I no longer wish to silence any of the pieces that serve me. Now I’m only interested in celebrating and loving all of me, and that includes my creativity. 

When I first started Steezy® Studios and this whole photography project, I had no clue who I was and I especially had no idea of what I had to contribute. Now, I’m so clear about not only who I am and what I stand for, but also what I want to offer the world. I want to move and inspire others through my verbal expressions, positive actions and this creative visual language. I want to communicate love in anyway that I can to those who feel they’ve been deemed unlovable. 

So, here were are, in the NOW and man does it feel good to get these fingers back on the keyboard as I openly express my feelings in a way that I forgot was so special to me. Stay tuned for more insights, updates and visual expressions of my life.

-Danny