Name: Russell Hawkins (aka Mud Puppy)

Blog URL: themudpuppy.com

Occupation: Designer

City: Clinton, Michigan

Three sentence bio (no more than 37 words):
I am a Christ follower, husband, father, son, brother, uncle and friend. I design for a living, and for fun. Two creeds that I try to live by are: Stop Existing and Start Living & Love Wins.

1. Best book you’ve read in the last 6 months:
God’s Politics

2. Movie that changed your life:
I just watched War Dance, and it’s pretty amazing.

3. Top 5 Songs in your IPOD rotation (or top CD at the moment)

• • Spread the Love Around - Michael Waite
• • Dance or Die - Family Force 5
• • Always Be - Jimmy Eat World
• • Forever - Chris Brown
• • See You Again - Miley Cyrus

4. Pancakes or Waffles?
Waffles

5. If you died today, what is one thing you want the world to know about you
He gave more than he took.

Cringe \’krinj\ vb

1. to draw in or contract one’s muscles involuntarily (as from cold or pain)

2. to draw back, bend, crouch, etc., as when afraid; [to] shrink from something dangerous or painful

So what’s cringe-worthy in your life?

Mine? My love of the Atlanta Braves. I love them, follow them, still watch them even though I’m on the west coast. I’ve got such great memories as a kid going to games when the stadium was empty and then later screaming at packed World Series games. But man, oh man, is this a painful, cringe-worthy love affair (especially the past couple of years). Being a Braves fan you develop this sickness in your stomach at some point in the game when you know it could be won, but that they’ll do something to lose it. You know it’s coming and cringe when it happens. The Atlanta Braves are my most cringe-worthy thing.

So what’s yours?

Netflix is amazing. How’s that for an endorsement?

We’ve had Netflix for over 4 years now and I love their service. Great movies, fast shipping… it’s great.

So if you’re interested in trying it out for a free month. Use one of these coupons they sent me. Who doesn’t like free movies? Enjoy!

When we first moved out here to the left coast, I found it odd that we have little coffee shacks everywhere. The obsession for coffee here is paramount. In the south you’ll find churches on each street corner - here it’s coffee shacks.

Over the past few months I’ve noticed a new trend. Coffee evidently isn’t enough anymore because they’ve come out with the “bikini barista” stands. Yes, the name says it all. It’s like Hooters without the wings and more caffeinated.

I’m dumbfounded that coffee isn’t enough anymore. But, no one ever said that folks up here in the Pacific Northwest were normal…

Crude oil: Currently, this is the biggest portion of the consumer’s cost of gas. About 52 percent of what you pay for each gallon goes to crude oil suppliers. This is determined largely by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OPEC. The amount of crude oil produced by OPEC determines the price of a barrel of oil.

Taxes: The U.S. government taxes gasoline, as do many state and local governments. On average, these taxes collectively account for 15 percent of the consumer’s cost of gas per gallon. Gas prices vary from state to state primarily because of variances in taxes. In Europe, gas taxes are much higher, and so is the price of gasoline.

Refining: The cost of refining crude oil accounts for about 24 percent of the cost of a gallon of gas. Crude oil, or petroleum, must go through a refining process to turn it into useful products including gasoline. The stages of this process vary with the grade of gasoline or other kinds of products being created.

Distribution and marketing: Crude oil is transported to refineries, then its refined product, gasoline, is shipped from the refineries to distribution points and then to gas stations. Transportation costs are part of the price of gas. Oil companies that make gasoline are competing for consumers’ dollars, so they market their brands to consumers. The companies promote, or advertise, their gasoline by advertising. These advertising and distribution costs together account for about 9 percent of the price of a gallon of gas.

Other factors: The elements listed above all factor into the price of gasoline, but there are other contributing factors. One is seasonal demand. In warmer months, when families tend to travel more, the price of gasoline usually increases, because there is more of a demand for it. Geography can have an impact on the price of gasoline your family pays versus that your cousin’s family pays in another part of the U.S. In general, the further you are from oil refineries, the higher price you’ll pay for gasoline due to higher distribution costs. Competition among gas stations often has an impact on price. Have you ever seen three or four gas stations located near the same intersection? What might the others do if one station lowers its gas prices? Service stations, like other businesses, have to make a profit to survive, so they set their prices based on the all the factors we mentioned plus whatever profit the market (and the law) will allow. [CNN]

Any other conspiracy theories?