Mike::Blog
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Thursday, 12/14/06
I've become one of those delinquent bloggers who goes on hiatus and returns with the generic "it's been a while since my last post..." entries. Well, it's been a while since my last post. Kidz Life Pediatrics project Phase I is complete. The office officially opens in January and the foyer is going to have the logo we made inlaid in tile. It's going to be very cool to see the logo four feet wide. Another company has signed with us this week as a client.
The holidays have been a blur. Everyone is travelling and it's almost impossible to schedule meetings.
The lovefest with my MacBook Pro continues. All I have left to purchase is the Adobe Creative Suite and my PC is going to see nothing but tail lights and gravel flying.
Friday, 11/17/06
I got home from AQUA this week. The event went well. I designed the event graphics and set up and ran the teleprompter. It's amazing how much of a security blanket the teleprompter can be when someone is singing. The poker table graphic came in and looks great! I'm really impressed with the quality of the printing and would gladly do a similar project with confidence in the final print quality. I'm so far behind in updating the portfolio on this site that I'm starting to dread it.
More importantly, I've finally made the switch to Mac. I have a MacBook Pro now and doubt I'll ever go back to PC once I get all my new software licenses. If I'd known then what I know now...
Wednesday, 10/25/06
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I helped design a poker table graphic. A poker table. I didn't even know you could print custom graphics on a poker table. It turns out that there are places where you can send graphics to be printed on "Speed Cloth". Who knew there was special, Teflon-coated fabric on a poker table? Anyway, the owner of the graphic gave me permission to post it here. Tell me that's not cool. I'll post a pic of the finished table when it's built. Some friends of mine also convinced me to start a myspace page. We'll see if it gets any response at all. I hate to create another thing for me to keep up with when I'm already covered in work but the curiosity was killing me. It's not much to look at right now. I still have to figure out what to do with it. We're also getting ready to post a couple of videos on youtube.com. I'll post links when the movies go live. I have to get permission from all parties first so that we're legal. So much to do and so little time... |
Friday, 10/20/06
Project momentum is picking back up. Kidz Life Pediatrics opens this year and we're well underway with some new material. Austin Tabernacle's logo is done and the website in its final stages. That's the wildest church website I've ever done. It's really out there. I'll post a link when it goes live. I sent a 3D spinning logo and some desktop graphics to Austin yesterday for use in their church media system. Somehow none of the training I received while working at NASA has helped much in my marketing work. On the other hand, some of the computer language stuff has really helped me be able to pick up new computer languages. I wrote a couple of javascript applications this week.
Finally, I've finished up the script for my first podcast. It won't be aired here. It's a stealth project I'm working on. We'll see how it goes. Hopefully the second script won't be quite as difficult. That first script had to set the style and structure for all subsequent podcasts. Now I get to test out my new portable recording studio!
A lot of people ask about how I make some of the 3D animations that I use. I like Swift3D quite a bit. It exports easily to Flash. It accepts Illustrator files so I can directly import a logo. I've even used it to create a spinning logo for a television commercial. The commercials air this month so I'm excited about seeing my work on TV.
Wednesday, 10/11/06
The AQUA 2005 CD just arrived at my house yesterday. It's always good to see your own work floating out there in the world. I got home from Atlanta this weekend and was totally amped with creativity. Sometimes it just takes a couple of days of doing nothing to recharge and get the creative edge sharp again. That and a lot of coffee. I wish I could bottle up whatever my kids have and drink it. I wouldn't even need to sleep then. Or maybe it's the four Louis L'Amour books I've read in the last two weeks. I sort of feel like an artistic gunslinger right now, shooting ideas and concepts at anything that moves.
Here are a couple of new logos I just finished. I'm really pleased with both of them because they capthure both the essence of the organization and the personality of the owners. Both logos are copyrighted and have all rights reserved.
Friday, 9/29/06
I put together a little gallery of my favorite photos from Maui here. If you are looking for a vacation story you'll be disappointed. These are just my favorites. I did the piece below a little while back. It's actually a composite of 6 photos and the truck photo was originally a view from the opposite side. I thought it turned out to be a really solid composite and very believable considering the truck is backwards, the road isn't really there, the foreground is a photo, the mountains are two photos, and the sky is totally computer generated.
I'm just about Photoshopped out. However, I was able to find some fun tutorials on BioRust and Deviant Art to stay distracted.
Tuesday, 9/26/06
Has it really been a month since I last wrote? Life has a way of getting away from you. Since I last wrote, I completed the AQUA 2005 double CD cover, finalized a new logo for Austin Tabernacle, spent a week and a half in Maui, spent a few days in San Diego, and regained control of my poor lawn.
I'm jetlagged and can't really concentrate right now. I'll get back to it tomorrow and post some Maui pics.
Thursday, 8/17/06
My favorite coffee shop, Coffee Crossing, moved to a location that's too far away for me to use regularly. Now I'm a full time Starbucks junkee who's nerdy enough to celebrate the opening of a new store with a drive-thru. Pitiful. But coffee is what keeps me running around like the squirrel from the movie "Over The Hedge". If you're a Starbucks person, go in and order a Venti "Black Eye", drink it black, and watch yourself vibrate.(I'm told it's the equivalent of 6 shots of espresso, 450mg caffeine).
Some days ideas flood your mind like rain during a monsoon. Some days my brain is like Death Valley, all dessert and no life. Today has been a creative wash so I'm concentrating more on the programming side of things than on the creative. I need some inspiration. Today I'm photographing a toddler and baby. Little kids always seem to inspire me creatively so maybe the drought will end in a few hours.
Either that or I need another cup of coffee.
BTW, best wishes to my friend Chris Higginbottom as he sings in the regional finals of a music competition in San Francisco. His song "Higher Place" went to #4 on Indie Heaven and "Rest Assured" is climbing very quickly. If you haven't heard Chris sing, go to indieheaven.com and either click on the radio tower and wait for Chris's songs or type his name in and see his songlist.
Check out the latest snapshots of the kids here.
Saturday, 8/12/06
I'm hanging out at Midway Airport in Chicago thinking back over the notes I've taken over the last two days about the new brand I'm helping my newest client create. It amazes me how many churches and businesses exist without a brand. Granted, most live with a public perception that has become a brand of sorts just by default. In the absence of information being given, people will form an image or opinion based completely on hearsay regardless of accuracy. Perception is reality.
I had a scaled down version of this experience while in airport security today. I was standing in line to go through the metal detector and the TSA agent looked at me and started speaking Spanish. I thought he was talking to someone else and just looking at me. He repeated what he said and I just looked at him waiting for my signal to go through. No point angering the security people, right? So the guy starts waving his arm and says "Hey, come on through, please!" I told him "Sorry, I didn't know you were talking to me before." The security guy thought I was Latino. I'm half Chinese but once I started speaking English we were both OK. Funny.
Thursday, 8/3/06
Projects are rolling along fairly quickly now that I'm home for a little while. Got a couple of new websites that will go live shortly. Plus, did some letterhead and envelope designs this week. I plan to take photos of the kids tonight. The baby phase passes so quickly that I'm afraid I'll forget if I don't have photos for reference.
Friday, 7/28/06
Austin, TX is a weird town. I now understand the t-shirts that say "Keep Austin Weird". The Howard family from Austin Tabernacle are some fun people to be around and showed me some very generous hospitality while I was there. I also did a media system installation last week that went well. This week I'm tying up some loose ends after being on the road for a week. My local Starbucks has allowed me to hang photos on the gallery wall and I'm very excited about that. Photos will go up tomorrow.
There's nothing like children to pull you out of a slump when you're bogged down in work. I came home this weekend after a long road trip and was greeted by toddler who said, "Daddy, you look sad. I'm going to give you a hug and make you happy." That's better than a double espresso and the effects last longer.
Monday, 7/17/06
Christy Ballestero's CD project is in production now. (No, I didn't design the website.) I'm pretty excited about it. I'm installing a media display system this week and then heading for Austin, TX. People keep telling me how cool Austin is. It's almost a shame this is a work trip. The last week has also been a complete blur due to some mechanical engineering work that I've been doing for Marmon-Herrington. I don't know if I'm allowed to mention that project or not so I won't until I ask. All I know is that SolidWorks is very fun. My friend Chris Higginbottom's song Higher Place is still in the top 10 on Indie Heaven. Pretty cool.
Thursday, 7/6/06
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It's easy to
keep your focus when you have children. Sometimes working more hours
is necessary but sometimes you just need to run around in the grass
barefoot and play kickball.
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Monday, 6/19/06
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It's amazine
how much you can forget in a very short period of time. New babies
don't sleep for very long. That seems like an important detail to
remember. If God wants to bless me and my business, then who am I to turn Him down? |
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Wednesday, 6/15/06
I've been off the radar for a little while. We had the baby and everyone
is fine. I might post photos at some point. That's been all-consuming
so if you are wondering where I've been, everything was put on hold. I'm
back in the saddle again and working hard to catch up.
Thursday, 6/1/06
The Bentley Ball
Ministries website is getting some nice attention. We're starting
on Phase 2 which may include an automated mail manager, some Flash animation,
and a blog. Chris Higginbottom
has moved into the top 40 on indieheaven.com
which is pretty cool. Go Chris! The two CD covers I am working on now
are going very well. Throw in a couple of magazine ads and another website
and you've got your hands full.
FYI: The baby is due any day now.
Wednesday, 5/24/06
I'm heading to Nashville today to work on a couple of things for AQUA,
including jackets for the CD and DVD. The new website for Bentley Ball
Ministries is up. Bentley is on his way to Madagascar (the country,
NOT the movie!)
and wanted his website up before he left. I also designed business cards
to go along with the website. I'm happy with the project. Watching American
Idol gave me an idea for a design I'm working on(Go Taylor!). We'll
see if the image in my feeble mind translates into a glorious art piece.
OK, glorious might be a little strong.
And for those of you who read far enough down my blog to see my reference to good coffee, the best place to get good coffee in a nice Christian setting is Coffee Crossing. Hey, Alan, does that get me free coffee? Ha.
Friday, 5/19/06
I am a drama magnet. This month has been a zoo...two funerals, several
hospital visits(not for me), strange deadlines...but yesterday was a first.
I went to Arby's and ordered a Reuben sandwich at the drive-thru. I ended
up getting a roast beef and took it back a couple of hours later only
to find that Arby's was
out of Reubens. The one they made for me when I ordered it was the last
one. The manager was very nice and gave me a different sandwich and a
refund but when has a fast food restaurant ever run out of food? I need
to buy a lottery ticket because when this string of bad luck reverses
it's going to be big.
My friend Chris Higginbottom has music listed on indieheaven.com and is flying up the charts! It's good to see your friends succeed. If you visit indieheaven.com, look for his name, listen to his music, and vote!
For those of you who are checking, the baby is due around the end of the month. So close. I'll be off the radar for a while after that so if you need something done quickly, keep that in mind.
Monday, 5/8/06
I have a couple of very different projects going right now. One is
very masculine and one is very feminine (in the stereotypical sense).
It's very strange to switch gears and work on both on the same day. When
I get into a project I REALLY get into it mentally and sort of slip into
a different state of mind like that guy on the old TV show "The Pretender".
Did you ever see that? The guy could focus such that he could think like
and become whoever he wanted. I'm not that freaky but sometimes you have
to get into a person's head to understand what they're looking for and
what they want. When I'm working on a project it's not about me. Yes,
my personal style enters the equation somewhere (and is likely a reason
I get hired), but if the client isn't well and accurately represented
then what's been accomplished other than to pad my own ego?
Tuesday, 5/2/06
The AQUA magazine is giving me some great exposure. Best of all, it's
rewarding for me to see clients succeed and know that I played a small
role in their successes. My contribution to a project may be small but
when I sign up for a project I feel like a part of the team and share
in the joys. More often than not I end up making a personal connection
with clients and maintain friendships long after the initial project is
over. It's like a strange family of people across the country from different
backgrounds and in different fields. I think the portfolio I'm showing
on this site right now shows a good sample of the variety I'm talking
about. Where else would a sheep breeder cross paths with a custom Harley
builder and an evangelist? The trick for me is to be able to provide the
variety of styles necessary to keep everyone happy. Can you imagine a
sheep in a Harley ad?
Monday, 4/24/06
Being busy is a drug for a workaholic like me. I love what I do and
I love seeing other people happy with what I do. The responses from the
AQUA magazine, Believers Live! CD, and Chris Higginbottom CD have been
great. In case you wonder about the music on those CD's, it's great Christian
music. Seriously. go to the artist websites and buy one of each. You won't
be disappointed.
I took photos at Thunder Over Louisville this past weekend and am very happy with what I did. There were many more good, solid shots this year than in 2004. Anticipating the fireworks explosions is harder than you would think. One of the shots is shown below. I'll post a small gallery later when I get through all of the shots.
If you're one of those people who surfs the site...SEND ME AN EMAIL! I'd love to hear what you people are thinking and what you'd like to see on this site.
Monday, 4/17/06
The Chris
Higginbottom debut CD is released this week. I'm looking forward to
hearing it when I get my copy. Look in the print
section of this website to see the CD art. Phase 1 of the AQUA website
redesign is up and running. Now the website matches the magazine.
Traffic on this website spiked pretty hard last Wednesday so I'm happy
that people are checking it out. Over 90% of the people that hit this
website have monitors set to 1024x768 or bigger, so the new layout is
designed for that little fact. I'm tempted to put up a poll to see what
people are looking for when they visit here.
I have a new product idea for senior pictures or any wallet picture. Going to try it out on some senior pictures this month and see what kind of response I get. People are always asking about getting something original and a two-sided wallet photo might do the trick. Especially if you can do a composite like the front graphic on this website. That whole scene is faked in Photoshop.
Wednesday, 4/12/06
In about another minute it's going to be Thursday. This website redesign
took forever. Hopefully, all those who visit will either find what they're
looking for or be encouraged to contact me. I decided to go back through
the old archive to see what projects I've done and dug up several I haven't
thought about in a long time. There are so many projects that I can't
post them all. I got permission to post the Chris
Higginbottom CD art. Look in the print
section of this website. The AQUA website redesign will go live this week.
Got a photo shoot this week and another website to start.
Monday, 4/3/06
The AQUA Magazine looks awesome! I'm very proud of that project. The
Believers
Choir CD looks great too (and sounds even better). The Chris Higginbottom
debut CD is in production and also looks great. I'm excited to see a bunch
of these projects wrap up. I'm redesigning three websites this week, including
mine and will post links as soon as I'm finished. I can't wait to start
getting feedback from the 15,000 magazines that went out with my full
page ad in them. If I can get 0.5% response that would be huge...
Monday, 4/3/06
The AQUA Magazine comes off the press on Thursday and in the mail
on Friday. I'm pumped because this is the best piece of graphic design
work I've done in recent memory. The Believers Church choir CD arrives
on Friday or Saturday and all I can say is..."FINALLY!" Sometimes
it's worth waiting so the project will be a little better. The choir CD
is one of those cases. This is a big month and I'm just catching my breath
from last month! Two or three more websites are going up before Easter
weekend and another starts around Mother's day and yet another in June.
My site renovation is taking forever. I've flip-flopped on an artistic theme maybe four times for various reasons. The lights, props, etc. are all set up right now so I can shoot "Round 1" of the new art. It's ridiculously hard to take photos of yourself.
Tuesday, 3/28/06
The AQUA Magazine is being printed right now. The AQUA website is
under remodeling to match the website. That should end up really cool.
The Believers Choir CD is in production right now. WAVE3 TV is going to
help promote our CD release. Very cool. Several other projects getting
juggled right now and I'm working like never before.
Spent time at the park with my son yesterday, enjoying my day off. We skipped rocks and played football. Then we went to a coffee shop together. He drinks chocolate milk but it's great to be able to share the experience. Sometimes you have to step back, skip work, and really think about why you work so hard. "Daddy Day" is my time to refocus and realize what my priorities really are. Once that's resolved, everything flows better.
Saturday, 3/3/06
So now I have three CD cover projects and two DVD covers along with
the magazine. I'm heading for Nashville, TN for a photo shoot on Wednesday.The
magazine should be print ready a week from Monday. Two of the CD covers
will be ready in the next couple of weeks. In the mean time I'm working
on a complete overhaul of michaelekbundit.com. I'm building a "real"
self-promotional site to go with the little bit of advertisement I'm working
on.
I played in a basketball tournament this weekend. We were 2-2 for the tourney. Our team played pretty well until one guy got ejected from a game and his replacement fouled out. Oops. I personally played about average for me at this tournament (this was our 8th year at this event). It's nice to do something besides look at a computer screen every once in a while.
Wednesday, 2/22/06
MoningStar Apostolic
Church's website is up. That was a lot of fun even though it was on
a really short timeline. I spent last week in San Diego working on a magazine
that should go to print in a couple of weeks. I'll post shots once they're
finalized. I'm doing a photo shoot for a local political campaign today.
That should be fun. Variety is a beautiful thing.
I have a pet project going that I'm really excited about. I'll share more details as I get further along but am doing research now to see what everyone else has done on my topic. I'm also scripting podcasts for the audio segment and working on cross promotion options. How's that for talking a lot and saying little? Ha.
It occurred to me that many of the folks that visit this site might actually want to see a REAL portfolio. I think I'll go ahead and make that happen. Get ready for yet another redesign of michaelekbundit.com.
Saturday, 2/11/06
I have two new websites finished. Prophecy
360 is up and running at 90% completion. The other one has not been
approved for release yet but I'll post a link when it's live. Picked up
a couple new website projects since my last update and I'm really happy
with the heavy load the business has picked up.
I'm heading back to San Diego for a few days next week on another project. Boy, I sure hate spending winter in a place where it's sunny all the time. This should be a pretty serious work trip as the agenda is pretty full for the number of days I'll be on site.
The big project going now is a photo composite I'm doing for Marmon-Herrington. It's on a tight deadline so I'm working weird hours on it. I'll link the image when it's released.
I need to take some
new family photos too. Life changes too quickly and I don't want to forget
any of it. Good thing there's a photographer
who lives at my house.
Monday, 1/30/06
The last two weeks were practically a blur. I went to San Diego for
some work and visited with some friends. (Chris, thanks again for the
great hospitality!) San Diego is always great. I think I'm going to retire
there someday. After San Diego I came home for a day and headed out to
Phoenix. I've never been there before and had a great couple of days working
on a new website project. I haven't received premission to publish that
project but will when it's time. Phoenix in the winter is awesome. Sunshine
and 70 at the end of January is hard to beat.
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The 10 days of traveling was capped by the Mountain Mist 50k Trail Run. I was fighting some kind of sickness junk that I probably picked up on a plane and hadn't run in 12 days. Race day was a sunny 60F and course conditions were perfect. It wasn't a personal best but I finished in 6 hours 57 minutes and 22 seconds. It was, beyond doubt, the best I could have done on that day. The photo to the right is me running up to aid station #4 at mile marker 17. |
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That's me making the killer 1 mile climb into mile marker 25 and aid station #5. This climb has sections rated as a class 4 scramble and the race organizers post EMT's along the cliff. Crossing along the top of a dry waterfall is just plain cool.
Monday, 1/16/06
And the hits just keep on coming. I'm heading for San Diego again
this week and doing some work there. We're going to try and relax a little
while we're there too and enjoy the company of friends. When I get home
I have to turn around and head for Phoenix, AZ for a new project I just
picked up. Pretty cool stuff. I'll post links as soon as the project is
released for the public. Then I have the 50K trail run in Alabama on the
28th. It's going to be a rough stretch but I'm looking forward to being
busy during a typically slow time. I'm shooting a lot of photographs over
the next few weeks and am really excited about some new lighting techniques
I've learned.
On top of all of that, I'm getting familiar with PodCasting and have just set up my first one. It's not as bad as it sounds and is a lot of fun. I've also found new inspiration on some pet projects of my own. It's amazing how much excitement and inspiration can be found when you schedule "off" time.
Monday, 1/2/06
How can it be 2006 already? God has really blessed my business and
allowed me to make contact with myriad good people. It's like God knows
that I'm honest and hooks me up with other honest people. There is an
inevitable part of business to have a bad deal once in a while but it's
the exception and not the rule. I'm thankful for all my new friends and
clients. 2006 looks to be another busy year.
I'm hoping to run a race on January 28. It will be my big return to running races and I hope to finish standing up. My goal is 7 hours. The Mountain Mist 50k can be awfully tough on participants but the race staff treats everyone like gold.
Wednesday, 12/28/05
Christmas is a beautiful time of year. I think it's more fun now that
I'm a parent. I had the opportunity to put together a Christmas present
for the first time this year and watch the reaction to the gift on Christmas
morning. It's always good to spend time with family and friends.
I also helped shoot a commercial this week and we're editing it for broadcast and web usage. So much work and so little time. It's wonderful.
Wednesday, 12/21/05
Every day is a search for fresh inspiration. I'm working on a graphic
design project right now that requires a strict, plain, and simple layout
but needs to convey a little "cool factor". It's fun but difficult.
I've found some cool websites while searching for fresh ideas. Check out
the little robot on think-designs.com.
There is a lot of inspiration out there but without some PERspiration
you'll just end up with junk.
Sunday, 12/18/05
I don't feel the Christmas spirit yet. At least not what I think it
is. A few days ago I was driving down the highway and this guy cuts across
three lanes to get immediately in front of me, then across three lanes
back to where he was before because my lane wasn't moving fast enough.
It was rush hour and all three lanes were going the same speed. Anyway,
I maneuvered to get my car even with his so I could wish him a Merry Christmas
properly. Just before I could wave at him and spread some holiday cheer
I saw him reach into the floorboard and pull up a bottle wrapped in a
brown paper bag. This person then lets go of the steering wheel with the
other hand and twists off the bottle cap. AND takes a long drink while
driving with no hands. Talk about holiday cheer. I have seven days to
get in the groove. In the mean time, I'm trying to get my work done with
some pizazz.
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Thursday,
12/15/05 Sometimes no amount of coffee gets you motivated. Even the good coffee. I have all these ideas running around in my head and all this work to do but something gets lost in translation between my brain and my fingers. Maybe today would be a good day for some old-fashioned manual labor. |
Wednesday, 12/14/05
I've been called about my photo gallery twice this week. Well, here
it is in a really simple format. I've just included a bunch of random
photos, some new, some old, some that are included by request. Enjoy.
Monday, 12/12/05
If variety is the spice of life then my life has been hot sauce lately.
I've done a holiday ad for a sheep magazine, a 3D model of a PTO on a
Class 6 truck, a marquis sign for a church, and Christmas photos. Salsa
caliente, amigo!
Monday's my rest day so I'm doing my best to relax in the face of a mountain of work. It's good to be busy but if you don't recharge the creative brain it's impossible to function at your best. Now that recharge time is built into my schedule I'm working much more efficiently.
Had some great exercise this weekend too. I'm ramping up for the Mountain Mist 50K, my favorite run race. So far I'm on schedule but a person can only prepare so much for an event like this.
Thursday, 12/8/05
I was surfing for inspiration for a photograph that I'm working on
and found photo.net.
There is a lot of interesting photography there and I found what I was
looking for. It's funny how if you work too long without putting fresh
ideas and inspiration in your head, all of your work starts to blur together.
My visit to photo.net
also reminded me that I need to put my photo gallery back up. Oops. Guess
I'll add that to the work page this weekend.
Our church Christmas program is this weekend. I'm building a manger for it. I feel like Tim the Tool Man. Maybe I'll buy a plaid flannel shirt and let my beard grow out so I can hit the hammer better.
Monday, 12/5/05
| Sometimes you just gotta grip it and rip it. I've been in the middle of a couple of projects that have been going slower than I like, spending extra time "earning style points." The answer to the design problem was right below the surface and just needed a good blast to bring it up. Scheduling extra reading and study time in my schedule is causing fresh ideas, eh? |
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Friday, 12/2/05
| I went running in the light sleet and snow yesterday. It was beautiful. Cold feet and all, it was invigorating. And to think I almost talked myself out of it. There weren't many of us running at the park yesterday but everyone I passed had a big smile. Maybe we are all a little crazy. |
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Thursday, 12/1/05
There's a childcare
facility near my home that I drive by almost every day. The sign in front
of the facility is rotted and the paint has peeled off such that several
previous layers of paint
are revealed below it. The sign needs help. It's nasty. You can't see
what the business is, what its name is, or how to contact anyone there
by looking from the outside. The rest of the building looks average. It
can't be all bad because there are always cars there and in the summer
there are lots of kids playing on the playground.
However, the facility presentation to those passing on the street is so
bad that I can't bring myself to even stop and ask for information. If
they can't keep up their building, parking lot, and sign, why would I
take my business there, much less trust my child to them? Call it a harsh
judgement on my part if you must. I think if people don't like what you
show them then you lose the opportunity to work
with them. What are you showing the world about your business or organization,
whether in print or via the Internet?
Tuesday, 11/29/05
Getting older stinks. I have more gray hair than people twice my age.
One of the problems with getting older is that I have to get up at night
to get a drink of water. However, it has taught me something. You can
fill a glass with water without turning the lights on or sticking your
finger in the cup! You can hear it when the glass is full. Not to be overly
philosophical, but there's a lesson there. You can tell when someone's
full spiritually and emotionally by listening to them. If you listen closely,
you can hear the differences between a hollow person and a full person.
What a person is full of inevitably comes out in some form anyway, often
verbally. This translates to their work. As a designer I've learned to
listen to clients and pick out the hollow spots in ideas or designs and
suggest ways to fill them. Sometimes the suggestions stick, sometimes
they don't. You can spot a design made from a hollow idea or by a hollow
person. On the other hand, you can spot a design based on a full idea
or made by someone full and get an understanding of what they're full
of.
Tuesday, 11/29/05
I can't see my toes. My belly is too big from overeating for a week. However,
I've turned over a new leaf. I'm on a mission to reinstill discipline
in my life. It seemed like a waste of time to wait until New Year's Day
to make a vow that most people break anyway. Mentally, I didn't want to
be connected to that trend. Hopefully my new found method (soon to be
habit) will make me a better person and worker.
Thursday, 11/24/05
Happy Turkey Day! I'm thankful for all of my friends and family. I'm thankful
for the opportunity to serve at my church. I'm thankful for people who
will pay me to work for them. I'm thankful to all of you who refer people
to me. Now go back to eating turkey until the tryptophan kicks you into
a turkey coma.
Tuesday, 11/22/05
It's amazing what you can get used to. Now that I'm not on the phone 400
minutes a day it's almost like I'm lonely. ALMOST. Now all of the sudden
it's Thanksgiving and I wonder what happened this year. In the mean time,
Caught Red
Handed got a new website. So did The
Anchor Church. Now I'm working on a logo and marquis for a church
in Texas and I'm back to work for Marmon-Herrington again. I'm working
with our youth pastor Armando
to redesign our
church website which is going great. OK. I can't think any more today
without more coffee...
Friday, 11/18/05
Yap Yap Yap. It's been about a million years since I updated the blog.
No really. ONE MILLION YEARS. My last three months have been a complete
blur with all that's been going on. The
Joseph Project is finally winding down its aggressive phase for the
holiday season. Now it's time to catch up on the work that's been piling
up for the last twelve weeks. A big thank you goes out to all of my friends,
clients, and enemies who have patiently waited for me to return to circulation.
Fun time is over. Back to work.
OK. I admit it. I love what I do. However, my employment is a means to an end. I want to be on the front row for every event my kid performs in. I want to be first in line to volunteer my time at church. I want to be a blessing to the world around me whether in thought or deed. A little melodramatic but true nonetheless. I work hard to please my clients so they'll be return customers who make referrals. In the end, good business leads to good relationships.
And so, 12 weeks, 200 Hurricane Katrina victims, and a whole lot of phone calls later, I can honestly say that I gave it all I had. Maybe everything didn't turn out perfectly for every victim or volunteer but a whole bunch of people stepped up to the plate and answered the call when it came. Thank you to all of the Project volunteers. You all ROCK!
The winter season looks to be busy. Guess I'll have to drink more coffee. By the way, the flower art symbolizes a fresh start...