Waltz (Better Than Fine)
If you don't have a song to sing you're okay
You know how to get along humming
If you don't have a date, celebrate
Go out and sit on the lawn and do nothing
'Cause it's just what you must do, and nobody does it anymore
No I don't believe in the wasting of time
But I don't believe that I'm wasting mine
If you don't have a point to make, don't sweat it
You'll make a sharp one being so kind
And I'd sure appreciate it
Everyone else's goal's to get big-headed
Why should I follow that beat being that I'm
Better than fine
-Fiona Apple
So, would you like to hear some good news? I started my new job today! I was hired two weeks ago as an honest-to-goodness web designer for a successful brand in the beauty-retail industry, on a small, tightly-knit team of very nice people who are excited about what they're doing. My boss went to Ohio University about ten years before I did, and her boss is one of my former co-workers, whom I used to pester for design projects (he was a designer; I was a glorified production artist). I attended two meetings today, observed a critique, was assigned a project, and even got to do some joking around with my new bosses at lunch. I have a cubicle. I get to use my typography skills (my very, very favorite thing). I get to talk to a lot of people every day about design. I get to think and work hard and deal with products that interest me and that I actually use.
The past couple of weeks were a nice break. I spent nearly a week in Chicago with Jason while he attended the National Restaurant Association convention (Army sent him... I like to just say Army instead of The Army or The National Guard, because Army makes me think of Buster Bluth from "Arrested Development," and that makes the whole thing easier for me to comprehend (that is only a half-joke)). Jason did a bunch of research on sustainability and green practices while we were there. He's really interested in that sort of thing; he reads a lot about sustainable farming and we have fun talking about how we're going to outfit our future (futuristic) home. Funnily enough, the restaurant convention is abbreviated NRA, so Jason got some accusatory questions tossed at him while we were eating lunch outside one day and he was still wearing his show pass. Nah, we're so on your side, guys. I spent some quality time with Bri, who had just moved into her new (sunny, spacious) apartment in Wicker Park. Jason met Bri's mom and aunt, which he joked was pretty serious-not only has he met my parents, he's meeting my friends'. Bri and the ladies and I went to IKEA, which is another of my very favorite things. After the relatives took off, Jason, Bri and I went to the Museum of Art to see the new Modern wing. We got to see American Gothic, the Seurat painting with all the people on the hillside in the park (the name is long and French and you don't know it either ;), and nearly a room-full of Van Gogh. Pretty neat. We also got takeout sushi and hung out at Bri's one evening, which was nice. I ate a lot of hotel breakfasts and drew a lot of pictures in my sketchbook. 'Twas pretty swell.
Weekend before last, Jason and I went to Cleveland to see "Evil Dead: The Musical" with his little brother, his mom, and her boyfriend. We "kids" sat in the front row and got absolutely drenched with fake blood. It was a hilarious show in a really intimate venue, which made the comedic factor even richer. That Saturday, I got to play "booth babe" at a vintage video game convention, where Jason had a table demonstrating his chiptune equipment (Commodore 64, Atari 2600, Game Boy Camera, etc.) and some audio from related artists. I made him a sign-up sheet so he could send people the link to his new album, and when his mom and brother showed up, Michele and I teamed up to make little flyers with his MySpace address on them. It was fun getting to talk with her some more and play PR agency for Jason, who was really bashful about the whole thing. The next day, Jason took part in a noise show called Audio/Visual Baptism. He doesn't think his tunes really fit in with that scene, but he gets invited to play in a lot of noise shows, so he goes with it. If you don't know about the noise scene, well, it's exactly what you imagine, only a little bit louder and a little bit worse. Overall, the show was pretty decent-well-I sat out the first act because the guy was lighting an enormous open flame in the middle of a big crowd in a tiny, tiny art gallery that just REEKED of varnish, and I didn't want to get blown up. I did, however, help catch a girl twice my size who was shoved backward out of the doorway, down two steps onto the cement. I won't name names, Ty, but honestly, it was sort of rad.
I got some good times, good coffees and good walks in with Megan, who is in deep with her Masters' thesis paper (I'm trying super hard to get her to come to Athens with me next weekend for Lobsterfest-she used to DJ at ACRN), and a lot of fun work time with Beth, who is now trying her damnedest to move to Maine, and who will probably be leaving me for a sweet Webmistress job at the end of the month. Beth was an enormous help in getting both my new portfolio site posted and Your Daily Best set up on my new web hosting space. I have to tweak some CSS (layout coding) and post the articles I've written, but I'm pretty sure mid-June is going to be the unveiling of that puppy. Can't wait! Plus, now I have a discount on a lot of beauty products I had wanted to review anyway. Nice perk!
A lot of items were crossed off my long-term to-do list, as well. I organized my filing cabinet, nightmare of nightmares, and... it wasn't really that bad. I sold and donated a bunch of clothes from my closet, including nearly all my skin-tight jeans from ye olde jobbe. Yikes. I caught up on some reading, painting and drawing, learned a couple new recipes, hung out at coffee shops and sat in the sun, and most importantly, got to spend a lot of time with the people I love, so really, I couldn't have asked for a better month. I hope you had a good month too, and that you're looking forward to waking up tomorrow and doing whatever it is you will be doing. When it comes down to it, that is pretty damn important.
You know how to get along humming
If you don't have a date, celebrate
Go out and sit on the lawn and do nothing
'Cause it's just what you must do, and nobody does it anymore
No I don't believe in the wasting of time
But I don't believe that I'm wasting mine
If you don't have a point to make, don't sweat it
You'll make a sharp one being so kind
And I'd sure appreciate it
Everyone else's goal's to get big-headed
Why should I follow that beat being that I'm
Better than fine
-Fiona Apple
So, would you like to hear some good news? I started my new job today! I was hired two weeks ago as an honest-to-goodness web designer for a successful brand in the beauty-retail industry, on a small, tightly-knit team of very nice people who are excited about what they're doing. My boss went to Ohio University about ten years before I did, and her boss is one of my former co-workers, whom I used to pester for design projects (he was a designer; I was a glorified production artist). I attended two meetings today, observed a critique, was assigned a project, and even got to do some joking around with my new bosses at lunch. I have a cubicle. I get to use my typography skills (my very, very favorite thing). I get to talk to a lot of people every day about design. I get to think and work hard and deal with products that interest me and that I actually use.
The past couple of weeks were a nice break. I spent nearly a week in Chicago with Jason while he attended the National Restaurant Association convention (Army sent him... I like to just say Army instead of The Army or The National Guard, because Army makes me think of Buster Bluth from "Arrested Development," and that makes the whole thing easier for me to comprehend (that is only a half-joke)). Jason did a bunch of research on sustainability and green practices while we were there. He's really interested in that sort of thing; he reads a lot about sustainable farming and we have fun talking about how we're going to outfit our future (futuristic) home. Funnily enough, the restaurant convention is abbreviated NRA, so Jason got some accusatory questions tossed at him while we were eating lunch outside one day and he was still wearing his show pass. Nah, we're so on your side, guys. I spent some quality time with Bri, who had just moved into her new (sunny, spacious) apartment in Wicker Park. Jason met Bri's mom and aunt, which he joked was pretty serious-not only has he met my parents, he's meeting my friends'. Bri and the ladies and I went to IKEA, which is another of my very favorite things. After the relatives took off, Jason, Bri and I went to the Museum of Art to see the new Modern wing. We got to see American Gothic, the Seurat painting with all the people on the hillside in the park (the name is long and French and you don't know it either ;), and nearly a room-full of Van Gogh. Pretty neat. We also got takeout sushi and hung out at Bri's one evening, which was nice. I ate a lot of hotel breakfasts and drew a lot of pictures in my sketchbook. 'Twas pretty swell.
Weekend before last, Jason and I went to Cleveland to see "Evil Dead: The Musical" with his little brother, his mom, and her boyfriend. We "kids" sat in the front row and got absolutely drenched with fake blood. It was a hilarious show in a really intimate venue, which made the comedic factor even richer. That Saturday, I got to play "booth babe" at a vintage video game convention, where Jason had a table demonstrating his chiptune equipment (Commodore 64, Atari 2600, Game Boy Camera, etc.) and some audio from related artists. I made him a sign-up sheet so he could send people the link to his new album, and when his mom and brother showed up, Michele and I teamed up to make little flyers with his MySpace address on them. It was fun getting to talk with her some more and play PR agency for Jason, who was really bashful about the whole thing. The next day, Jason took part in a noise show called Audio/Visual Baptism. He doesn't think his tunes really fit in with that scene, but he gets invited to play in a lot of noise shows, so he goes with it. If you don't know about the noise scene, well, it's exactly what you imagine, only a little bit louder and a little bit worse. Overall, the show was pretty decent-well-I sat out the first act because the guy was lighting an enormous open flame in the middle of a big crowd in a tiny, tiny art gallery that just REEKED of varnish, and I didn't want to get blown up. I did, however, help catch a girl twice my size who was shoved backward out of the doorway, down two steps onto the cement. I won't name names, Ty, but honestly, it was sort of rad.
I got some good times, good coffees and good walks in with Megan, who is in deep with her Masters' thesis paper (I'm trying super hard to get her to come to Athens with me next weekend for Lobsterfest-she used to DJ at ACRN), and a lot of fun work time with Beth, who is now trying her damnedest to move to Maine, and who will probably be leaving me for a sweet Webmistress job at the end of the month. Beth was an enormous help in getting both my new portfolio site posted and Your Daily Best set up on my new web hosting space. I have to tweak some CSS (layout coding) and post the articles I've written, but I'm pretty sure mid-June is going to be the unveiling of that puppy. Can't wait! Plus, now I have a discount on a lot of beauty products I had wanted to review anyway. Nice perk!
A lot of items were crossed off my long-term to-do list, as well. I organized my filing cabinet, nightmare of nightmares, and... it wasn't really that bad. I sold and donated a bunch of clothes from my closet, including nearly all my skin-tight jeans from ye olde jobbe. Yikes. I caught up on some reading, painting and drawing, learned a couple new recipes, hung out at coffee shops and sat in the sun, and most importantly, got to spend a lot of time with the people I love, so really, I couldn't have asked for a better month. I hope you had a good month too, and that you're looking forward to waking up tomorrow and doing whatever it is you will be doing. When it comes down to it, that is pretty damn important.