Off Topic Ramble Inaugural Edition

I don't know about you, but I am forever making lists. Lists of things to do, things not to do...it's really the only way I can keep organized. Not that I truly am organized. Oh no, no. But...I can sometimes pull off a reasonable impression of an organized person.

And so the point of this post (and I DO have one) is that if you read a lot of magazines you will see that almost everybody does at least one "Top 5" or whatever number list. Top 5 highest paid celebrities, top 10 reasons to pet your cat, top 7 reasons why you should eat more tofu, best dressed, sexiest alive...whatever. But what about all those other "top" lists...you know, the ones who probably get less attention (or maybe some you didn't even realize you had made in your head.

So I decided to make a list of some of my "top" lists. Eat your heart out Casey Kasem. (Oh wait, he's top 40...)

Top 5 albums of the 80s (according to me): Phil Collins: No Jacket Required, Beastie Boys: Licensed to Ill, U2: The Joshua Tree, De La Soul: 3 Feet High and Rising, and in last but not least place, Guns N Roses, Appetite for Destruction. And yes, I am serious about all these choices. I'll give an honorary mention to Paul Simon: Graceland for good measure.

Top 5 albums of the 90s: In this order: U2: The Unforgettable Fire, Jeff Buckley, Grace, Nirvana: Nevermind, Sarah McLachlan: Fumbling Towards Ecstasy (Ha, though you were going to say Surfacing, didn't you? That would be my second fav. This one is still the best) Live: Throwing Copper

Top 3 Songs that Always Make Me Think When it Comes on the Radio: "100 Years" by Five for Fighting. (Seriously, have you ever listened to the words to this song...I mean really listened? Think about it...the message is very profound. 100 years seems like such a long time until you've lived them and then all you want it more time to live...when really you spent your whole life waiting to get to the end. Most people live this way, huh? One task to the next, day in and day out...rushing through life to get to...what? "...when you've only got 100 years to live..." What delicious irony. I love it. Never get tired of it even though I find the singer's voice a bit annoying. I think you have to be over 30 to truly appreciate this song and what it means.

Coming up at #2: "Pride (in the Name of Love)" by U2. If the words "Free at last, they took your life...they could not take your pride." don't give you goosebumps, then you need some serious depth in your soul there, partner. Possibly one of the most profound pieces of music I've ever listened to.

And last but not least: "This is Your Life" Switchfoot. If you've ever heard it, you don't really need me to explain it. Another one of those songs that if you're a philosopher at heart, you will greatly appreciate.

Top 5 Things That Annoy Me in Traffic: Cops behind me. People on the phone hogging 2 lanes. People pulling out maps to READ THEM IN THE FAST LANE (thus slowing down everyone behind them!) Young punks who just got their license, taking their dad's sports car out. They don't realize what assholes they are until they are much older. And finally...the token person from (Insert Midwestern state here) who just doesn't understand the concept of merging onto an interstate. What's the deal? Do they not have 4 lane roads in Wisconsin or what???

Top 5 Places I Never Get Tired of Going to: 1. Strand's Books, in Greenwich Village. The one and ONLY thing I really miss about living in NJ. 2. Tower Records, also in the Village. Find me a chair and some headphones in the jazz section, and I'm good. 3. The Apple Store. Listen man...free internet, all my favorite gadgets...it's heaven for a Mac lover. 4. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC. I am certain that I am the ONLY person who will freely admit to having cut school in high school to go here. Yes, I know. What a dork! and finally, 5. Starbucks. Yes, it's true. I love the coffee and tea but much more than that...I love the aura. There's just something about it that makes it inviting to me.

Top 5 Best TV Shows Ever: 1. The Twilight Zone. I don't need to tell you why. 2. Twin Peaks Yeah, so it got super weird in the 2nd season and it featured a lady who talked to a log. But it was groundbreaking at the time and an original show and concept in a sea of pure crap like Friends or similar empty calories. Ugh. I am not a fan of sitcoms, can you tell? 3. LOST Yeah, so this show is still on and has a good chance of being knocked off the list if the ending turns out to be some retarded scenario like it was all a dream or some crap. But it is still a stimulating show because there are puzzles to solve, things to think about...and no retarded laugh track. And it's not reality TV which is pretty much the bane of my existence. 4. Star Trek the Original Series. Now, now...hear me out. The other incarnations of this show just never did it for me. The special effects were cheese, the acting was terrible most of the time but the show itself was different for it's time. 5. Millenium Never got it's props because it didn't fill X-Files' big shoes. And though if this was a top 6 list, X-Files might be on here. But this Chris Carter vehicle was just so much more gritty. I loved it.

An honorable mention should probably go to Quantum Leap. But...hey I have a rep to protect here!

More lists to come soon...

You can't be me, I'm a rock star...

Earlier today I was fondly recalling being a child and all the times that I sat with my cousin Helen, who is also a graphic designer, and watched her do her "art". I loved pencils, pens, glue..all of which she had ample supply of in her home studio. She's about 10 years older than me but when you're a kid, 10 years can seem like a million. She was the first person in this neck of the family to graduate from college, which I thought was super cool...even though a lot of people dismissed her degree because it was achieved from a school with the word "Design" in it's name. (I grew up in NJ, she lived in Queens, NY so with a little detective work you can probably figure out which school I'm talking about.) Helen had so many cool things around her at any time...lots of hot/cold press boards, Xactos, cool "target" stickers (registration marks in a box, as I later came to know them) The days in particular I was reflecting on today were the times where I would watch her do ad mock ups or spec stuff, either for her portfolio or as take home work from the ad agency she had just landed a job at. I thought her job was the most glamorous in the world.

Now, twentysomeodd (mumbled under breath) years later, I look back and say...glamorous is not really what I would call this line of work after having done it. It is rewarding work, don't get me wrong...but it can be tedious, frustrating, and sometimes downright annoying and at times, thankless. I don't know about anyone else, but I feel as though my phone never stops ringing, and deadlines stop for nothing and noone. I've gotten called on holidays, evenings...I even had one guy call me at 1:00am once asking if I would design him some business cards. OK, so he's in the Pacific time zone and I'm in the Eastern, so I forgave him, but I did charge him more. =) Anyway, I digress. I sometimes feel like a surgeon...constantly on call, constantly putting off personal things to better service my clients. Sure, "emergency" projects like that pay well most of the time. I make a very comfortable living and though I'm not rich or anything remotely close, I have a better living situation than a lot of people I know, and I'm very, very fortunate indeed. Sometimes you wonder...how much is it worth, sacrificing your time? But I look at it this way. If I can do one project in a few hours and the sum I'm paid equals or supercedes my monthly mortgage payment (which is over $1,000 currently) then...it's worth it. How well I'm doing financially is always gauged against how quickly I have made the mortgage money. If it's the 8th of the month and I'm sitting on more than half, then SCORE. It's gonna be a good month. (I use the mortgage as a gauge because in my good fortune, it is the only truly major bill over $500 that I pay in a month)

Sometimes, admittedly, the lack of sleep, constant difficult deadlines and the stress of "Can I realistically crop 1,000 pictures in a day, even for a huge sum of money???" can make me a very, very cranky person sometimes. When I find myself saying "Why oh WHY did I not listen to my father and be an architect? Or a freakin' English teacher, like I dreamed about for so many years???" then I know...it's time to take a break. Time for that 2nd (or 3rd) latte, and yes Starbucks is within biking distance of my home office. Another Red Bull? Sure. Looks like an all-nighter. Gee, that new Diet Pepsi Max looks interesting...I wonder how much caffeine is in it??

So all of this somewhat whiney diatribe begs the question: why do it? Well, it's simple. I love to create. Nothing, and I mean nothing beats the feeling of seeing your work out in the public domain and people saying...WOW! I still get those pangs of excitement when I get a phone call from someone who has their proof in hand and they love it. I feel like a rock star. I've had a lot of those days. Those are the days I think about when I get that one pain in the ass that I just can't make happy. Those are definite candidates for my fart in a bag program. :)

Speaking of rock stars...back to work. I have some clients to impress. (Hopefully!)