3 Entertainment Weeklies, 2 Communication Arts, 2 Dwell, and 1 HOW magazine were set aside during the last month while I tended to my final projects and the end of the second quarter. 2,718 grams of intellectual and entertaining bliss sat there, neglected. Now that my two week break has come, it's time to catch up and not just on those mags. Between forward-thinking education at Portfolio Center and working part-time at Borders (NYSE: BGP) my interest in books and reading has serviced a major overhaul. I used to only read my email and Totino's cooking instructions, now I find a new book everyday at work. Some of which I should have read in high school, like "The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy." The movie comes out in May, the preview looks so fantastic, and I want to read it before I see it. Any other time before last fall, and you would have never heard me say that. Why ruin a good movie by reading the book first? My first experiment, "Sideways" by Rex Pickett. I read it at work a few weeks before I saw the film. Absolutely hilarious! Couldn't believe I enjoyed it so much. Saw the movie trying to forget I read the book. Enjoyed it very much too, outstanding characters, great story; but part of me was disappointed that some great moments from the book were not in the movie. I had become literate, and understood what my peers and English professors constantly mentioned with every film adaptation. Thankfully I read the Lord of the Rings trilogy after I saw the films...not disappointed in those, but they followed the books rather well.
Last week I finished the 3 graphic novels used in Frank Miller's "Sin City", a new film by Robert Rodriguez with a plethora of great actors. Very, very cool stories, lots of great moments, and Rodriguez is codirecting with Frank Miller to shoot the film practically panel for panel from the comic. It looks amazing and I simply cannot wait to see. 2 other books I'm trying to finish during the break: "blink" by Malcolm Gladwell about thinking and decision making controlled by our unconscious and "The Substance of Style" by Virginia Postrel discussing how the rise of aesthetic value is remaking culture and the marketplace. Anyone else have a suggestion? Maybe I'll get to it during the next break. Oh and out of those 8 mags, I have 3 left to finish.
Sunday, March 27, 2005
Happy Easter to Everyone!
Thought I would drop that in while there's still time. Lyndsey and I had a great time today, probably the first time we have not spent an Easter with other members of our family. We found a church we like in the area, third one we've visited. Didn't realize we were that picky, but they did have the best cookies! Although the first church we visited had sausage biscuits so we really couldn't be that picky. The sanctuary was nice, people seemed normal, and it felt right. Enjoyed lunch at a restaurant we had never been to, BRIO tuscan grille, absolutely the best side salad I've ever had (the chopped one), and spent the day relaxed at the apartment surrounded by lightning flashes and thunderstorms. Enjoy your week.
The Sophomore Slump?
When bands release their second album, or a director makes their second film, the sophomore slump is usually feared by everyone, myself included, except this time it was for my Second Quarter Critique (crit). Having my projects completed one day early meant 2 things: one more day to prepare my presentation, and one more day to worry about how possibly negative this crit could turn out. Set for Tuesday at 8pm, I got a call that day to possibly come in at 6:30pm, apparently they had to juggle some other crits that people might have asked for extensions on (didn't think that was possible?). Packed up, went to school, waited to get called. Lyndsey came too. My projects this time were more realistic and less abstract which meant 'easy to pack.' Books, brochures, letterhead suites, posters, very manageable.
Panel Crits just like last quarter, 4 people, one of which was in my panel last time and was one of my instructors this quarter. The other three were 2 women, one I was familiar with, and another guy I didn't know. I felt good, the presentation was sound, felt positive about almost everything and before I knew it, I was done. The one guy I didn't know voiced his opinion first with a strong positive statement in a sad, underwhelming tone. "Well, I'm glad to see that you didn't stick with a particular method or style with your projects. It's good to see that you've experimented with different things so all your work doesn't look the same." CHECK, that was a primary goal I hoped to accomplish this time around. Then he counters, "but I don't think these were the best solutions to your design problems." SHUCKS. He continued in a depressed manner that I didn't approve of very much but I nodded and smiled. Then the lady I didn't know. She was reading a book I made with a personal story on Alzheimers I wrote, called "memory" (my favorite piece) She stopped and said, "I wish I had more time to read this, you're a very good writer, and this is my favorite piece of yours here." Would it have been inappropriate to embrace her at this time? And so was the consensus for all. Half was liked, half disliked. One person didn't care for a logo, and someone else said I nailed it. Welcome to the world of design.
Panel Crits just like last quarter, 4 people, one of which was in my panel last time and was one of my instructors this quarter. The other three were 2 women, one I was familiar with, and another guy I didn't know. I felt good, the presentation was sound, felt positive about almost everything and before I knew it, I was done. The one guy I didn't know voiced his opinion first with a strong positive statement in a sad, underwhelming tone. "Well, I'm glad to see that you didn't stick with a particular method or style with your projects. It's good to see that you've experimented with different things so all your work doesn't look the same." CHECK, that was a primary goal I hoped to accomplish this time around. Then he counters, "but I don't think these were the best solutions to your design problems." SHUCKS. He continued in a depressed manner that I didn't approve of very much but I nodded and smiled. Then the lady I didn't know. She was reading a book I made with a personal story on Alzheimers I wrote, called "memory" (my favorite piece) She stopped and said, "I wish I had more time to read this, you're a very good writer, and this is my favorite piece of yours here." Would it have been inappropriate to embrace her at this time? And so was the consensus for all. Half was liked, half disliked. One person didn't care for a logo, and someone else said I nailed it. Welcome to the world of design.
Ok, Ok, Ok...
So I noticed it's been a while, and people have reminded me that it has indeed been a while (Aldo!!), but I didn't realize it had been THAT long. When I read that my last post was over 5 weeks ago, I nearly spit coke all over my laptop. Thank goodness I didn't. Lots of things to talk about, and I know you're all excited to find out how my second quarter finished up. Let's get to it.
My mom and aunt came to visit during Studio Week, the week before my final critique where I meet one last time with my instructors, go over final designs and commense final production on all projects. I had about 12 different pieces of work to complete and was frantically worried about balancing project time with family time. Lyndsey and I had it all figured out. We would rent the guest apartment at our complex for our visitors (cheaper than a hotel), and when they were in bed, I'd be able to work all night. We booked it a month in advance, and when I went to pick up the key, all mouths dropped when we found out they had just rented it out to someone else that MORNING! I am Jason's Heart Attack. Nonetheless, they stayed with us, I worked and attended class in the morning, we toured the city during the day, and I worked after they went to bed. Ended up completing my projects a day early....go figure.
My mom and aunt came to visit during Studio Week, the week before my final critique where I meet one last time with my instructors, go over final designs and commense final production on all projects. I had about 12 different pieces of work to complete and was frantically worried about balancing project time with family time. Lyndsey and I had it all figured out. We would rent the guest apartment at our complex for our visitors (cheaper than a hotel), and when they were in bed, I'd be able to work all night. We booked it a month in advance, and when I went to pick up the key, all mouths dropped when we found out they had just rented it out to someone else that MORNING! I am Jason's Heart Attack. Nonetheless, they stayed with us, I worked and attended class in the morning, we toured the city during the day, and I worked after they went to bed. Ended up completing my projects a day early....go figure.
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