I think you've seen my brother, Chris, once before, well now you get to meet Danielle, his wife. Last night; actually, this morning they witnessed the birth of their first child. In the nursery, Chris mimes through the window that Spencer is 6 lbs. 13oz. After his first bath, the baby gets to visit mom for the first time since delivery. Un-friggin'-believable.
And you can call me Uncle Jason. Meet Spencer Thomas Puckett, my first nephew. The first grandchild for my folks. They've told the story 3 or 4 times already and have nailed the wording and inflections. Mom, dad, and baby are all doing well. Lyndsey and I are excited to be aunts & uncles and have a new perspective on our forthcoming birth in May. Just being in the waiting room, and checking out the other newborns, listening to them cry and watching them stretch and yawn was surreal. Congrats Chris and Danielle.
That's why it's called the waiting room. There's nothing else you can do. I guess you could read a book, access the web via wireless connections, or sleep. We got the call at 2:45am, Danielle's water broke and she was 6cm dialated. Did you know that my brother and his wife were expecting?...today? We got to the waiting room around 3:30am, the baby was born at 4:26. This panoramic is also a test in the digital capabilities of our new camera, a mighty good Christmas present. 3 shots, 'stitched' together.
So they say a picture is worth a thousand words. This one says a million! And in this case, what you're reading is every...bit...true, and we couldn't be more excited. This ultrasound was taken at 8 weeks, and as of today, Lyndsey has completed her 1st trimester. We're expecting the baby at the end of May. Wish us luck.
It worked out that while in New York, Manny was able to meet up with us from Brooklyn on 2 occasions. Wearing Dave's hat I had a Michael Stipe moment; and in true architect form, Manny sports well crafted lenses for purely aesthetical reasons. Don't tell his date.
Did I tell you I was going to New York? Again, I'm talking about Hank's class. On October 25th & 26th, class convened in Manhattan and we had to get there, put ourselves up, and pray for an agenda. Above you'll see half the group in line at the Museum of Modern Art New York with 350 other people. Target sponsors Free Entry Friday's from 4-7pm and we were jumped at the chance. A couple others got there before we did so they missed this paparazzi moment. From left, John, Christine, Kathleen, Nick, and Boris. Over those 2 days we visited 7 design firms of all shapes and sizes. Extremely inspiring, great work spaces, cultures, and good times on the side.
4th quarter is complete, and I must say that this has been one of two very detailed critiques I've experienced so far. On the whole, my work was received about 50/50 with a couple of items working well and others...not so much. All 4 panelists agreed that my rebranding of Southwest Airlines was the strongest, which I was very happy about. In fact, I should have photographed some of it before I turned it in. Above you'll notice the logo, a new way of looking at SW. I interpreted the Prickly Pear Cactus, the official state cactus of Texas, for the look. A cactus that stores water over long periods of time allowing the flower to bloom even through droughts; not unlike SW's 32 continue years of profitability even post 9/11. That's also where the colors came from. The letterhead suite, luggage tag, ticket sleeve, airplane, and in-flight snack pack I designed followed the same look of safety and service. A couple of my other logos were highlights, as well as a book I did on Alcoholism. Type issues, thoughts on 'see/say' (what you say is what you see), and wrong audience were the weak parts of some of my other pieces. I just got a little too conflicted. Tomorrow, it's moving day.
I've promised some of you that I would call you back, or you've probably called me, not left a message and wondered why I haven't called you back. Well the answer is simple...as you can see. The broken inside and outside screen on my cell phone, though a beautiful piece of artwork, does nothing positive for me. Luckily I can still receive calls; but it makes me wonder, how exactly was life before we all carried cell phones?
Did I really get frustrated not being able to call friends and family at the flick of a thought? Did I actually have numbers memorized since there was no digital storage bank? Are we this needy? I think the answer is yes. I've never been much of a phone talker, but if it's in my hands at all times, there's never been an excuse. I could call mom, or my brother anytime I had a question, wherever I was, wherever they were. After just typing that, another question came to mind, since when have we been anxious to be contacted whenever, wherever we are? Seems like quite a nuisance. Anyway, give me a call, we'll talk about it.
A view of Canal Street, 3 blocks from Bourbon St., on August 30th, 2005, after Hurrican Katrina hit the shores.
