YF’s Neighborhood

Today was Mike's funeral. I went to the pre-cemetary memorial service, in a church. I like churches, for the most part, they have art and architecture and in their best light are a gathering place of people. Today the people were in shades of grey and black, somber for the most part. Some attendees treated it like a reunion, there were fleeting jovial moments tempered by the memory of what brought everyone together. Pictures of Mike in various stages of his recent life surrounded the entryway to the interior of the church: Mike and his helicopter, Mike in his uniform, Mike working on the helicopter, Mike and his wife Anita and their son Riley.

Riley is C's age. He meandered around but was never far from his mother. The gravity of the occasion may have tempered a typical "boy" reaction but at the same time he wasn't particularly teary. The occasional grin and introduction to some family friend or relative you could tell he hadn't seen in years peppered his pre-funereal experience.

I spent the ceremony crying quietly. Ween didn't cry all that much but, as she told me, she did her crying the last few days. I think she's numb, and I think she's probably got some more cry in her.  Me, I hadn't cried yet. I cried and cried and cried, as his friends talked about their "Monty" (our "Mike") and brought up all of the traits we remembered him having way back when: the quick reply, the sense of honor, the expectations he had of himself and others that could not be compromised. All I could think about was here is his wife and child, who would not have him in person ever again. They would have pictures, they would have memories, they would have tokens of "honey" and "daddy".

A funeral is for those left behind; Mike is either in a blackened oblivion or in a happy afterlife (and never do I get closer to wishing I had the capacity for religion as when I want there to be an afterlife for those departed). His wife is left behind and his son is left behind and now the question is how their life will change, irretrievably and irrevocably.

It makes me look at all of my daily problems and classify them as petty and stupid.

I came home and decided I would not go to book club. I cleaned a bit, which I find a sense of comfort in, and I sewed a bit (a Luke Skywalker costume I'm making for the C). 

I'm enjoying, and appreciating, the quiet. 

Check this out, you might find something you like to send out to your friends and family. :)

I'm not feeling very social - online - recently. Not sure why.

I've been spending a lot of my free time playing silly Facebook games, they
are stupidly addicting. I knew I shouldn't have even glanced at one. They're
like homeless puppies, you just can't give 'em up.

Work has been slow this week, this whole month seems slow since I'm waiting
on not only my Nook but also Star Trek on Blu-Ray. Amazon gave me a great
price and promised it would be on my doorstep the day it was released. I
wonder if my Nook will be shipped with the same speed? That's one thing that
rocks about Amazon - their shipping with high profile items.

As much as I hate to admit it, because I really wanted to keep breastfeeding
& pumping until she was a least a year old, I think I might stop
breastfeeding soon. I can't seem to keep up on the medication that keeps my
supply even sufficient enough (we've been having to give her bottles of
formula at night before bed), and even if I do there's no promise that my
supply will even last much longer. Plus, I can't even fathom dieting and
losing weight while doing this and recently I've become so disgusted with my
body. That great feeling I had from knowing that I'd successfully lost all
the weight I put on with the baby is gone and now I'm just left with the
realization that I was fat before the baby too.

But I feel there is a lot standing in my way. I know that if I thought about
it, I could get past it all, but it's hard. I need to learn how to cook -
and to find recipes within my budget and experience level for just two
people. I also need to make the time to exercise as I know that dieting
alone will only do so much. My schedule is very limiting because I have to
wake up at 5am to go to work - and once I get home I just want to spend time
with my family. Most nights I'm in bed by 8:30-9pm, it's a grueling schedule
but it's not changing until AT LEAST Christmas.

But, now that I think about it, I can do it. I can change my schedule at
Christmas, breastfeed until then which'll take me to at least 9 months, and
then start trying to get myself into shape. I hate being a fat mom. I hate
perpetuating the American stereotype of fat, lazy, and careless. I do care.

Freelance life can be tough. Long gaps between commissions. Accounts departments who just can't seem to find your invoice. Not to mention the ever-present need to get your work seen by the people who count.

Jonny Wan, a freelance illustrator from Sheffield, knows all about that. A graduate of the Manchester School of Art, he's constantly striving to ensure his unique illustrative style (think abstracted facial expressions, patterns, symmetry and hand-drawn lettering) snags the attention of creative directors everywhere – and he does so via Business Cards and Postcards from MOO.

MOO first caught his eye at his university degree show, where he noticed that all the students' cutest promo materials were produced by the same company – MOO! Then we tempted him with a free Business Card sample, giving him a chance to try our ordering software ("simple, logical and gives the user complete control") and evaluate our print quality and finishing ("very pleasing"). Duly hooked, Jonny ordered a set of Postcards and some Business Cards featuring a range of his work, and is preparing to send them off to art directors as we speak.

As an illustrator, working in a visual medium, presentation is very important to Jonny. "I like to make little promotional packs of my postcards and business cards", he says. "I send them out packaged in self-seal clear bags. It's good to put real thought into how the art director receives your promo materials – it's boring to just whack some cards in an envelope."

Like many creative types, Jonny's happiest when he's working, even between commissions. An example of this is his self-initiated "Can't Afford It" project. Whenever he wants an item of clothing he can't afford, he draws it instead! Eventually to be self-published as a book, working like this helps him improve his work rate, hone his Photoshop and Illustrator skills, and keep his unique style fresh and ever-evolving.

No matter how his style develops, MOO's short print runs means that his promotional materials are always in step with his latest work. "As an illustrator, your style is always changing and improving. The last thing you want is to end up with a thousand cards of the same design. You need to keep existing and future clients up to date with your freshest, latest work, because essentially they will hire you based on what they see on your promo material. It's no good for an art director to commission you only to find that your illustrative style has changed or moved on." He laughs. "After all, you wouldn't be happy buying a Jay-Z CD to find a Metallica disc inside, right?"

When designing his cards, Jonny also took advantage of a new feature that allows users to upload images for both the front and the back of the Business Cards. "Anything that gives you more options allows room for creative control – and it's that kind of flexibility that keeps me coming back to MOO. The ability to upload images for both sides of the Business Cards enables you to make the cards completely unique."

"A business card is usually the first point of contact between a new client and an illustrator, so it's important your card jumps out at people while being straight and upfront with your contact details. The fact that the cards can be individual rather than generic also gives a sense of professionalism – people can be impressed that you've put the effort into designing your own cards. A little effort can go a long way."

Jonny's constantly thinking of new ways to promote his work using MOO products. "I love the Stickers – I can see them being a very unique selling point. They're a little different and unexpected, which is beneficial in an industry where everyone strives to promote themselves in a unique way."  

MiniCards appeal to him for the same reason. "MiniCards are great because they get straight to the point and don't take up a lot of space. Art directors get bombarded with samples every morning. They open their mail and have to make snap decisions about what to keep and what to chuck."

"They're more likely to pin a MiniCard onto their noticeboard than, say, a leaflet, because they know it won't take up a lot of space. And if your work's on their noticeboard, they're more likely to bear you in mind when it comes to commissioning. And that's what it's all about!"

Thanks for talking to us Jonny! We look forward to seeing more of your work soon.

Like Jonny's work? He's available for commissions so get in touch, and say hello from us too.

Is what Tuesday night has to offer on the tele, it appears.

"The Girls Next Door" which, with Holly Madison and Bridget was a fun escape into mindless consumerism and a hint of "what it would be like to be that well off and that built", and with the new girlfriends is just... meh. Artificial drama.

There is "Chopped" which features severe pressure exerted on chefs (a pressured job already). Artificial drama.

There is nothing but artificial drama everywhere. The only non-artificial drama is that supplied by CNN, and I don't want any more of that.

I miss Fred Astaire and Ginger Rodgers, where the biggest issue was if he'd figured out she liked him by the end of the movie. I miss Holiday Inn where two readily intelligent, sweet men were after the same readily intelligent, sweet gal, and this was somehow a win-win prospect. 

Can't we have some intelligent, fluffy escapism?

My. Oh, my. We only have two months left of this year! You know what that means: time to evaluate how I've done on the list. (One cannot forget about one's lists... they keep one humble... and apparently referring to oneself in the third person). You can read the very subjective progress report if you're in to that sort of thing below, but the practical upshot here is that if I keep my list reasonable it turns out I can actually, you know, do things.

I still have a bunch of things I want to do, and most won't get done before the end of year. Stidbomb has threatened to teach me how to drive a stick and to ski (two things I've been saying for about five years now I would learn how to do) and I have some knittery and quiltery to do. Maybe that's why I sit here, despite the "mostly done" status, and feel like I haven't got anything done, except lots of dishes, which always makes me happy.

And I suppose I can make next years list...

The List:

1. Get the C his IEP, or 504 help. Get a written, cohesive plan on his education and school break activities. Done in March. It only took hiring an attorney.
2. Get a Finance Person, and offset my long-term fiscal goal worrying to them. Done in January. She took away things like new flooring; boo!
3. Write thank you notes. Kinda...
4. Minimize my travel, but maximize the experience. In 2008 I took -- wait for it -- 11 trips. Some as local as Portland, Whidbey, or Astoria. Some as far as Manhattan, Dallas, and Las Vegas. In 2009 I am going to Savannah and one or two other places. Fewer vacations, more staycations.  Ok so I went to Hawaii and am going to Vegas and am already eyeballing next year.... but this year wasn't the 11-trip fiesta last year was. I think.
5. Fewer projects -- or at least more practically and economically executable ones. w00t! I consider this accomplished... no more projects really planned for this year, and next year's are simple.
6. Get a promotion, or get a timeline on one. I want to be a Director, and I think I'd be a damn good one. I like managing good people and encouraging them, I like being the "go to" person.  Sorta. More about that in March.
7. Have at least one "just me" night every month.  Yep!
8. Have one "date night" out every month, at a different restaurant each time. Yep!
9. Run at least 3 half marathons. Sigh... only two...but I also did a triathlon, does that count? 
10. Lose 15 pounds. I have lost some weight with the running, and I need to lose more to get my BMI to "normal". 15 pounds lighter is lighter than I ever have been, at this height, so the odds are stacked against me. That said, I've lost 10 pounds since I've started running. Yeah? Not so much. I've lost about five more (net -- at one point I got down 10) 
11. Reduce my alcohol intake. With the exception of Christmas, Halloween, and my birthday, no more than 1 glass of wine, 1 beer, or 1 shot per day. This sounds easy, right? News flash: I had started creeping up to nearly a bottle of wine a night again. The last time I did this I was in a job I hated and it had serious health consequences. I like my job fine; I just started looking to wine to do something more than taste good. The slippery slope exists and I'd rather not slide down it. Fortunately, this one helps with the one previous. Hm. Sorta: not doing the bottle of wine a night but not doing just 1 glass either. Moderation in moderation! 
12. As a bonus corrollary to number 11: only the good stuff :) Define "good stuff"... 
13. No more than one purchased coffee per two weeks. I've got to the point where I like the coffee I make at home :) Pretty darn close on this... there have been a couple of lapses. 
14. Revise my budget to be more specific: it doesn't, for example, include running entry fees, running shoes, etc. Expenses like that have been under "spending money" but it should get tracked separately. I heart you, Yodlee. 
15. Barring last minute invitations to parties (That thereby necessitate otherwise), only one trip to the grocery store per week. Again, pretty darn close... I heart you, Trader Joe's.

Go forth and fill your libraries with media.

Seriously, thanks to everyone for being so amazing and patient. You are the reason I love Vox.

~daisy