My Magic 8 Ball

I know this is going to sound weird, but I only used this Magic 8 Ball once and it broke shortly thereafter. But before I discard it, I have to thank it for helping me out. It was a crappy little 8 Ball that a video game company sent me a bunch of years ago, and I don't consider myself much of a superstitious man. But when you are feeling down, you'll damn near try anything.

During one of the low points at my former job, I had just comeback from an interview where I could tell they just weren't into me. It's fine, you can't get every job you apply for, but I was feeling a little down and it was well past that point where work was getting bad and people were being particularly crummy toward me on a regular basis where they had once been my closest colleagues and friends.

So I picked up the 8 Ball on a whim and asked two simple questions: 1) Would I be out of this job in less than a month? Answer: "Most certainly." And 2) Will it be a job I actually want? Answer: "The stars say yes." 

And in less than three weeks the 8 Ball I got word of the Washingtonian job, applied, interviewed and got it. So a toast to you, Magic 8 Ball. You only worked once before breaking, but it only took once for you to fulfill your purpose. 

My December to Remember

Last December was something of a bell wether month for me. It was when I made two pretty major life decisions. 1) I was going to get a new job; and 2) I was going to go back to school. 


And the best thing is, I accomplished them both in less than three months, and I got everything I wanted out of both. Yeah, I'm good that way.


These two major events are definitely intertwined because one would have probably never happened without the other. I was loving my previous job at the nonprofit until I got 100% blindsided by some unbelievable acts of bullshit. It instantly changed my entire perception of my job and some of the people I worked with whom I thought I could trust and rely on. When the shock wore off and the anger/hurt/whatever began to subside, I knew I had to get out there. Luckily, it was in this moment of introspection that I had a thought. 


"I'm 35, and in 10 years when I'm 45 do I still expect to be a print designer, full well knowing that print is not exactly a booming industry? If not, do I want to be 45 and trying to find a new career without having to wash cars or fashion up a latte at some hipster coffeehouse? Why not make figure this out now?"


It was during this reflection period that Kelly and I talked about maybe applying to this graduate program at AU for digital media skills. We'd both had conversations in the past year that were almost 100% relating to the question I posed to myself above (which is important because there is no way the former employer gets credit for my life change besides shining a bright spotlight on my need to get out of there). We had talked before about the Corcoran or some other local program that we might be able to do together just because it's always better to got through something with someone you know than going it alone (and we'd push each other to do well instead of just hanging around and simply seeing it through).


We both applied to the program and got in, and I am really excited about what it could mean. It's all about taking the skills I already know from print design and learning to translate it to the internet and other multimedia products. iPad apps, rich media presentations, all that jazz. I'm not going to retire some rich badass who created the next Angry Birds because of this program, but then again ask me in a year when it's over and I may have a different opinion on that.


But school was only one part of the problem, and it was secondary to the employment factor. I applied to jobs I had no training for and ones I would have excelled in easily but would not have necessarily been challenged in. I went on a couple interviews and I liked some and other didn't like me and that's how it goes. I then heard about the opening at the Washingtonian, but not for the print side … but the website.


Sweet! Not only am I spending a year learning digital media skills, but I can parlay that into an actual day-to-day job while I learn? After a few weeks of interviews and such, I got the call on a Friday during March Madness (naturally, it's only the greatest time of the year for a UK fan, so why not add onto the goodness?) and I got the job.


So that moment in December led to a convergence of both a new career and new course of direction in my ever-growing skillet. I couldn't be happier and it's nice to know my biggest worries now are learning how the internet works (OK, so that's kinda worrisome), and avoiding gaining the infamous 15 pounds that all new Washingtonian employees gain because of all the free food constantly showing up (#firstworldproblem). 

It's a new day, people. But I'll always remember that December (but not in that gawd-awful song kind of way).

Cobblings from My Memories

I'm reluctant to give up comfortable T-shirts. It's rare to find a shirt that fits you just right and is super comfortable at the same time. It's even better when, as you retire shirts from the public, the truly good ones live a long afterlife as shirts to do yard work in, generally be lazy in or just sleep in.

So it's with sadness that I have to send this shirt to the cotton grave. It's been a good one, but holes are starting to form and it's just time to say goodbye, which is a concept I wish Steven Tyler could grasp, but alas he must continue to make music that barely appeals to deaf dogs, let alone music consumers.

This shirt does hold a special place for me, which is why it's hard to give it up. This was one of my going-away gifts when I interned at the St. Pete Times back in 1999. The reporters and copy desk folks pretty much hung out at two bars on regular basis, either The Garden (my personal favorite, where the bartender Bill always had two screwdrivers waiting for me at 1 a.m. after my shift was over) or The Press Box over in Tampa where all the media types hung out.

So getting a T-shirt from The Press Box was a nice gesture considering I was just an intern (and one of 15 at that), yet somehow they took to me and I made friendships that still last to this day with the likes of Donna, Ecton, Todd, Gerry, Liz and many more. I was lucky enough to have done so well at the internship that they left me a standing offer to come back full-time once I graduated, which I quickly accepted. So this shirt has history behind it and reminds me of many great times, making it a bummer to give up.

Thankfully I still have my other keepsake the staff gave me, a priceless Mugato doll. One Saturday morning Todd, Ecton and I spent three hours editing stories and talking about Star Trek and debating who the greatest comedic alien they ever threw into an episode (we settled on Mugato and the Gorn as the best ones). This is what happens when you work the night shift on Friday night (until 1 a.m.) and then have be back into the office for the Saturday morning shift (7:30 a.m.) and everyone's feeling a little punchy.

So in the end I must part with this shirt. But I do know it will live on, since I found a company that will accept unwanted or tattered shirts and recycle them. So somewhere that Press Box shirt will be still out there, which is cool.

My Rally of Restoration

Saturday, for those living under a rock or playing a little too much Halo: Reach, was the Stewart/Colbert Rally to Restore Sanity And/Or Fear, and I couldn't miss a chance to be part of a cool rally in which nothing mean or aggravating was said.

The rally was sweet, featuring The Roots doing a nice four-song set and some solid comedy bits and pre-taped spots to keep the people livened up. I was supposed to meet a couple groups of friends, but sadly a technology black hole was in effect down at the Mall, so I instead was left to fend for myself amongst 200,000 people. Thankfully, the people I ended up nestled next to were all cool folk, some environmental tech students, some funny hippies and some girls who all decided to dress up like Rosie the Riveter for Halloween (you can see them in the photo ... they did well with the costumes). Good times.

As a whole the rally kicked ass because Stewart and Colbert made some great jokes, and at the end Stewart made a simple, poignant speech that was all about coming together and stopping the bullshit division that the media keeps pushing and that politicians don't help themselves but propagating. It's a vicious circle, and yes I blame the politicians first and the media second, but it's infected our everyday lives and I appreciate the way Stewart reminded everyone that in the end we're all trying to get things done and it's not worth hating each other during the journey.

Here's a brief video I took to give you a sense of the size of the crowd and the vibe. I was all the way near the back of the crowd and it's still damn huge. Way to go, America, showing those posers Palin and Beck what kind of movement you can create when you put sanity instead of crazy.