Don’t get me wrong.  It’s been a great week.  I am so thankful for good people and things in my life.

I am the type of person that is much better busy than not so I am definitely not complaining.

A beautiful benefit of being busy is that while I may be kept from some of the things that I love…like my walks for example, I appreciate them that much more when there is a bit of calm and they can resume.

So that being said, as I walked along the bay yesterday after an intensive few days of work, I was happily surprised by the beautiful patterns the grass and weeds were making on the sidewalk from the afternoon sun.

I know they are so simple but I was so taken by them: so beautiful and graphic, very inspiring.  I am always drawn to horizontal lines, and the juxtaposition of the side profile shadow next to the view from above together with the grey brown concrete and bright green grass just caught my eye. I thought I’d share them with you here.

Hope you like them.

DON’T worry! It’s a happy tale.

This year has hit me with changes and challenges, in my own life and with my dad’s illness.  It’s been quite an emotional rollercoaster…exciting, inspiring, scary, fun, sad, fulfilling, lonely, overwhelming, freeing…i could go on and on but I think you get the point.

I know it’s just life.  It is part of the beauty of life.  Through the ups and downs, we rely on and learn about our personal relationships with others.  They are often tested: some fail, others shine.  These ones that shine should be embraced, nurtured and appreciated. They are so important.

I’ve been feeling a bit sad the past few days.  It is looking like my father will soon have to go into full-time care for his Alzheimer’s.  My mom is really struggling to take care of him.  While I knew this would come, it still has proven to be emotionally overwhelming. To entrust my dad’s care to someone else is scary.  I want only the best for him.  It’s difficult to know what he’s going through, how much he understands…it is truly a horrible disease.

A genuine huge note of thanks goes out to all my close friends and family that have been so great over the past few days. You guys are the best!

Anyway…I am a visual person, and as such I often look to the world around me for messages and signs. It’s funny, yesterday I went for a long walk to clear my head.  For the second half of my walk there were thousands of seagulls, egrets, and pelicans swarming along the edge of the bay, right along my walking path.  Most of them hovering mid-air.  I am sure there was some giant school of fish in the bay below, but it was truly something out of a movie.  I snapped a few pictures…

Walking amongst these birds was absolutely beautiful, and yet, a bit scary too.

What is funny is this beautiful letterpress piece I found today on the site share some candy printed by studio on fire. Its absolutely lovely graphically.  I chuckled when I read the chinese proverb scribbled within its “nest”

I needed this message today.  My hair is off-limits! From now on I’m wearing a hat. Make your nest elsewhere “birds of sadness”…kthxbai.

So have you seen the new logo for the generic brand at Target?  It’s called up & up.  I’m not sure on the reason for the choice of the name but we’ll get into that later.

First off, here it is in all its glory.

“Exhibit A”

Is it me or does it look to you like it was designed to be flipped over?  Maybe I have looked at stair symbols too many times in architectural drawings, but  I can’t look at it without flipping it in my head.  This has caused me much stress.

The font they chose for the “u” and the “p” are a perfect upside-down “d” and “n”.  If not for the ampersand, I would definitely think their intent was to have this logo work from both directions.  Notice when it is flipped….this is how it looks in my head .

Exhibit “B”

Perhaps a “+” would have been a better choice than the ampersand.

Obviously “up & up” is more positive of a statement than “dn & dn” but I think they are saying both and it’s killing me.

In fact, they have installed these little arrows pointing up and down as floor graphics in my local Target. So, depending on which side of the aisle you approach it from it may be up & up or dn & dn.

Now to the name.  ”up & up”.  What? Why?  Am I moving up because I am buying generic?  Are the prices on generic going up & up?  What is up & up and what does it have to do with generic products? Ugh!! I don’t get it.  I will say, it makes me feel better than dn & dn: talk about a depressing product line.

dn & dn makes me sad.  Rather than feeling cost conscious for buying generic, I feel as if I am spiraling into the abyss of poverty. Suddenly I am not certain of my self-worth. dn & dn it goes, where it stops, nobody knows.

Well, I still bought a couple of their generic products last week,  but I will say I may not in the future.  This logo torments me and it is painful to look at it. Target, please go back to the  old target sign of yesterday.  It may not have been fabulous, but I was ok with it.

]]> http://modbird.wordpress.com/2009/07/26/tormented-generically-speaking-a-review-of-targets-new-generic-brand/feed/ 3 modbird DSC01543 DSC01545 DSC01548 http://modbird.wordpress.com/2009/07/24/life-litter-its-ok-its-biodegradable/ http://modbird.wordpress.com/2009/07/24/life-litter-its-ok-its-biodegradable/#comments Fri, 24 Jul 2009 19:05:59 +0000 Chris http://modbird.wordpress.com/?p=634 ]]> Ok, so just drop it.

Let it go.

Leave it!

Why is it so freakin’ hard to do that with so many things:  stress, pain, old ideas..the handful of M&Ms? Ok, with the M&Ms, I’m just kidding, why would you want to drop those? That’s crazy talk.

But seriously, I cant help but think of my little niece who used to pick up every toy in her hand until she almost fell over and could hardly walk.  Finally, she’d get to the point where she couldn’t pick up anymore unless she let something go. Once she realized this, it would come down to what was more important to her. (interesting…hmmmm)

I think as we get older we keep this ridiculous mentality. Even if we try not to.  Its like we see how much we can pick up throughout our lives before we get to that point of either falling over or being forced to let something go.

We all do it. Yes…you too. (I’m pointing my finger at you)

I do yoga on a regular basis to learn how to and to remind me to let go: very effective. (so is beer )

What I can’t figure out is: what is so hard about letting go?

I mean, really. Just do it already.  We need to let go to make room for new stuff in our lives.  I’m not just talking about stressful things but also about growth, new directions.

This could apply to design ideas too.  By letting go of preconceived notions and things that have been done in the past, we open up our minds to new fresh ideas and innovation.

Moving on from one place in our lives to another, changes, opportunities.  All require a release of obstructive past ideas, attachments in order to fully recognize them.

This year has been a year of change for me, mostly career-wise but in a way that my entire lifestyle is affected.  All in a good way. In a direction I’ve wanted to go in for a while.  Even though I know this, and am really looking forward to the future, I still find myself holding on.  Making stress when it doesn’t need to be there.  Am I afraid? No, not really.  Sentimental? Not in this case.  Uncertain, perhaps…

It’s funny, actually. When I really force myself to think about it, there’s not much to be stressed about.  But yet, I have to keep telling myself to let things go.

So yoga, beach and bay walks, an ice cold beer or margarita… all helpful tools that I would highly recommend.  You may have your own methods

What’s the purpose of this post? I dont remember, I let it go…hee hee.

No, I kid…so many people I’ve talked to lately are holding on to one thing or another, including myself. I thought it may be helpful, if not for you, for me, to write this little post as a reminder.

Let go.

Forget it.

Leave it behind…in the dust…on the corner…under the tree…out the window…get the picture?

Well, as the unemployment rate sadly continues to grow, more and more people find themselves searching for a new job.  This is not always a bad thing, but definitely challenging. I really do believe that change is good and that we often do not make the necessary changes in our lives because we are afraid. I also believe that life is a journey and if you stay in the same place for too long it can be the most unrewarding trip ever.  Anyway, our economy is giving a bunch of us a big “nudge” to set a new course.  Very exciting, yet where to begin?

As most creatives know, the typical job search sites leave little to be desired. I am usually amazed what some of the search engines come up with for “Interior Design”….career “directions” I NEVER considered! hee hee.

I have spent a great deal of time on-line over the past six months and in doing so, I have gathered a small list of sites that focus on mostly creative job listings.  You may know of some of these, but I thought it may be helpful to compile them in one place to share with any of you guys who are interested as kind of an easy reference point.

Some of the sites are geared more toward graphic design and web design, others toward interior design and architecture.  Some include a variety of disciplines.  Some tend to be better, longer lists while others are somewhat sparse.

I did notice that while there were others out there in sites such as AIGA, HOW mag, etc. they were all powered by Coroflot and shared the same listings so I did not add them to the list below.

If you guys know of any I missed, please feel free to add them with a link in the comments and I will update the list.  I hope to keep this as an on-going, growing list to help out all those who need it, so please contribute!

I hope they are helpful

[click through the site logos for direct links to career pages]

multi-disciplinary [international]

multi-disciplinary [mostly UK]

Mostly Graphic+Web Design, some others [mostly US, some international]

Mostly Graphic+Web Design but some others [international]

Interior Design [International]

Interior Design, Architecture [mostly US]

Interior Design [mostly US , some international]

Architecture, Urban Planning, Interior Design [international]

A short tribute to a wonderful dad.  Dad, I am keeping it short, not because you do not deserve a much lengthier post, but because I can already hear you saying…”ok, ok, wrap it up! ” (you know my ability to ramble-on all too well)

I have always loved this picture of you. So groovy + cool.

Dad, I am thankful for so many things you taught me throughout my life.  You helped me become the person I am today and your guidance and love will always be with me as I trip, stumble and fly through this crazy life.

You taught me that being happy comes from being true to myself.

You helped me realize that I am smarter and stronger than I usually believe I am.

You taught me to look beyond my comfort zone of where I lived and who I was to experience different cultures and beliefs in this beautiful world we live in.  Because of this, I have lived in so many wonderful places and met even more amazing people.

You taught me not to be afraid to make mistakes.  You would say, “Everybody makes mistakes. Use your head. Do the best you can. If you make a bad decision, learn from it and move on. It is just a little piece of the big picture. Just don’t be stupid and do it again.”

You taught me and encouraged me to follow my dreams, to create my own life.

Most importantly, you truly believed in me.  By doing so, you taught me to believe in myself.

All of this you taught me in your easy-going, light-hearted, fun-loving manner.

I am sure that raising three very independent girls was no small task.

Selfishly, it makes me sad that I cannot come to you for guidance anymore, but I know you have already given me more than I could ever need.

Thank you, Dad. I love you.

Happy Father’s Day!

This is the third and final post of the “new seat for stylish old ride” design mini series.  It’s been quite a fun little project.  If you missed parts 1 & 2 you can see them here and here.

So the custom bench is now finished and in full use. yay! As I mentioned before. My friend Matt decided on sketch #1. The concept behind the design was to incorporate Matt’s initials (MMW) into the bench in way that correlated with the aesthetic and detailing of the truck itself and was easy to fabricate.  I chose to use the chevron form (visible on the hood and sides of the truck) to create somewhat of a double M  that when strung together form a W.

The colors selected by Matt were two shades of gray.  The idea was to have the M / W graphic to be in the darker gray and the rest of the bench to be a lighter gray.  Here are some pictures of the finished bench.  

All in all I think it turned out great!  I would have liked to see a bit more contrast between the two grays and some double stitching to emphasize the M/W form, but overall I think the upholsterer did a great job interpreting the design from the sketch.  As I mentioned in part 2, the upholsterer Matt decided to use [Javier, at a Bill Dunn’s Auto Upholstery] interprets/stitches his work by hand.

Here’s a picture of Matt with his awesome Powerwagon looking pensive, yet satisfied. (He’s also in the first picture but inside the cab).  I just love the images of the truck in front of the beautiful graffiti.

Moving to Florida about six years ago was a bit of a culture shock.  I spent my first year in Sarasota and have spent the past 5 years in Tampa.  Each place has ONE lovely theatre that shows independent films.  Both theaters are great: Burns Court Cinema (Sarasota) and, Tampa Theatre (in, well….Tampa)  (which I love). Unfortunately Tampa Theatre has only one beautiful (and it is quite lovely) theater and has limited showtimes so the number of films and opportunities are slim.

Anyway, the point of this post is not to complain, really… I mean it. It’s just that within the past couple months there have been quite a few great looking documentary films that I have come across that have left me wishing little ole Tampa had just a bit more exposure to the indie film scene.  I have posted all of these on Twitter but was feeling the need to start a running list.

I am hoping to eventually see these films and maybe even in a theater  but I thought if I can’t watch them just yet, I’d blog about them and share them with all you lovely people who happen to stumble upon my little blog.

So here goes, three films I wish I could see NOW and their trailers to wet your appetites

OBJECTIFIED by Gary Hustwit

Gary Hustwit who also is responsible for “Helvetica” a great film about the best typeface ever has recently released “Objectified” a film looking at the design and use of the everyday objects in our lives and the people who designed them.  You can read about it here

VISUAL ACOUSTICS: The Modernism of Julius Shulman by Eric Bricker

This film, narrated by Dustin Hoffman, is a tribute to the life and work of famed photographer of modern architecture, Julius Shulman (love him!).  The film not only provides an in depth look into the life and work of Shulman, but also has a great compilation of interviews with “architect Frank Gehry, designer Tom Ford, artist Ed Ruscha, actress Kelly Lynch and writer Mitch Glazer, publisher Benedikt Taschen, Academy Award – nominated cinematographer Dante Spinotti, and a host of others”.  Sounds amazing, right?!!  You can read more about the film “Visual Accoustics” and Julius Shulman at the film’s site here.  There is also a great interview/article from Dwell’s blog about the film here

 [Click image to watch the trailer]

COAST MODERN: Open Space, Open Mind by Michael Bernard and Gavin Froome

A multi-generational look into the modernist movement along the West Coast of America from the 1920′s through present day. Mmmmmm modernism!! You can read about it more here   They also have a great blog

Ok, so those are the three on my current must see list….any other recommendations?? Thanks!