Little Bones

4 and 0, baby!

I enjoyed the Sabres 5-2 victory from a front row seat-- I was very fortunate to watch the action rinkside. A unique spot to watch from, you can't see down the ice to the other net, but then you are eye level for the action where the Sabres shoot 2X. You are IN the action, you can see shots from a players view, you can yell so loud you're sure they can hear you, you can feel the hits....

While I was there I got to see a 'hockey moment' only viewable from the front few rows. A Canuck gets slammed face 1st into the boards, the plexiglass shakes violently and he groggily skates back up the ice. There is a whistle in the action and the same Vancouver player comes skating over with a linesman and start looking down at the ice in the spot he got slammed. I look down and see a little tooth on the ice, no blood, just a tooth. He bends down, picks it up with un-gloved hand and skates to the bench. Only in hockey! Ouch.

BONUS BEATS: today I am taking the kids to a Sports Cards & Collectibles Show at the Hamburg Fairgrounds. My buddy, the Buffalo Hockey Experience & Museum guy is going to have a display, so we are going to check it out. I haven't been to a card show ever, though I have been to both beer can collector and comic book conventions when I was a kid.

Talent Show

Visions of hockey pucks dance in my head....

It is Monday and the anticipation of the 1st pre-season hockey game is upon us. Tonight veterans and rookies take the ice in Toronto as the Sabres warm up for the season (which officially starts on Friday October 10th). Ah, Fall is in the air and hockey season is here kids. It seems like a longer wait for this day that usual, but the Sabs missing the playoffs just lengthened the time from the end of the last season and the start of this one.

The family and I went down to Puck Drop 2008 where the team kicked off the season with a bang! The veterans scrimmaged, a band played outside, and the kids got to ride a giant inflatable slide. Being in the arena was pure joy! The fans were excited as we entered and felt the cold of the rink as we got off the escalator. I love that feeling! The scrimmage was enthusiastic as blue played yellow (blue won 7-2) with veterans and rookies mingling amongst each other.

The Sabs also previewed the 'new/old' 3rd jersey which combines the old logo with new colors and some extra pinstripes. I don't really like all the extra lines or the white under their arms. J. mentioned that the white under the arms makes them look thinner like they have a cinched waist. "Shouldn't they look bigger like bears," she inquired. I like the retro tie at the top and I am sure they will sell a million more jerseys again. The kids love new things!

We saw Max score a goal, lets hope that isn't one of his few for the season, eh? They should have dumped that guy and moved on!

Check Buff News photo Mark Mulville's slideshow from the event, click here.

Little Red Corvette

Today as I reach another age milestone, I am thinking about the past more than usual. I am always musing about days gone by, especially apparent with the Slack magazines I have been resurrecting as of late. But on my B-day, a little more than usual.....

This day, my birthday, May 28th was always was a signal that Summer was fast approaching. After the Memorial Day festivities have past and the promise of June was right around the corner, all I could think of when I was a kid was Summer! All I did all summer in 1973, when I was 8, was camp and swim (the year of the accompanying photo).

Top Things I Am Going To Do On My B-day Today:

1. Work- well, it's not glamorous, but it's true. I can't get out of that, I do own my own company...
2. Wear my new B-day shoes (wearing 'em now!)
3. Drink a beer (maybe 2 or more...).
4. Eat some Bocce's pizza.
5. Get a lot of kisses from my girls.
6. Read email-wishes from some friends.
7. Talk to my Mom & Dad on the phone- they always calls.
8. Listen to music (everyday- it's my lifeblood- keeps me going).
   
9. Bask in the glory-- read my name on other blogs/websites (see Typecon Events page, DJs deja blu at the saturday Night Gala)
10. See my friend Edreys rap live at Allen Hall tonight!
11. Watch Playoff Hockey at Casa- maybe Sid the Kid will score a goal tonight? eh?

Happy birthday to me!

The Act We Act

Speaking to my daughter's class during Career Week about Graphic design.

I just finished speaking to a group of kindergarten to 2nd graders at my daughter's schools about being a "graphic artist." It was a lot of fun.

I started by explaining that graphic arts is around us everyday: at home, at school outside. Then I told them about graphics being on posters, labels, TV, newspapers, books, magazines and computers. A few hands were raised to tell me about relatives that were artists. Cool.

Then the fun began. I explained the use of symbols, color, shapes, letters, numbers, and words to 'tell a story without speaking'. I held up some examples of symbols and got a rousing reaction. I held up a heart and asked them what it was and what it meant. I held up smiley face, a house (home, comfort, safety- very good!!), and other symbols like scissors cutting and a snowflake. They seem to understand that the snowflake meant cold, yet a sun symbol meant hot. Very cool.

Now the fun really began. I explained I was going to hold up some famous symbols or logos as they shouted out the correct answer, getting them all right away (I tried to stay away from fast food, though I mentioned the McDonald's 'M' during my talk):

• Walt Disney logo w/ castle
• Girl Scout logo
• PBS kids (they all knew, smarty-pants kids) logo
  
• Superman logo
• Batman logo
• and the last one that erupted the class in cheers and chaos, the old Sabres logo!

We talked about a few in details. For example how the superman logo is just a letter 's' in a shape, but everyone know what it was.

I talked about what subjects in school helped me to be a good artist: art (obviously), math, science, history, reading, writing and more. "Pay attention in school kids," the teacher really liked that!

"Keep on drawing and save your drawings!," I exclaimed.

Then the (even more) fun part, the Q and A. Many of the kids wanted to know the easiest and hardest part of my job (easiest- getting to draw a lot, hardest part; keeping the people I work for happy), they wanted to know what was the best part of my job- and I said that was getting to learn about different people and different types of companies and jobs everyday. As a graphic artist, you often have to become an expert in something that you knew nothing about the day before!

I got a lot of rambling comments about the Lego logo, Star Wars Legos and Bionicles- they wanted to know how much I knew about those symbols... and a lot of kids told me they love to draw, which I, in turn kept exclaiming "Great! Keep it up."

I was great and I had them laughing and shouting in joy! I think they got it, they like to hear that drawing is good and to 'keep on drawing.' By keeping it brief and showing a lot of pictures, I managed to keep it from getting too rowdy, but 30 or so 5-7 year olds can get kinda nutty on a Friday afternoon at 1:00.

Hey, I often do as well.... it has been along week (as usual).

Listed M.I.A.

As I crammed for a 'tomorrow meeting' I listened on the radio as the Sabres last gasped and missed the playoffs... owwwwww.... It is time to end this 11 hour workday, just about 10 hours too long if you ask me- it had highs, it had lows..

The Infamous Top 5
For Thursday (April 3, 2008):

5. Corner store (Lex General Store aka Mike's Place aka The Newspaper Store Where They Have The Ice Cream- as my one daughter calls it) and The Place still closed as Spring arrives.

4. Should have had the burger, not the chicken.

3. Nice weather = Johnny Liquor sightings in the neighborhood are on the rise.

2. Speeding Ticket handed out by the OPP.

1. Sabres bowing out of the race.

I couldn't resist talking more grainy office photos with this here laptop. The images all have a security camera aesthetic that is irresistible at 11:35 PM. This is how my eyes are seeing now! So without further adieu, more OW office shots (click for larger).

Only 6 months or so until hockey training camp.


The coffee corner (the OW water cooler).


More LPs (and 12"s) than your average design corporation!


Blue Monday: My Peter Hook autograph.


The hockey game listening radio (for music too).

Blu Bayoo

An era gone by: the year 2001.

I found these 2 vintage video clips that my DJ parther and I had made to promote our deja blu Friday night gigs at Blu, a sushi/club on Main Street in Buffalo, NY. It was like finding old Super 8 movies in the family attic, but 2008-style.

We had an early (2001) digital camera that could capture Quicktime video clips and and we filmed these between periods of a Sabres playoff game we were watching at Faherty's on Elmwood. We emailed these out in the Summer of 2001, to entice the masses to come on down to groove with us. We had a semi regular gig at Blu and we marketed it fiercely with nights of flyering, hanging posters and email blitzs.

As I was moving the dejablu website to a new server I stumbled across these. I thought to myself, these need to be on YouTube for all to enjoy.

The first one is is the classic titled deja blu.. on the run staring DJ Scotty. the second is Indian Food: "No indian food, but we like Indian food..." starring me and my rockin' sweater vest. Enjoy.

>> deja blu... on the run video clip: click here.
>> deja blu indian food video clip: click here.

Heavy Metal Drummer

VALUE 10 COMICS

A live Wilco webcast, as I write this (Wednesday, Feb 20 11:12PM), has kept me in the office later that I wanted to be here tonight. They are playing the Riviera Theatre in their hometown Chicago, Illinois. After playing a bunch of cool rock songs like "Heavy Metal Drummer" and J.'s favorite song from the new LP- they are playing music, by what I can only guess, is from outerspace with violins over spooky sounds, audience cheers and a light static crackle. It has left me a little hypnotized after too much typing at the monitor....

As I was spacing myself out here, this bazooka joe comic caught my eye. It is bazooka joe and Picasso hanging out. Since I have had this little comic laying around for many, many years, is kinda worn away. Picasso is saying to bazooka joe, "I paint and paint and yet my works seems to get worse." Well.... I won't ruin the joke for ya.

I have this comic under my work desk blotter which is covered in all sorts of stuff, a collage of the brain, including:

• comics
• photos
• cards
• ads
• magazine clippings
• ticket stubs (a UB Springfest stub for $10 featuring Moxy Fruvus, Black Sheep and the Tragically Hip. Yes, this was the infamous sneaker to Gord's head show...plus a Lalapalooza no. 1 stub from the CFNY/Molson CNE, I think it was, only $33.05).
• flyers
• invites (Check Your Head Artfest party 1992)
• postcards (including the black panther party, the Slack magazine summer watermelon girl cover photo, a mermaid avenue 2 promo card, etc.)
• a Buckminster Fuller stamp
• a 2$ bill
• a stat of the Sign of The Times masthead
• stickers (aleady stuck)
• a vintage Crystal Beach ad
• a poloroid on my friend Chris with a painted-on goatee
• phone numbers
• assorted pictures of sid, hunter, elvis, hmmmmmm, I just realized they are all dead...
• hockey cards
  

... and the list goes on, but the webcast is over and this is getting a little a-retentive.....


>> click on comic for larger view, eh?

Dose of Thunder

Designing in the rain. A rainy, dreary dark Friday can make you rather unenthusiastic about your work especially in the creative field. Time to pull out some mood changing bright colors and see if we can sweep some life into this morning. Yellow, anyone? A Sabres losing skid at 8 games isn't helping anyone's mood either. The jubilation following a win would be nice on a morning like this.

Does mood effect your designing, your creativity? Do you design better when you are in a good mood? Is it harder to come up with fresh exciting ideas if you are in a bad mood? Psychology experts will tell you (and there is numerous articles online about this) that good health and good moods go together... so it would seem to reason that a good mood promotes good design. But when your are a design professional (did he say 'professional'?) it is hard to fit your mood into your schedule. Sometime you have to produce whether the weather (or your current mood because it it) promotes creativity.

So how do we change our mood to promote good design? Play some upbeat music? Turn on all the lights? Go for a walk? Call it a day? Peruse some design books and look at some good designs... will that be enough to change the doldrums into exciting and fun design.

While working on some print ads I reminding of something I read on the AIGA website a few months back- "Good design connects with people." It is more than catching someone's eye as they page thorough a newspaper or magazine-- once you caught their attention can you change their behavior? Good design makes the viewer take action. Marketers like that the 'call to action' statement in advertising. Good ads, and good design make people take notice, make them want to buy a product, employ the service or think differently about a thought or idea.

So it would make sense that designing while in a good mood will make the process more successful. What about photographers? Do they take better pictures when they are in good moods? What about illustrators or computer programmers? Does a good mood enhance their code writing skills. Can a good mood promote better problem solving?

Who Loves The Sun

By writing this I have already violated #09, but hey, you gotta start somewhere. Here is my list of resolutions (or better, yet 'plans') for 2008. A lot of these all work together, but the pieces will make a better whole (I think).

10) More Design.
Always can work harder at what I do, eh? The more I read about great design, the more I want to be a better designer.

09) Less Procrastinating.
Less wasted time, no more killing the clock (like I am doing right now....).

08) More Sleep.
I want to try and stay away from those 1:00AM work nights... I can always use the rest & besides Hunter is on RTN at midnight.

07) More Quality Family Time.
Goes without saying.... better for all.

06) Less Beer, More Wine.
This is basically a calories thing, my health-kick took a major blow this holiday season as the party doesn't seem to stop. I finished reading the Replacements book and it made we want to drink a lot of beer and play loud rock-n-roll.

05) No More Cookies & Candy.
Note: same as above. I have been over-sugared the past 2 weeks.

04) More Money.
This will make my luxurious lifestyle even more luxurious! Ha!
I want to work smarter, not harder.

03) Less Complaining.
Can I stop being the old grumpy guy? We shall see- it may just be destiny.

02) Less Buying Things.
Less consuming! All I seem to be doing this past month is spending- I think I have way too much STUFF!

01) More Happiness For All Involved!
I think if everyone around me is happier, maybe I will be as well. I am already pretty happy, but like I said above ... we shall see.

Get Busy

Well I got all I wanted for the holiday, plus a bunch of new design books... not to mention a subscription to The Hockey News!!

As Winter starts to really blow in, we have a lot to look forward to in the Winter 'hunker down' months and the "soon-to-be-upon-us" New Year including:

10) Time to read.
I also received the Replacements oral history book "All Over But The Shouting" by Jim Walsh (who's is NOT Brandon and Brenda's dad.. at least I don't think so...). Rock and design research!

09) Sledding.
The kids got a purple, plastic toboggan from Santa. In my world of princesses, baby dolls and ballet-a little thrill ride down the slope is in order.

08) Better mix CDs.
Santa gave me a Sony CD burner to attached to the DJ system for some live to mix vinyl translation. All those old house music records will again see the light of day. Get Busy, Mr. Lee.

07) No more trips to (and then waiting in line at) the post office.
Man, I have been to the post office too many times in the past few weeks to mail out-of-town gifts, to buy stamps, to mail postcards, to drop off T-shirts that were ordered for the holidays...

06) Saturday Night's Hockey Night in Canada.
Nothing says winter in Buffalo better than HNIC, Ron and Don, especially with the upcoming Hockey Day in Canada (mentioned previously). The passing of the first of the year only means the Stanley Cup playoffs are a mere 4 months away!

05) Snow Days.
City closing blizzards that keep everyone cozy at home watching movies and drinking hot chocolate or tea. Of course, having your own business, located conveniently on the same property, means no snow-days off from work!

04) Trip to Florida (perhaps...)
The kids are itching to see their grandparents and friends in the strip mall capitol of the US, the US's own boot, 'shorts-with-parkas' territory- Florida. We'll see about that one.

03) Fresh Snowfall.
I love a fresh snowfall that conveniently covers the dirt and grime of the city overnight. Though the beauty usually only lasts until the plows go by and undercover the filth, but for that brief moment in time when all is white- it is so nice.

02) Silence.
The city fabric comes with its own set of sounds, sometimes disturbing- boomin' car stereos, partying kids across the street in the frat-house apartment, drunken people wandering up and down the street yelling for no good reason at a no good hour. The cold weather makes the crazies retreat indoors and with the windows shut tight- you just can't hear the ones that are still out there. BONUS BEATS- No More 24 hours of xmas tunes!

01) Ice Bowl (Winter Classic)-Hockey Outdoors!!
Pond hockey gone big time- though I will be watching in the comfort of my home and not outside like the some 80,000 maniacs, but with the home team playing outdoors, firends and family over, Sabres on a hot streak (6 wins in a row), all hockey eyes on Bflo... it doesn't get any better that this! Go Sabs! What a way to start the new year!

Every (snow)day is Like Sunday

Thanks to the folks that dropped by for the party this weekend.
Much appreciated.

Santa Conquers the Martians. It has begun to snow (and they say, it's going to keep on snowing for a day or so). Time to buckle down with 10-days to go to the holiday landing at our house. Out-of-town presents to go in the mail and that inevitable trip to the big wine store in Kenmore.

We got the tree up, so we can go on "holiday lights only" mode. The snow gives the holidays the real "holiday" feel. Until you have to try and drive somewhere. I have made many a blizzard road trip for emergency provisions and the not so emergency ones (we once drove out to Niagara Falls Blvd. to pick up a TV- I know, shame us..Blizzard of Dec. 95 I think?). The 4-wheel drive is really a necessity around these parts. J. has to take a early run in the morning to the market for lime juice and Heresey (I meant it that way, ed.) Kisses- the cookie making machine is behind schedule! Snow will not stop her.

We might get snowed in for a day but Sunday's an official hunker down day already... and Sunday's the bigger paper (barely, we might need the NYTimes on a Sunday like this) and we got a new HOW and a new PRINT- we worked pretty hard over the last few days, weeks, months, year.... and j. just wants to make cookies anyways.

There is something about back-to-back Sabres wins and the just started 3rd period (of the second game-- west coast hockey: Canucks vs. Oilers-- on Hockey Night in Canada--not to be confused with Hockey DAY in Canada)...to make it realy feel like winter.

Talk to you on Monday.

Waiting For The Sun

Waiting, wait, wait, wait.......

This Friday is a waiting day.

I am waiting for our development team to deliver, so I can present to a client.

I am waiting for a freelancer to finish a project.

I am waiting for some clients to get back to me, so we can move forward on a few jobs.

I am waiting for the drop of the puck for today's 1st Sabres game of the 2007-08 season.

I am waiting to hear color-man Harry Neale call his 1st game as a member of the Sabs broadcast team.

I am waiting to see that 1st Sabres goal of the regular season- who will it be? Any guesses...? (I saw ex-Sab Danny Briere score for his new team- Philly- last night on CBC).

I have been waiting 6 weeks for the tree executioners to come back like they threatened they would- they have not. Are they not coming.......??

I am waiting for design inspiration to strike like a bolt from today's clear blue (and extremely warm for Oct. 5th) sky.

I am waiting for my lost friend 'Uncle Rico' to finally contact me- it has been over a year!

I am waiting for that new client to call back like he said he would.

I am waiting to get paid on SOME PAST DUE invoices (but alas, the mail already came today with no ducats).

I am waiting for it to snow like it did that one October Friday- right about this time, I believe last year (very scary prospect)!

I am waiting for Saturday- I hope the weather is as nice as it is today! I won't have to work and can spend the day with the family.

I am waiting for an email back from a friend.

I am waiting for the song title to pop into my head.. what is that song I keep hearing!?!?! it's got a hip-hop I beat and you can really bug out to it.

I am waiting for a call back (there's the phone now!... false alarm).

I am waiting to have lunch- I think I'll just do that- one less thing to wait for.....

You Just Haven't Earned It Yet, Baby

It is a delicate balance of deadlines and life.
When does all the 'free time' show up?

Running your own business means you can work 'any 12 hours of the day you choose' (Thanks, Mr. Coles). I try and put in a solid 6-7 hours during the day, during normal business hours. But I often have to work in the evening as well for a few hours on top of that.

My daughter gets off the bus at 4:00 PM, so I usually quit then. We have dinner, one of us will take a trip to the gym, there are baths for the kids, some play time, reading of 3 books and the girls go to sleep at 7:30 or so. That is often followed by a quick read of the Buffalo Snooze, a double dog walk, maybe some mindless TV and back into the office by 8:00 PM or so. The older I get, the less I want to work past 11:00- 12:00 at night. Last night I was in here 'til 1:00 AM and I am whipped right now!

So I usually try to keep this pace going Mon-Thurs. Unless I really, really, really have to- I don't work Friday nights, Saturday or Sunday. I think the worst is having to work on a Sunday night- preparing for a Monday AM meeting or something like that. Ugh!

Then there are the distractions.... hockey playoff games, my neighbor graciously offering me a beer from his front porch & Jill and I like to actual go out once in a while, doing things that aren't about working (there is surely not enough of that last one...). Hey, you can't do nothing besides work all the time, right? I get tired of being in the office for hours on end. Now that summer is approaching, I can work in the yard with the laptop- which makes in a little more bearable.

So yes, I do get to work when I want- the benefits of running your own business. I get to stop and cut the grass in the middle of the day, walk the dogs after lunch, go into the office at 9:30 AM if I wish- though I seldom do these things.... I am my own boss, I shouldn't be so hard on myself. I have been trying to ease up on the schedule a bit, but the demands of new clients, solving design problems and paperwork sometimes gets the better of me. There always seems to not be enough 'free time.' (I don't think it really is 'free', you have to work for it, to fit it in...).

I am going to try and only work 7 hours today.

Oh yeah, by the way, Sabres in 6!

Get It Together

You can go onto the internet and view satellite photos from outerspace. From millions and millions of miles away, I can see my truck parked in my driveway. And it is clearly is "a large vehicle past my gate- in my driveway."

How come they can't have a camera directly above, less that 100 feet from the goal line in hockey games that provides a clear, CONCLUSIVE, view of a puck crossing a goal line?

Technology clearly underutilized!!
The NHL needs to get it together!