Off to the Absarokas!

I won't be posting anything new for at least a month. I realize this is somewhat normal, unfortunately...

But this time I have a good reason. I'm heading out on a backpacking course tomorrow morning with NOLS, and I'm so excited! There are 8 students on my course, and we have two instructors. I've had a chance now to meet everyone, and honestly, everyone seems pretty great so far. I think we're going to have a great time!

Technically, I'll be working during this time, seeing what NOLS courses are all about, I guess we could say I'll be drinking the Cool-Aid... I've been working here for a year and half, and I now finally get to see what our courses are all about on a personal level and experience the curriculum firsthand. I'll even get to teach some of it since it's a course designed for people who have a potential interest in working in the outdoors.

Here's a link to the NOLS course description online: http://bit.ly/VFLHx

And the new 2010 NOLS catalogs arrive in Lander tomorrow morning! Feel free to request a copy from the website (www.nols.edu) or head to the same place to check out the virtual edition (basically the same thing, you can flip through the pages, see pictures, read text, and click on a variety of links). Designing the catalog, and coordinating the printing of it are tasks that have consumed the majority of my working (waking?) hours these last... 5 months. I'm ready for a break!

I'll be out until September 22, so if you're the praying type, pray for safety and good community among my coursemates, for leadership development all around, for good attitudes, healthy people, lots of wildlife sightings, but no bear attacks! NOLS has only ever had one bear attack in 45 years of operation (something like 3 million student days!).

We're heading up to the Absaroka (ubs-or-kah) range, just east of Yellowstone National Park here in Wyoming. It's filled with high plateaus and valleys with rivers and streams where I hope to catch my first fish! My good friend Nadine was just up there instructing a course and said they could see hundreds of elk on a regular basis. The birds should be heading south, and we may get to see some leaves starting to turn colors too! We may also get to see wolves, elk (bugeling!), and moose. Mooses? Meece?

I'll be sure to post good stories when I get back!

pilgrimage

I'm getting really excited for my NOLS course! We leave next week. A week from today, I'll be packing up, and maybe even already on the road to the trailhead for 18 days of backpacking, and 4 days of rock climbing.

I just got an email from one of our admissions officers with one parent's description of his feelings about a NOLS course after his 14 year old took a course this summer:

A NOLS trip is not a tour. A NOLS trip is like a pilgrimage. On a tour as a tourist, you only experience something new. On a pilgrimage, as a pilgrim you become someone new. Pilgrimages take you somewhere to a transformed life. That’s what NOLS does. It takes people somewhere to a transformed life.

The course I'll be taking is focused for outdoor educators, so I'll be traveling with people who either work in the outdoors, want to, or want a deeper experience with the leadership curriculum.

I'm excited to get outside, I'm also really excited to get out of the office. For a month. Especially now that the 2010 catalog is done. Or at least it will be by the end of the week.

Oh, the press check? Yeah. That. It was long, somewhat painful, and a bit brutal. But it was grand. What matters most is that it's over.

herbie spotting!

A couple weeks ago, Intern Rachel and I stepped out to hit the farmers market over at the Cooking Crow, and ran into this little guy at 3rd and Main on the way back. I grabbed my camera quickly, as the light turned green.

Farmers Market scores: zucchini, squash, dill, potatoes, bread, collared greens, and swiss chard.

carless.

No, not careless.

Carless.

Me.

Yep. It's going to be so great. I really hope I don't start freaking out in 3 weeks at the thought of not having a car. Or, rather. In 10 weeks. That's probably when it'll hit me. In a few weeks I go on course. Before that I press check the catalog. Until then, biking around town is normal summerness around these parts. Maybe I won't even notice for a while?

Here are a few ways I can combat the convenience (read: unnecessary and expensive dependence) of having a vehicle in Lander:

- pack a lunch when biking to work. thus, the hill won't piss me off when it's 90 degrees outside and I need to go home to get food.
- wear a backpack and grocery shop at least twice a week, in smaller increments
- continue to bake bread at home, this translates to no squished backpack loaves, and less-expensive, tastier homemade bread
- pay my roomie as necessary for rides out of town (ie. to the airport)
- carpool as usual with friends to such out-of-town activities as hiking and climbing (& thus be generous with said friends when purchasing post-climb beverages at the LB)

It's just that easy, right? It seems so simple right now. Let's see how it goes. I'm going to have to learn to be patient and/or wet when it rains. I'm really not too worried about that, though.

So my car is at a consignment shop at the moment. Shane seemed to think it'd sell within a few weeks. Here's a link to his posting online. Once it sells and my loan is over with, I plan to buy a more comfortable-fitting bike to ride around town. The question now is :: townie or road bike?

I'm leaning toward townie bike. Upright posture. Cute basket. Etc. With the possibility of a road bike later, like maybe next summer. What do you all think? Any bike recommendations or tips on living without a car?

soil

Whether people are conscious of it or not, they actually derive countenance and sustenance from the 'atmosphere' of the things they live in or with. They are rooted in them just as a plant is in the soil in which it is planted.

–Frank Lloyd Wright

The newest DWR catalog arrived today, and of course I've found about 15 things that I'd love to have. Most of them would fit quite nicely in my yet-to-be solidified dream home. I really like the above quote from Frank, it's on page 22.

As a kid, there was a framed message frequently in our various kitchens. I particularly remember it from when we lived in Cheyenne. It said "Home is where the Air Force sends you." Another said: "Bloom where you are planted." Cheesy. But good. That attitude from my childhood obviously helps in my life now as I'm moving around so much, as friendships change, and roommates come and go. As I harness those turns in life and attempt to accelerate through the transitions, stronger after the next curve. For a small town, there's not much stagnant life among the community I'm connected with here. It takes a while for sediment to form. Even small layers of sediment feel comforting in relationships. This attitude of blooming has made all the difference; accepting the soil I'm in, and growing accordingly.

But how much does the soil affect us? How much does having 3 other roommates affect my well-being? And is that good or bad? How much does it affect me when I don't have quite the same friends this summer as I did last summer? Am I reinventing myself every 3 months as I make new friends on a rather consistent basis? How much does it affect me, as a designer and occasional homebody, that I'm living in a halfway-decorated home? With horridly ugly (free) couches? And a dirty kitchen floor that none of us really care that much about to clean very often?

I'm home on a rainy evening in July. It's nice. One roomie's out with her mom. The other two are hiding in their rooms. It feels more like fall. Like October. Like it could snow tonight. But I bet it won't. Maybe in the mountains though. It's chilly.

I'm going to bake some bread. Trying a new recipe. Minus the whole wheat—I'm out. Then, I'm scouring a few books to pick one to loan to a friend, and hope to dig into Broken. I heard the author, Lisa Jones, speak this evening at the Noble Hotel here in Lander. She's originally from Lander, a NOLS-grad, and writes rather eloquently. Well, at least what she read was. I bought a copy of the book for a friend and hope to sneak in a read before giving it away.

But... if my attention span isn't book-ready, I'll probably just browse my newest and yet unread copies of Outside and Sunset. Excited for an evening at home, minus any sort of catalog-production stress. It feels strange. But quite good.

wellness day

Our publications team took a much-needed wellness day yesterday.

This looked like: coffee and breakfast sandwiches at Wildflour Bakery, followed by rock climbing at Wild Iris all day. I've only been out climbing a few times this summer, so I felt pretty weak out there. But it was great to get out, enjoy my publications teammates, enjoy the rock, and work on my footwork. strong toes. strong toes. trust little holds. you're on top rope. you're fine...

Here are some photos from the day:

the group: me, Pearson, Joanne, and Rachel. Rachel's our publications intern, we brought Pearson along (PR/Mkg intern) as a 4th to balance us out. She'll be writing for us more this fall.

Fearless Ms. P.

I took a bullet belaying Joanne! She was leading Claim Jumper. Super tricky moves up there. I caught her just fine, but ended up with my foot in a bush, later to discover an inch long, .25" wide stick through my shoe! It narrowly missed my foot by millimeters! Straight through the bottom of my shoe, and out the side.

Christi's friend Adam (5' 10") helped us clip a few tricky draws.

Rachel with her spankin' new pretty blue shoes.

Our fearless leader Joanne, up close and personal. "Are you really taking a picture of me this close?!" hehe. I love it though.

The Iris, at the end of the day. Wild views out there.

Red Canyon, a gorgeous section of the drive home.
****
Now, I'm off to visit Pioneer Days briefly with a few friends, and then to work on a Saturday. Somewhat lame. BUT it should only be a few hours today, and I'm excited to be there with no other distractions to be able to focus on all these images for the 2010 catalog. We're sending it all to press on Monday, so at some point I don't mind. I'm so excited to get it all finished!

On the note of working over the weekend: My friend Elizabeth Saunders has some advice. We're going to talk in the next few days (perhaps post-catalog) about a Schedule Makeover! It sounds somewhat silly, but necessary (people need house-makeovers and look-makeovers, but a schedule makeover? yeah. me. hand raised.). I need some help balancing it all without getting burnt out. I'll be sure to report on how our conversation goes. Elizabeth's a friend from college, and I've always appreciated her wisdom. I'm excited to see how it plays out in this arena of scheduling and priorities.

Want to check out the 2009 catalog? Here's a link. Enjoy.

upcoming attractions

My roommate Xiaoying is from China. She lives in the basement. If my life were a movie, she'd be in it. For sure. Right now she's traveling with a German man she met through a friend. I think. I hope she doesn't get abducted. I'd have no idea where to begin looking for her, other than a few national parks. I say they're dating, but she's more bashful to admit it. Elyssa thinks I'm insensitive and crazy for thinking such things (more so on the abduction end of the speculation spectrum). She also says it's rude for me to be so nosy. Xiao thinks it's weird that I ask so many questions.

Pearson calls her Xiao. Shaow. Chao. I'm not convinced she likes it though.

She doesn't wear her glasses as often as we'd like her to. Once, Elyssa was talking with her in the kitchen. Left, then came back shortly. Xiaoying then thought she was me. All us caucasian girls with brown hair all look the same at some point, I suppose.

Anyway, I am thinking of Xiaoying because she is supposed to get back today. Or soonish at least. I don't remember. I am a bad roommate.

My other roommate Elyssa is leaving for some time in August, and it will be my responsibility to water her garden. I really hope I don't kill all her plants. Just in case I do, I'll be leaving for 30 days shortly thereafter. So if I kill all her plants and she is mad at me, hopefully she will get over it within those next 30 days.

I'll be going to a magical place called the Absarokas, which sounds more like Ubs-or-kuhs. There are grizzly bears, and other large animals that I'm excited to see and then hide my food from. I'm really not quite sure what to expect, and I think it's still just far enough away for me not to worry about it too much. But I am getting excited more and more. Partly excited for a break from the office. Partly excited that it'll still be for work. Partly excited to hang out with people who sign up for corses that say "outdoor educator" in the title. Parly intimidated. Partly excited to see this curriculum we all talk about so much put into action in a real live expedition situation. I still can't believe I've been working there for a year and a half and haven't taken a course yet. Man. This better be good.

It will be.

Today I dropped off a note for a friend in her re-ration. When courses are out for long periods of time (read: nearly every course), they get re-rations. That way they don't have to carry 30-120 days worth of dried-whatever on their backs. Seems like 9 is enough. I sent her a card that I made, it had red shoes on it.

NOLS currently has something ridiculous like 43 courses in the field in Wyoming. That doesn't even count the other branches that are operating right now. Instructors are coming and going like mad, occasional injuries make things more exciting. People get shuffled around and I run into people at the bar who I thought just left, but in fact it's already been 30 days and what do you know, they're back already.

And I'm still designing the catalog.

People always ask "how's the catalog coming along?" "are you done with the catalog yet?" "what's on the cover this year?" -- all valid questions. Especially considering the fact that I work on it for nearly 6 months of the year. Once it's all wrapped up and done, I'll head to the wilderness, come back, design a couple things, say Merry Christmas, go snowshoeing, design one or two more things, and then jump into the 2011 Catalog. That's crazy.

We're so close to being done that it's not even funny. I'm not freaking out this year, which is awesome. It's still stressful though. And it's eaten a few of my weekends, and several evenings a week for a while now. Not fun. But we're at the stage now finally where I just get to tie it all up in a little package, whatever's in there stays put, I add a big red bow, and send it off to magical printer-land where they make proofs. And we change things. We add commas and correct photos. And then there are more proofs. And then I travel to someplace really really hot in August (last year: Vegas, this year: Iowa) to watch it come off of a really big printer at 2 am while I tell tattoo'd ex-cons to adjust the blues in the sky, and to make sure the orange bars match each other. Great job, thanks.

I really should take pictures of the press check this year. I took a few on my camera phone last year. If I were technologically savvy enough, maybe I could show them to you sometime.

Alas. good night. I haven't been sleeping too well lately, hopefully getting this randomness out of my brain will remedy the situation.

whoa!

my goodness.
it's been a while.

I just got off the phone with my dear friend melodie who informed me that it's been a month to the day since my last blog post! eek. melodie and I have been friends since my starbucks days and her high school homeschool math days, which happened to all take place at the same store at flintridge and academy down in colorado springs.

our conversation this evening started with a text about a jenny owens young concert. melodie and I once drove up to denver for a jenny owens young show at a small venue only to sneak in at the last minute with the assistance of melodie's art teacher from junior high who happened to be taking tickets at the door of the sold out show. jenny then proceeded to not play our favorite song. melodie got to see her again tonight, in seattle this time.

so here, miss melodie is what's been going on in the last month or so:

I packaged up some 50 cards to take over to Main Street Books here in Lander-town. I frequent their store for my espresso fix (typical beverage: americano with room, I add one raw sugar), it's less than a block away from my office, and slightly less expensive than the Folklore (which is a whole half a block further away...). But just for the record I do prefer Folklore for sitting, chatting, reading, and mate chai lattes.

main street agreed to buy a dozen cards, and see how they sell! I'm so excited to see if it's profitable. I think a little more attention at a display on my end could help, but I also wonder if their customers will like 'em? we'll see. I have a few other stores in town to hit, but wanted to start at main street, since I'm in there so often.

a few weeks ago I went in after work one evening to buy a book for my dad for father's day. and I walked out with half a german choclate cake that jerry from the cooking crow restaurant had just dropped by. jim was certain he'd get into trouble at home if he brought home another dessert after a pie the day before. bummer, guess it was up to me to bring it home to my roomies! it was so good. jerry makes the best baked goods. I just had a banana chocolate chip cookie there this week (catalog crushing time!) and it was pretty much amazing.

speaking of cake, my grandmother turned 92! very cool. definitely worth the 7 hour drive to help her celebrate :)

that evening, Benton and I drove her home. Oh, the oddity of throwing her walker in the back of his 4Runner...
And then, back in Lander there was BrewFest! a bunch of local/regional breweries show up, there's voting, drinking, lawn games, blankets in the park, etc. an all-around good day. it ended with me running to paige's house in the rain, throwing my jeans in the dryer before having dinner with jim and doris and two random visiting climber guys they met the day before in town.

I work at an outdoor school. And I confess, this was my first backpacking trip. Ever. I think my friends were surprised to hear this. Knowing I can hike. I know how to pack a pack and wear layers and put up a tent. I could even read a map if I had to! but carrying my gear on my back, hiking, and setting up camp is foreign to me. Or, was. Dan and Paige and Lola and I went to the Cirque of the Towers. It's this gorgeous glacier-carved area relatively close to where we live here in Wyoming. After half an hour on the highway, and about another hour on a dirt road, you're at the trailhead. From there, it's about 9 miles in, to this:Which is of course, stunning. Even more so in person. After 9 miles. The first day we hiked 7, and ended up camping above Big Sandy Lake because we couldn't find Jackass Pass. Yes, that's the name ;) It was all covered in snow, so we decided a day-trip into the Cirque made more sense, with a dog, and knowing much of our day would be finding the trail, post holing (read: sinking into snow up to your thighs) or scrambling over boulders.

Paige & Lola:
Paige, Dan, & me:

Also in the last month, this girl moved into (and out of) my house:

Pearson sublet Christi's room for a few weeks, and has since got me running a bit, more than I thought possible. She's a crazy runner girl. She did a half marathon two weeks after moving here from sea level. and almost beat her best time ever. crazy. and awesome.

This girl came to visit! Overdressed as always!
Cara hired me, so I'm indebted to her for introducing me to Lander and all such wonderfulness it holds, including the oldest paid rodeo in America! Right here, folks.

And for the 4th, there's always the parade. I like watching people more than the parade most of the time.
In Lander, we have a tradition on the 4th of July where laws against open containers and fireworks are thus banned between 10am and midnight. This results in seeming chaos, but people are actually pretty smart about it all. I'm impressed, Lander. way to be responsible. The evening sky looks like a war zone, and there was at least a few thousand dollars worth of fireworks at the party I went to. we climb a sketchy rope ladder up to a roof where you can see fireworks in all directions, as friends down below shoot of fireworks over your head and ashes fall on your face...

The following weekend was the International Climbers Festival! I designed the programs this year, which were nothing award-winning, but extremely appreciated by everyone involved. very rewarding in that sense. I was just glad to give people something that was legible and informative! I need to post a before/after story with photos of the previous years' programs.

my favorite ICF competition is the crate-stacking comp! harness, belay, climbing shoes on, and you have to stack milk crates on top of one another while standing on them. so fun to watch. a perfect lunch break at city park.

I think this guy got something like 22 or 23 crates high before falling off.

Alas. A brief introduction into the visual life of Lander, and the last month of my life. I don't post photos very often. But I like them. so i will try to bring you more, dear readers.


disclaimer: I'm going to try to work on being more honest here, more visual, and more frequent. please hold me accountable to do so, if you so wish.

Wyoming. Summer.

Wyoming. Summer. These may be the two most beautiful words in the American language. Maybe it’s because I spent a big chunk of my childhood in Utah, but it’s only in the Rocky Mountains that summer seems real to me. Here, summer has size, heft, you don’t ignore it. In Wyoming, in August, you wake to a world that smells of alfalfa and stream water, and feel the heat build as morning proceeds toward noon. You want to splash in a creek, run in sprinklers. Around 2, a flotilla of clouds, battleship gray, bulky, martial, bring a wind that ruffles the aspen leaves and, building, shakes the limbs of the cottonwoods. Smell of ozone, crack of thunder, zigzag scars of lightning, the mountains jolting purple, then blue then black. Now rain, Biblical, roof-pounding, expensive-waterproof-jacket-defeating rain. And then peace, the clouds sail to the east, the afternoon eases, guilelessly blue, into dusk and the first evening star appears.

By a Sunset editor named Peter Fish.
Read the whole article online here.

homework

yes, I have homework. if you can believe it.

I'm in a seminar at work designed for in-town staff. Field staff tend to jump from expedition to expedition, with briefings and debriefings, instructor-team building, and they actually teach students the leadership curriculum in a wilderness setting. So they're constantly evaluating and being evaluated and giving feedback.

In-town staff tend to not usually get that experience.

And the 7 leadership skills are just as applicable in-town as they are on an expedition. It just looks a little different.

So I'm in this seminar, Friday afternoons for the next few weeks, and we're going over the 7 leadership skills. Last week we went over Self-Awareness. We particularly learned about emotional responses, the amygdala, how our brain stores information like that, and why we may sometimes have highly emotional responses or misinterpretations of situations at hand.

Homework assignment #1: pay attention to your highly emotional responses, and track your thought process. ask: what am I feeling? and why? does it track back to hard evidence, or perceived/assumed truth about someone, something, or some experience? have I stored other emotional responses that I inappropriately apply to new situations?

We also learned about [Listening] Communication. And how to do that well. When I look at it as a selfless act, it makes so much more sense.

Homework assignment #2: practice listening skills. don't jump to giving advice when it's not asked for, or turning the topic to yourself. listen, actively, focusing on the other person's story. and wait for them to say "Exactly." It is at this point when you've truly heard them, and they know it.

The best part about all this leadership-talk is that it seems so natural. And it's not just focused on the leader as the head of the pack. It's about life-skills, about how to interact positively with other people, how to live in community and accomplish goals. And it's refreshing that it doesn't contradict in any way what I believe as a follower of Jesus—it coordinates quite nicely, actually. And challenges perceptions of what the core truth coordinating it all really is.

butterflies

I have 10,000 images in my computer. at least. and sometimes it gets quite overwhelming to consider sorting them all. here's one that cheered me up the other day, it's from a semester in the amazon course that we run in brazil.

and this is a collection of catalog covers at the alaska branch. this collection omits the 09 catalog, which I designed last year. (the large poster below outlines the 5-year plan of strategic goals) I'm currently smack in the middle of the 2010 catalog! we're picking a printer, I'm getting lots of feedback on the layout drafts, and yes: sorting a few thousand photos...

cut & paste

you know when you're wrapping a present and you have several fingers worth of tape ready to be affixed to the package? sometimes I want that sort of dexterity when I'm cutting and pasting elements digitally. too much to ask? {does it already exist?}

sea kayaking in patagonia...

IMGP0833, originally uploaded by markayak.

these are some photos from the sea kayaking course I was originally signed up to take in February :( then I got into that nasty car accident, and didn't feel comfortable going on the trip. 12+ hours on planes, combined with being in a super remote place, sea kayaking for 14 days, where I'd have to be evacuated by helicopter if anything went wrong, where I wouldn't want to be the weak team member holding everyone back because "my back hurts" whine whine whine. not exactly what I'd like to put myself or anyone else through while my spine's still not correctly aligned.

anyway, there are some beautiful pics. check 'em out.

I came across them while looking for sea kayaking photos for the 2010 catalog. for some reason there aren't very many in the 6,000+ photos hidden away in my database.

Then the skies open up and pour out soaking showers on everyone.

Take a long, hard look. See how great he is—infinite,
greater than anything you could ever imagine or figure out!

He pulls water up out of the sea,
distills it, and fills up his rain-cloud cisterns.
Then the skies open up
and pour out soaking showers on everyone.
Does anyone have the slightest idea how this happens?
How he arranges the clouds, how he speaks in thunder?
Just look at that lightning, his sky-filling light show
illumining the dark depths of the sea!
These are the symbols of his sovereignty,
his generosity, his loving care.
He hurls arrows of light,
taking sure and accurate aim.
The High God roars in the thunder,
angry against evil.

Whenever this happens, my heart stops— I'm stunned, I can't catch my breath.
Listen to it! Listen to his thunder,
the rolling, rumbling thunder of his voice.
He lets loose his lightnings from horizon to horizon,
lighting up the earth from pole to pole.
In their wake, the thunder echoes his voice,
powerful and majestic.
He lets out all the stops, he holds nothing back.
No one can mistake that voice—
His word thundering so wondrously,
his mighty acts staggering our understanding.
He orders the snow, 'Blanket the earth!'
and the rain, 'Soak the whole countryside!'
No one can escape the weather—it's there.
And no one can escape from God.
Wild animals take shelter,
crawling into their dens,
When blizzards roar out of the north
and freezing rain crusts the land.
It's God's breath that forms the ice,
it's God's breath that turns lakes and rivers solid.
And yes, it's God who fills clouds with rainwater
and hurls lightning from them every which way.
He puts them through their paces—first this way, then that—
commands them to do what he says all over the world.
Whether for discipline or grace or extravagant love,
he makes sure they make their mark.

Job, are you listening? Have you noticed all this?
Stop in your tracks! Take in God's miracle-wonders!
Do you have any idea how God does it all,
how he makes bright lightning from dark storms,
How he piles up the cumulus clouds—
all these miracle-wonders of a perfect Mind?
Why, you don't even know how to keep cool
on a sweltering hot day,
So how could you even dream
of making a dent in that hot-tin-roof sky?

Taken from The Message, Job 36 & 37

iron cross fold

I realize this is a super-dorky link, however, I think you should check it out. Especially if you're one of my designer friends: Break out of your folding rut!

The iron cross fold reminds me of the first piece I specifically remember looking at and thinking ... someone designed this. It was a promotional piece from Nordstrom, designed by Jennifer Morla. I'm at work right now, but if I were at home I'd totally dig out that one box full of old design samples that I soaked up in high school/early college as I was beginning to discover the fact that individuals were responsible for good-looking clothing tags, labels, packaging, magazine ads, and well, magazines.

The piece was an iron cross folded piece, with big blocks of color. I don't even remember any more what it was. Maybe it was a gift card or a credit card, there was some sort of piece in the middle. And once you folded all the arms out, each one had a piece of information, a message, and it all culminated in the center, where the card was placed. and behind the classy envelope, the colorful arms/pages, and past that flashy plastic card, was some tiny little text that noted "deisgned by Jennifer Morla"... and as a high schooler I recall noting that someone specifically put this together.

This was way cooler than the lame logos I was sketching in my independent study in graphic arts, and much more interesting than the pagemaker layouts we were completing in yearbook class. It was beyond anything I could begin to concept at that stage.

I subscribed to InStyle for a few years in high school, later selling a year's worth for something like $5 at a garage sale. I cut up many of them for collages, wrote letters to friends on solid-colored blank-background ad pages, and was overall rather impressed with the enormity of the entire publication. So many ads, so many articles... often at least a .25" thick. It's in part what led me to major in magazines in college. I know the bold feature text and large images must have certainly caught my eye as well. Seriously, who doesn't love hot type on magazine features?

I wasn't particularly obsessed with celebrities, or fashion at all. It most certainly wasn't (and isn't) obvious if you look at me, then or now. I did appreciate InStyle's focus on real people, their lives and homes, and fashion choices rather than slamming the latest faux pas or criticising celebrity relationships. I later learned, in college, that the then editor in chief was a fellow Drake grad. She spoke to our magazine publishing class my senior year, dressed well, but appropriately for a college campus in Des Moines. As a fancy new york editor, she could have showed up in flashy attire, but instead I was impressed with her nice jeans, simple shirt, vneck sweater, and simiple jewelry. Her stories of past years attending the annual Drake Relays (a big deal, this year's the 100th anniversary. I'm rather bummed I'm not going) and spending a healthy amount of time at local campus bars. Showing us that she was a real person, like the celebrities her publication showcased. And showed me that a position like hers isn't ridiculously unattainable with a Drake education, some experience, and a lot of hard work.

speaking of, better get back to it. I'm considering a bit of a redesign to this year's catalog. not too much in the look of it, but rather in the organization of how we present information... should be good.

On with 2010!

comic sans. gah!

First of all, this article is amazing:
Typeface Inspired by Comic Books Has Become a Font of Ill Will

Second of all, the comments on aforementioned article are even more amazing... I can't decide if I'm offended :: wow. if this topic really keeps someone up at night, that person might want to consider checking into a mental home. this is silly.

... or if I'm confused at the state of the world/society and how we really see communication :: This is the silliest article, and frankly symbolizes the decline of the WSJ as a credible publication. Who cares! Anyone who starts a foundation to ban a font, needs to find a better hobby. And why are they getting publicity in the WSJ? I'm sorry I wasted my time even reading about it.

{Oh, I'm sorry. It's not a hobby.}

Goes to show designers and those who use/love Comic Sans don't necessarily always read the same publications...

Perhaps this the problem?

another day.

well. it's been about two months since my last post.

I'm sorry.

really.

life's been so busy, stressful, etc. and I seem to always think of good stories to post here, and then life carries me away, I get wiped out, and I don't post them.

but today was a relatively normal day in lander. this of course was exemplified by a few oddities that make me think :: really? is this life right now? and somehow it's normal that these things happen?

I just got home from meeting jim & doris & elyssa for dinner/drinks at the bar at the summit restaurant. where I'd never been before, but it was nice and I had the club sandwich. and there was good company. a man named steve was at the end of the bar sketching out a building plan for his home, and michelle and doris and I tried to see who could tie cherry stems in knots with our tongues the fastest, and michelle won of course and told us stories of college in oklahoma. the owner then started us all on a rant about the pioneer's museum (more about that drama later... there's a coup in town to outst the current staff/organization of the musem), and how they have human remains on display. elyssa almost never worked there for that fact alone. cale (previously mentioned owner, also a local politician) would like to see that harvey (the remains) gets a proper burial. again. the poor man was dead and buried once, then dug up as they were building a road in town, apparently over the cemetery area behind the original location of the old fort. a road that happened to be in the backyard of the next couple that walked in the door as we were talking about harvey. they happen to have an olive oil co-op. of course.

now there's talk of having a harvey day in town to raise awareness of the cause.

I love it.

before that adventure, I went to feed the ponies with jeanne and jamie and meredith from work. promptly at 5pm we drove out to the property where some of the horses NOLS uses on rerations/horsepacking courses/etc are staying for the winter. they head back to the ranch tomorrow, so we stopped by today to bring them apple oat cookies, which they love! we dropped off some hay while we were there and they all loved it. jeanne especially loves wilson. and I got to give cookies to casper, midnight, and... some other horses whose names I've already forgotten.

also today: I got some good crack. aka. chiropractic adjustment. that's going well. acupuncture yesterday helped a lot, too. I think. I was somewhat skeptical about it, but now I like it. not in the same way that I like massages, but I like it. it releases a lot of tension. anyway, I stopped by main street books on the way back to the office, making a mental note to create more cards, and picking up a latte from maria, who puts my charge on my account so I don't have to carry cash. we talked about the books she's reading, and I did some book-cover browsing while she made my latte. sometimes I feel very alone as the only designer at work so I have to see things other designers have created to make myself feel less alone. I do this online, which is refreshing sometimes. I've also talked to a few other designers in town, once we even talked about starting a group or events or something. ideas, anyone?

*sidenote: the museum added a "free admission" notice on their signs recently. I noticed it today and cringed. it looks like hobo. and it's most-definitely an after thought, squished between two lines of text with no consideration for legibility or leading. it's a complete injustice. I'd say it's actually worse than the lander pet and ranch supply building. which I personally think is the ugliest building in town. that is, if we're not counting homes. I really do need to take a picture of their sign. for all the stories I've heard about throwing away artifacts and using endust on pieces, or taking a belt sander to wooden artifact benches... while those are all also injustices, the one that hits me most is the ugliness of what they just did to their signage.

communicating with photographers is always interesting at work. last week a chilean instructor for the school was in france and wanted to submit photos for our annual catalog call out for submissions (which ususally ends up in me receiving several thousand photographs to evaluated, judge, choose, rechoose, and place in the catalog where they're rearranged and approved by 13 different individuals before printing)... and he was using his friend's internet, and was however many hours ahead of me. this resulted in multiple days of emails in broken english, ichattings, and adjusting FTP settings to accomodate the files.

my friend mariah was in town recently and it's always so good to see her! she's an instructor friend and was scheduled to be gone saturday, headed down to a 3 week climbing camp section on a rocky mountain spring semester course. she's the only girl on the course, with 3 other instructors and 14 male students! a huge spring snow prevented her instructor team from leaving town, so we enjoyed the day saturday baking cookies, watching movies, drinking tea, reading magazines, and making cards. sweet cards. they're always so refreshing to sit and create. I really do need to create more time for that to happen. I'll try to post pictures soon! it's refreshing to have a friend who can sit and create cards, sit in silence, or chat about anything from climbing to crushes to deep theological references and how it relates to real life.

lisa was back in town for a few weeks, always good to see her. I think she just needs to move back here. and sara is now on her instructor course in the southwest. I hope instructor-life brings her back to town more often.

SOM

while I'm not tangibly thinking about grad school, I was just distracted by a recent design observer post (I'm there almost every day) and somehow ended up at the yale school of management's elective course offerings page...

and in light of a someday if I ever go back to school thought... these are the courses I'd be interested in:

strategic management of nonprofit organizations
leadership & values
strategic marketing communications
greening business operations
foundations of social marketing
faith & globalization
transporation & urban land-use planning
management and the environment: issues and topics
designers designing design*
emotional intelligence at work
economics and financing of journalism

perhaps I'll explore some self study options online or in book/podcast form on those topics. as of late, I've been feeling like I need more intellectual stimulation.

*this one's of particular interest, of course

we toy with caffeine in the morning

I have google alerts set up for a few things, one of which is NOLS. I'm typically hesitant to write the word "NOLS" on here, because I'm somewhat paranoid that all my coworkers who also have google alerts set up will then passively stalk/lurk. I realize this is out there for all to see, but still. I guess I prefer blog-stalkers to comment and such. I am now fairly certain that I made my blog invisible to such alerts by way of blogger's glorious customization settings. we shall see...

my point? one of our books at Amazon showed up on my alerts today, and somewhere in my state of seeming verabl* dyslexia and more than usual loss of concentration (blame it on my whiplash?), I started to read the first chapter of one of the books I wasn't familiar with:

We go to the backcountry to find the peace we can't find in the front country. In the front country, we've overbuilt our infrastructure and overheated our schedules, and we glory in the resulting frenzy. We toy with caffeine in the morning, commute distances that can't be sane, rush projects that were due yesterday, work late, and then wonder why our nights go sleepless.

In the wilds, you reduce your world to simple tasks like fetching water, pitching a tent, and cooking dinner. Sometimes it's as simple as putting one foot in front of the other. You are rewarded immediately for completing those tasks, not with a giddy buzz or a narcotic haze, but with the gratification of a pleasing meal, the warm shelter of a well-pitched tent, or a sublime view after scaling the heights of an alpine pass.

National Outdoor Leadership School's Wilderness Guide: The Classic Handbook by Mark Harvey (© 1999 NOLS)

* I swear I didn't do that on purpose! caught it in a proofread and decided to leave it :)

a link, and some thoughts

this is an interesting link about modern day calvinist of sorts, mark driscoll, and his church in seattle. I just read the whole thing. long, but fascinating.

I spent this morning reading they love jesus but not the church, by dan kimball. I'm currently in the middle of it, and loving it so far. then I made hazelnut lattes for my roomies, wished xiaoying a happy new year, made pancakes, and have been doing some email/blog reading since then.

It's snowing, slowly but softly. It's a gray and gloomy day in wyoming. creepy dog next door yelps every once in a while. he's been quiet since elyssa whistled at him. I say he's creepy because of his eyes. he's a husky with these white eyes that just stare into your soul.

I'm not sure if I've introduced you, friendly readers, to my new roomies. laura and elyssa moved in at the same time last fall, jamie moved out before christmas, then laura moved back to germany/italy, and now xiaoying has moved in. things are pretty quiet these days, and elyssa and I have started to cook together more, which is more fun, less expensive, and rewarding because we get to hang out together, and usually one of us will cook and the other will clean up. for instance, I made pancakes this morning and she cleaned up. glorious.

but back to xiaoying. she's originally from china, she's been in the US for something like 7 years, and she's very nice, but quiet. she's getting her phd this spring, so even though I barely know her at this point, I'm very proud of her. phd's are quite the achievement. she also calls her parents once a week at the same time, which seems to be a normal habit for people who communicate regularly across multiple time zones and continents.

last night a few of us went to asian cuisine here in lander. xiaoying ordered a cambodian dish. kortney ordered some soup that reminded her of thailand. and elyssa ordered some curry that is different the curry she makes herself. christy and I both ordered the pad thai, one of my favorite dishes there, and I sprung for the thai iced tea, which is sweet, creamy, and delicious. the unfortunate part of the evening was that it took an hour and a half from when we arrived to get our food. it may take a while for me to get over that service blip. but, it's one of my favorite restaurants in town... so I may just have to get over last night's slow service. or I could hold it against them and save some cash. hmmm.

I heard recently from a friend that country home is done. which is sad news, because it's such a pretty publication, and especially because this friend was working there. I also talked with a friend at readymade (and a bunch of the staff) who is no longer working there. I guess they're moving their offices to des moines (my guess: the country home offices!?). this makes me sad because half of why rm was so clever, I think, was because of their location in berkley. they were always referring to their local thrift spots, dumps, locations to find reusable materials, etc. and with such an eclectic, environmentally-sound community in the bay area, they always seemed to be so in touch with what was going on with all the materials they used. dsm is just not quite there, as far as my recall from living there. and without the original folks at the helm, I'm just not sure if it'll be the same publication I've come to love. while I liked the idea of meredith corp running their marketing and overall business, etc. (that seemed to be a healthy move at the time), I'm somewhat afraid of it becoming just another publication in their creative collection, with paper as thin as bh&g. I'm a subscriber, so I guess I'm locked in to find out how the transition turns out.

in fun news, I finally checked my po box the other day, to find a great collection of christmas cards and personal notes! I can't believe I hadn't check it in so long. it's a reminder to me to catch up on some correspondence, including a few (okay, a lot) of neglected christmas cards, and thank you notes that I've intended to send out. oops.