Art Making Itself Useful

I created a monster.

2010-09-17T05:18:00.000-07:00

The scenario is something like this.

Our son was home sick from school yesterday, and basically slept the entire day off and on. So when 11 p.m. rolled around, he was wide awake, albeit in his bed, and J and I were shutting everything off for the night.

By 4:45 a.m., the boy was wide awake and yammering in his bed, so he crawled into bed with me and J retreated to his room to try and get some sleep. Around 5:30, he said he was thirsty so I went to sneak into his room to get his cup of water, hoping not to wake J but before I'd even opened the door, I could see a familiar flicker of light through the crack. As I opened the door, the light disappeared.

Me: Are you awake?
J: Yeah.
Me: Are you on your Blackberry?
J: Yeah.
Me: Why did you hide it when I walked in?
J: Because I didn't want to have this conversation.
Me: Were you playing a game? (Dreading the answer.)
J: No.
Me: What were you doing?
J: I was reading tweets.

And there it is. When I started using Twitter, I didn't think that he'd be interested, as he's generally not interested in trendy things or "connecting" with people. But when I installed TweetDeck and he saw that it was easy to keep track of both Facebook and Twitter in one interface, he installed it too. And when I started telling him about the hilarious tweets of Stephen Fry, under the guise of his "wife" @MrsStephenFry, he started following too. And then added @ebertchicago, who tweets and retweets some very bold things.

And so I created a monster. He's added law blogs and the subject of his crush, @DahliaLithwick, and @NathanFillion (because we're Firefly geeks) and the list goes on. He's hooked.

A lovely wakeup

2010-02-25T08:16:00.000-08:00

I woke up this morning and my husband left a post it on my computer screen, telling me to watch this video. It was such a great thing to wake up to, really got my day off to a good start. Cheer yourself up and watch it.

Bad Mother

2009-12-28T20:46:00.000-08:00

I recently finished reading Bad Mother by Ayelet Waldman, who is married to Michael Chabon. While reading his book of essays on what it means to be a man, a husband and a father, I found out that she had her own book of essays recently published. I'd never read any of her work before; I'd sort of assumed that her "Mommy-track mysteries" were the work of someone who was trying a new, easier profession and with her husband's connections, they didn't have to be very good and she could still get published.

But in his book, he talked enough about her and her life, and how she was as a partner and a mother that I became curious and decided to give it a try. True, she's nowhere in the same league as he is as a writer. She's certainly intelligent enough (I would hope a Harvard educated attorney, her previous profession, would be a smartie) and she's had her fair share of fodder for essays so the subject matter was fascinating and her honesty was inspiring. He, however, has spent years perfecting his craft and it shows. The intricasies of his language, the depth of detail, the spiraling sentences that envelope you in the story are the work of a true wordsmith.

So I don't know if I related to her book better simply because we're both women, and there's some common experience or not, but I found myself shocked and awed over and over at how familiar the essays were. The stories about self esteem, of impatience with the narrow-mindedness of others, the expectations you have for your children, the freedom you give your children, the instantaneous knowledge that you have finally found your partner, the desire to be home with your child and then the rude awakening that it's not everything you thought it would be, and then the guilt over not being satisfied that you're home with your child, the boredom, the need to connect with others but still maintain your space. So, so many things. I have never, ever wanted to contact a writer before and say "You were writing about ME!" but this time, I had to resist trying to find her e-mail address.

If you're reading this and you're a woman, check it out from the library. I think you might find some common ground and the strength to admit some things about yourself.

TV on DVD

2009-12-15T07:02:00.000-08:00

The really great thing about being able to get your favorite TV shows on DVD, is that you can easily consume four or five episodes in an evening, and get enough to hold you over till your next few free hours to consume another four or five more. You can zip through an entire season of pain and pleasure, disappointment and heartache in just a few dedicated nights. Which is what I just did with Season 5 of Grey's Anatomy. With a young one still up and acting like a banshee when the shows are actually on, it's not realy possible to watch them. I'm now catching up and finally getting to see the episodes that everyone was so shocked about months earlier, with George getting hit by a bus and dying in the season finale.

But being a romantic, what I'm most interested in is the instant dynamic between Christina Yang and Major Owen Hunt, played by Sandra Oh and the amazing Kevin McKidd. I loved Rome when it was on HBO and he was incredible as Lucius Vorenus, so it's no surprise that he's managed to breathe new life into what had become a formulaic story.

Now I might have to watch the new season's episode on Hulu. I don't think I can wait for Season 6 to come out on DVD.

The Art of Men

2009-12-03T19:40:00.001-08:00

Can I just say, Michael Chabon rocks? I'm reading his new book, Manhood for Amateurs, and his prose is as good as his fiction. Yowza. Every man should read this and every wife who has felt unappreciated, should read this chapter "William & I." No kidding. Get thee to a bookstore now.

Facebook

2009-12-03T09:14:00.001-08:00

I gave in and joined Facebook. So there.

Me First

2009-12-03T07:09:00.000-08:00

As so often happens with my business, client work comes first. It's why my first company Web site was so deplorable and quickly out-of-date, it's why my second company Web site was too brief and too structured (and then quickly fell out-of-date), and it's why I need to do something about it. Desperately. I have a full project board, just like I always do, and with three Web sites in various stages of completion (waiting on client content or approval) and three more redesigns about to commence, my regular print projects starting soon (and a bevy of printed pieces for Mike) I find myself stopping and redesigning my own.

I've joined some more networking groups lately and ramped up my involvement with LinkedIn, so I'm getting "checked out" a lot more; I cringe when I think that some new contact is looking at my Web site and going, "Oh my..."

I recently started an E-newsletter and designed the template for it with the intention that it would also serve for the template of my site, so I was already halfway there. Well, I've set today aside and it happens today. If you're reading this post, then you've seen the new site. Hope you like it.

Welcome!

2009-10-27T14:12:00.001-07:00

Welcome to "Art Making Itself Useful," the official blog for AlephMEDIA, my design firm in Indianapolis. I've often thought, "Gee, I should blog" and then soon after, thought, "But what would I write about that anyone would want to lose two minutes of their life reading?" It was the second thought that kept me from doing this for so long. I'd posted a few blog posts on SmallerIndiana.com, but I'd thought long and hard before writing them. Often, they had to do with the idea of social networking, and were appropriate for the site.

But from time to time, usually when I'm driving or in the shower or emptying the dishwasher, I think arty things, or muse on culture, or politics or think of commercials or TV shows or movies that I like or dislike. Sometimes, I just feel arty things, or see color combinations or think about music. Usually I disregard them because who really wants to read about how much I love to watch House or Bones? Who cares if I like Matisyahu even though my husband would probably rather have root canal than listen to his latest CD?

So, I'm going to blog anyway. If anyone reads it, fine. If not, it's just for me. For me to put down thoughts about arty and cultural things that interest me.

Here goes.