#I went to school for graphic design so my best bets of getting a job are in the graphic design field

[wolfstrong]

Usually I tell my mom I hate my job and her reaction is just like “well suck it up” and tonight we kinda got into a similar conversation but after her speech about how I should suck it up I was just like genuinely very defeated and depressed and I feel like she suddenly realized how miserable I am and for the first time I actually felt a little bit of sympathy and understanding from her on this issue which was nice

[we-are-inevitable]

modern art // javid (ch. 1)

A/N: hi !! so some of you may remember an old songfic i did in march of last year, titled ‘modern art’ after the song “IDK You Yet” by Alexander 23. well, i’ve always thought that that one shot would work great as a stand alone fic, and here we are! i have ch. 1 edited and SO MUCH of it as changed- like, for example, the fic is a chapter fic now !! regardless, i hope you guys like this !!

WARNINGS: depression, anxiety, self-deprecation, past addiction, mentions of addiction, just general Bad Times- pls be mindful when reading !! it’s just very Not Happy rn ADDITIONAL INFO: all characters are in their mid-twenties in the fic. oh also this is probably important but it’s a soulmate au !!

Read On AO3!

tag list: @bound-for-santa-fe @wannabecowboypunk @shippingcannons @yahfancyclamwiththepurlinside @smallsies @deliciouspeachpirate @newsies-is-my-erster 

Jack doesn't know what’s going on with himself, but he knows that he could really use his soulmate right about now.

They’ve communicated before. Never verbally, and never enough to reveal who they were. Perhaps they are both just... dealing with some unspoken fears, dealing with the worry of rejection sitting heavy in their chests. Perhaps they both like this mystery- the uncertainty that came with the notes scrawled across their bodies in a handwriting that isn’t their own.

Or perhaps they just aren’t ready to take the plunge. To grow up and face the harsh fact that, as soon as they meet, wherever and whenever that may be, a new chapter of their life will unfold. Consume them. Change anything and everything they’ve ever known or held dear.

They had been braver when they were children, that much was true. Jack remembers staying up late often, writing notes on his skin and watching in awe as the replies appeared. He remembers the giddy rush of trying to quickly wash off the ink on his wrist when they ran out of space to talk, and, oh, how they talked. There were school days when Jack would go to class exhausted, feeling like he’d been walking through quicksand for miles on end, but all of it had been worth it. The exhaustion he felt had been worth being able to talk to them until two, three, four in the morning. Sometimes he regretted it, of course, but only because it was harder for him to focus in class. Never because he was upset at them.

He could never be upset with them.

Even now, Jack remembers a lot about his soulmate. They liked music. They knew how to play the piano. They were into a few video games, even some that Jack had never played, and said that they always tried carrying a book with them wherever they went. Jack remembers that, as a younger kid, they liked Harry Potter and Percy Jackson, but also liked analyzing Shakespeare and Edgar Allen Poe and a bunch of other fancy authors that Jack had never even heard of. They were intimidatingly smart, and sometimes, would carefully correct Jack’s grammar whenever he misspelled a word or something- but they were never mean about it, they were just… there. A steady presence that he could count on.

Fifteen year old Jack dreamed of finding them one day. But now, twenty-five year old Jack is losing hope.

He can’t exactly help it. For starters, he and his soulmate haven’t communicated in… well, shit, it had to be nearly a year. Maybe nine months or so, but there’s no way to tell for sure, and even then, their conversations since reaching adulthood have been dull, for lack of a better word. A few positive comments here, a ‘have a good day’ there- it’s all so mundane, and neither of them can be blamed for it. They both have busy lives- or, well, Jack does, at least. His job as a graphic designer is hard enough on its own, but the added pressure of doing freelance work and commissions on the side has been eating away at him for weeks, coupled with debilitating self-doubt and lack of motivation for… anything.

Saying that he’s overwhelmed is the understatement of the century.

There is always another design, another client, another meeting, another deadline, another sleepless night as he stares at a blank canvas and prays for a spark of inspiration from whatever God is listening. Usually his inspiration comes from the world around him- his friends, city life, even the quiet confines of his apartment, but right now... Jack is stuck. He had holed himself up in his room days ago, trying and failing to get out of bed every morning when the time came to work- and thank God that the majority of his work could be done from home. His boss was understanding, too, to an extent.

Still, though, there’s a constant heavy weight on his chest that prevents him from moving most days, and he’s lucky if he even gets up long enough to shower or eat or do literally anything aside from lie in silence and count the cracks in his ceiling.

Nothing had happened to him recently to bring this on, from what he can tell. Jack has always been the happy-go-lucky leader, the man with a plan, the guy who always knew just what to say to motivate others into doing the best thing for themselves, but when that responsibility is reflected back onto himself, Jack feels helpless. There are words waiting to be said, sketches waiting to be drawn, designs waiting to be sent to clients… yet Jack lies there, motionless in his room for three days before he even has the energy, the willpower, to pull back his curtains and allow the sunlight to shine through. There is so much he wants to do, so much he needs to do, but he can't bring himself to do any of it.

In all twenty-five years of his life, through all of the things he’s been through, the ups and downs and foster homes and graduations and birthdays and funerals and therapists and rehab facilities and whatever the fuck else life decided to throw at him, Jack has never felt so worthless, so… lonely. His closest friends are all moving on with their lives. Many have already found their soulmate, have settled down and hidden their rowdy, rambunctious pasts behind skeletons in a closet. They’d all gotten their adventures done and over with in high school and college, and most are moving onto bigger and better things in life. They have careers. Families. Some have children, others have pets, a few have an insane amount of plants to care for.

All have seemingly left Jack behind in the dust.

No one told him when to flip the switch.

No one told him when he had aged out of adventure.

Now, they would never say it, but Jack knows. He knows. Saturday hangouts and trips to the bar had been replaced by Sunday church services and playdates for the kids. Rather than hearing yelling from his living room after his friends had all been teetering just on the edge between tipsy and fucked up, Jack hears the news, and documentaries, and podcasts, and the ghosts of a past life that he still seemed to be desperately clinging on to.

Katherine had been the one to tell him that he needed to grow up, though she didn’t put it in such a blunt manner. No, she’s just.... gently urging him to find a bigger apartment, or buy matching furniture from a place that is not a thrift store, or purchase dishes that weren’t of the plastic Walmart brand. She says it was because she wants to see him in a more professional, "adulty" lifestyle, but he knows it’s really because she can see that he’s a mess.

Deep down, Jack knows she’s right. She’s always right.

He just can’t help but feel cemented in place, dreaming of the past while dreading the new future ahead of him.

Jack never asked to feel so broken for no reason. All of the hope and optimism he had felt as a teenager was gone, lost in a sea of uncertain plans and shitty jobs and bill extensions and canvases dropped onto the floor with no rhyme or reason. And, yes, maybe Jack would look dramatic to someone who didn’t know his situation, but Jack knows what dramatic feels like. Dramatic feels like watching his best friend, Charlie, belt onstage in front of a backdrop that he helped create for the school play. Dramatic feels like laughing at the top of his lungs while walking through a random gas station at two in the morning, joined by Race and Al, all while higher than a kite. Dramatic feels like driving to the outskirts of the city with Katherine, climbing onto the roof of an old building and screaming about all of their stress, their anxiety, their insecurities, just to have some form of emotional release.

Dramatic doesn’t feel like sadness. It’s not supposed to.

Not for Jack.

He had been so… so happy, as a teenager. Proud and defiant and carefree. He was the kind of guy to skate and smoke weed in Central Park until midnight and take a math test at eight in the morning the next day. He was the kid who stood on a table in the cafeteria and came out as bisexual to everyone around him, just because of a dumbass bet that he didn’t even get paid for. He was the boy who wasn’t at all good in an academic sense, but who always knew how to talk himself out of trouble, who always came up with the most ridiculous- or most believable- lies to cover his ass when he needed it, who was always the class favorite, the teacher’s pet without meaning to be.

Jack had felt on top of the world back then, but now he’s struggling to even get off of the ground. The longer time goes on, the more lost Jack feels inside his own life. He feels like something was missing, something big. Something bigger than himself.

When his mother was alive, which now felt like lifetimes ago, she would often echo this old wives’ tale about how it’s best to find your soulmate while you’re younger, just to save them- and yourself- the pain of being alone for a long time. Jack had always kind of believed her; logically, he knew it was true, but he had always told himself that it wouldn’t happen to him. That he would be fine alone, though it wouldn’t be ideal, and that he would have plenty of time for soulmates after he got out and made a name for himself.

He’s starting to think, though, that maybe she was right. Maybe Jack had waited too long to make a move, to make contact again, because now, he just feels nauseous even thinking about it.

Don’t get him wrong, he knows the negative effects of self deprecation and not taking his own mental health seriously, he’s been to rehab before, blah, blah, blah, but, fuck, how could he put his soulmate through something like this? This fucked up state of mind he has now. Jack can’t even imagine talking to Katherine about this, and Katherine had been his best friend for over a decade. He can’t just meet his soulmate now- it’s been too long, he’s too messed up, they won’t like him, they’ll hate him for not trying hard enough, and Jack will just end up alone again, wasting away in his bedroom because no one fucking cares. No one cares. He has nobody.

That’s not true. He has Medda, his mom, his savior, his impulse control, but the thought of telling her that everything is acting up again makes him want to scream. He has Tony, but Tony has Al, and Tony and Al have a kid- a sweet little five year old girl who calls Jack ‘Uncle Jackie’ and takes no shit from anyone. He has Katherine, but Katherine has her soulmate- this dude named Darcy, who Jack doesn’t have much of an opinion on because they just met, like, a month ago, and Jack hasn’t exactly been emotionally ready for a hangout session between the three of them. He also has Charlie, and Charlie has certainly seen him in worse times- like when Jack was kind of hooked on pills for the entirety their freshman year of college- but Charlie has grad school to worry about and Charlie would hate him if he bothered him with this.

Still, there are other people who would listen, probably. He could easily talk to Elmer, or Romeo, or Specs, or Jojo or Finch or Sean or a fucking therapist but that’s just it, isn’t it? If he talks, he burdens, and Jack Francisco Kelly would rather run himself into the ground than be a burden anyone.

So, he makes a vow.

He makes eye contact with his reflection in the bathroom mirror. He’s gripping onto the sink, holding on for dear life, as he stares into his own sunken eyes. He takes in his appearance. Damp, messy hair, falling down to cover his forehead. Pale skin, which isn’t normal at all. Dark circles have taken their place around his eyes, and his smile- one of his favorite things about himself- is… nonexistent.

Distantly, Jack registers himself dumping a full bottle of ibuprofen into the sink. And then, he does the same thing with the bottle of melatonin from his medicine cabinet. The valium follows. He lets the water run for a long time. It's not that he doesn't trust himself- he'd done so, so good in rehab, and he doesn't even feel urges that often anymore- but it's better safe than sorry, especially since he's like... this.

This is not the Jack Kelly he’s used to anymore. This is not the Jack Kelly he wants to be.

But this Jack Kelly is the one who vows not to reach out. The one who vows to only answer when his soulmate is ready, and maybe not even then.

He doesn’t have to wait long, though.

Not when a heart appears on the back of his hand the next morning.

It’s there when Jack wakes up, and, honestly, it almost brings Jack to tears- but not necessarily for happy reasons. Sure, Jack wants to be happy. Who wouldn’t be happy after seeing something like this? A lopsided heart drawn in red ink, right on the back of his left hand- it was the definition of a symbol, of a romantic gesture, and Jack wants so badly to write back, to strike up conversation, to draw a goddamn heart, but… he can’t.

He can’t, and that’s horrible of him, and he knows it.

Right now, though… Jack can’t even work up the courage, the energy, to call his mom.

His soulmate, whoever they are, is going to have to wait.

[chemiste]

Foresight ~ ch. 5

a/n : happy easter or national grilled cheese sandwich day if you don’t celebrate easter :) 

p.s- sometimes if i describe an outfit harry or the reader is wearing, i’ll embed a link into the words so you can see a picture of it if you want to. also to note that if the photo had a model wearing the outfit, i’m only showing it for the clothes not the size or skin tone!

masterlist

Mitch went first, then Sarah, Adam, Harry and finally you.

The glasses helped considerably from the flashes of phones and the pink sweatshirt seem to draw all the attention to Harry and not you. 

But then, a girl in the crowd trying to get to Harry pushed you from behind and you stumbled slightly causing a few pairs of eyes to look at you. 

Soon enough, more people started directing their attention to you instead of the superstar. It was when you got cut off from the line of band members did you worry. 

Fuck, fuck, fuck, I can’t get through!

People started calling out your name and you couldn’t see the back of Harry’s body anymore. It was like a wave went through the crowd, the bodies surged toward the hotel of a sudden, knocking you to the ground.

You caught yourself by the hand that wasn’t holding onto your backpack for dear life.

Call for him, right… now!

“Harry!” You shouted, hoping he heard you. Suddenly, a pair of tattooed hands grabbed hold of you by the shoulder and nudged through the crowd, left arm securely wrapped around you and the other using his elbow to create space between the bodies.

 “Hold on Y/N.” Was all you heard him said in a low voice.

After what felt like an eternity, you made it to the front door which opened the slightest bit to let you two sneeze inside before it slammed shut again. 

Harry held onto you until both of you were out of the crowd's eyesight, then looked at you with a worried expression, both hands holding you by the shoulders as he examined you. 

“Are yeh okay Y/N? ‘m so so sorry I lost you in the crowd, they were bloody brutal.” You took a shaky breath and looked up into the concerned green eyes.

 “T-thank you for coming back for me.” He scoffed, “ ‘f course I would.” 

In a flash, you pressed your body against his, wrapping your arms around him and burying your face into his chest. “That was so overwhelming,” You mumbled in between his pecks. 

You could feel the vibrations of his laughter and he gave you a squeeze. “Wouldn’t be fair of me to leave m’ best friend to be eaten by paparazzi piranhas now would ’t?”

Everyone got their hotel keys, and to your astonishment, you had your own room too. What’d you think we were gonna do, make you sleep in the hallway? Jeff had said as he handed you the room key. 

After getting your luggage the crew had snuck in through a back door from the tour bus, you were all on the 7th floor. Everyone started scanning the door numbers looking for their assigned rooms. 

“What number you got?” Harry asked as pulled his suitcase adjunct to yours. “F16” you replied. “Sweet I got F17, we’re right across from each other!” You gave him a small wave as you both entered your rooms.

Once you closed the door, you put your suitcase on the rack and dug through it for something else to wear. You abandoned pieces of your current outfit on the ground. Instead of taking the clothes, you’d change into in the bathroom after you shower.

When you finished your lovely, warm, shower and skincare, you changed into black jeans and a white t-shirt. You opened the lavender curtain to see the beautiful view before you.

The river! Oh how gorgeous.

As you studied the view, a knock on your door interrupted you swooning of different angles you could capture the light reflections off the water. “Coming!” You called as you opened the door.

There stood the rockstar who made girls and boys melt at his feet.

He was stuck in the sweatshirt.

“What in the world happened?!” You laughed and you lead him into the room. His arms were bound by the sleeves over his head somehow, his undershirt riding up a bit from his struggles, showing the tips of the two ferns.

“Can I take a pictu—”

 “Don’t you dare!” 

“Okay fine, fine!” 

You circled him, looking for the easier way to unravel him. 

“How’d you even get to my room?” “Lots of prayers an’ bumpin’ t’ things,” He mumbled. “Come ‘ere,” you guided him closer to the bed so you could stand atop it. 

So damn tall.

“‘kay, here we go, one, two, three!” You pulled the sleeves up and to the right and out stumbled a dazed Mr. Styles. 

You very trying very hard to keep your laughter contained as he shook his hair and ran his ring clade fingers through it. 

“How did you even…” “It’s small for me okay?!” That’s when you burst out in laughter, you fell back on the bed, not trying to contain the giggles anymore.

 And soon enough, Harry was cracking up beside you. You caught your breath and turned over to mirror his position on the bed, one arm tucked underneath his head. “What’s the story for us?”

“Pardon?”

“Like, how are we best friends? What’s our origin story?”

 “Oh…” He thought for a moment before looking back into your eyes. “Where ya from?”  You moved to lean up against the head, propping up a knee and hugging it. 

“Moved from my hometown at 12 to New York, cause of my Dad’s job. He’s a graphic artist, does a lot of political mail and campaign design. Well, he had a small independent business but a colleague of his died that I think he knew really well from his 20s left him his whole business so Dad took over as the CEO and we moved to Larchmont so he could travel to Manhattan if he had a big meeting for the political season.” 

He didn’t say anything so you continued. “It’s pretty nice and I made some good friends from the book club I joined.” 

“How’d you meet Maggie?” 

“She was actually one of the first models I shot for a fashion line. It was her first time too so we basically bonded over feeling scared.” You cracked a smile at the thought of 16 year old you and Mags, working together for the first time.

 “I did online classes for high school through the community college nearby and was technically a junior when I transfer to NYU, these two classes are my last and then I’m done.”

 “That’s fantastic.” “Yeah, I happy about it.” You glanced down at the boy in front of you, he seemed to be deep in thought but then sat up and faced you. 

“What if you take pictures of me? For your assignment?” 

You shook your head, “Harry I couldn’t ask you to—“ “nonsense! We’re already becoming friends right?”

 “Right…” 

“And since Mags is gone, you’ll need a muse for some of your other pieces and look right here! Probably the best muse you could find!” 

“You really are a narcissist aren’t you?”

 “Hey!” 

You both chuckled and smiled at each other. “If you’re sure, Harry…” 

The popstar nodded with a Cheshire cat grin on his face. 

“Oh also, I’m thinking that I met you in December 2014 cause you were out taking pictures and we chatted about our love for photography? Or somthin’ like that?” 

You perked up at the idea, “Yeah! And we exchanged numbers to send each other photos we thought the other would appreciate but didn’t get closer until recently when you asked from my thoughts on the album and its cover photo.”

 “Perfect, we got it down then.” A buzz came from Harry’s pocket and he immediately froze, “Shit, I need to be doing a face time interview in like 5 minutes.” 

He bounded up from the bed and raced to the door. “Keep the sweater, I bet it smells like me so it’s don’t pass out from the sexiness emitting from it if you put it on.”

“Harry!”

 He gave you a conical smile that was on the verge of sexy— not that you were thinking of it that way.

Once the door closed you melted back down into the bed.

“Fuck me.”

The show was about to start so you decided to hang out in the back of the pit for this performance. Before you left Harry handled you a crew pass that you put in the pocket of your jeans.

“If the fans get to be too much fo’ you, just show the security guard this badge an' hop the fence. You can walk up the makeshift aisle that goes down the middle o’ the pit an’ get backstage easily.” 

You nodded before making your way out into the crowd, squishing through excited fans to get to the more spacious back area of the floor.  

As you chilled, lean against the railing, waiting for the show to start, a girl in the corner of your eye caught your vision. She looked no older than 14 and kept looking in your direction, walking close by every few minutes before coming back.

When she turned to look at you again, you made eye contact with her and waved her over.

 “Hey,” you said in a calm voice, not wanting to scare her off.

 She seemed a bit nervous to approach you which confused you. “Do you— are you, um, ah—“ 

“Take a deep breath, I’m just a normal person you can talk to okay?” The girl gave you a small thumbs up and took a breath, then in one quick sentence, she said, “Are you Harry Styles’ best friend? Can I take a picture with you if that’s alright?”

“Why would you want a photo with me?” You asked, awed that she would even know her. 

She’s a dedicated fan of his, she recognized you from the photos online probably. 

The girl stuttered in front of you and then gave a laugh as if the answer was obvious.

“I’ve been a fan of Harry’s for a while now but I’ve never seen any pictures of you together—“ You tensed up a little, “That's only cause we—“ She cut you off, “No no, don’t worry! All I was gonna say if that since I’ve never seen pictures of you and him together, he must want to protect you from the media and all that icky stuff. So that must mean you’re a good person, and if he trusted you enough to share his songs with you, then I think so too. So, of course, I would want a picture with a good person, there aren’t that many left in the world ya know.”

Her answer was shunning, but it also made you feel incredibly guilty, this girl was basing you off of a complete lie you and the band had told to cover for the press. 

You swallowed the lump in your throat and took the picture with her anyways, she gave a sweet thank you! Before disappearing into the crowd as the rubric cube light lit up the crowd.

After the show, you were back in the dressing room with the band but a bit quieter than usual. The girl’s words were still caught up in your mind and you didn’t realize Harry coming up to you till he tapped your shoulder.

“Y/N?” 

You snapped out of it, “Huh? Oh, sorry, what’s up?”

“You just seem out o’ it, yeh good?” 

“Harry…” you swallowed and lean in to talk quietly, “ do you ever feel… bad that we’re lying to your fans?”

“What? Wha’ d’you mean?” He said, looking shocked at your question. 

“Like, your fans think we’re best friends but we basically just met! I don’t even know your favorite color.” 

You ran a hand through your hair, “There was this girl in the audience that said if I was your best friend that meant I was a good person, but how am I a good person if I’m lying?”

You both didn’t say anything for a moment, just listened to the chatter from others in the room and contemplated your thoughts.

“M’ favourite colour ’s blue.”

You glanced up and saw a small smile stretch across his face. 

“Mine is yellow.” You replied, starting to smile as well. He put his hand on your shoulder, “I consider you m’friend, so you’re not lyin’ love.” 

With that, the singer walked back to the group to give conjugations on another performance and you stood in the corner, watching his every move with a new found calm washing over your shoulders.

As you closed the door to your hotel room, you let out a big sigh and kicked your shoes off. Slipping your jeans off, you put on a pair of black leggings and your favorite sweatshirt. You had just finished your skincare for the night and were snuggled into bed when a knock caught your attention.

Maybe it’s the guest next-door…

But then it came again, this time a little louder and you definitely tell it was from your door. 

“Y/N!” 

A muffed voice came from it and you quickly padded over to look through the peephole.

It’s Harry!

You quickly opened the door, popping your head out to see if anyone else had heard him. 

“What are you doing? It’s 1am!”

 You said in a hushed voice, ushering him into your room. 

He was wearing black skinny jeans and a Tommy Hilfiger Down Jacket with a beanie on his head. He wore a sneaky grin on his face that made you worried.

“Wan’ ta sneak out?”

<3

telephone hour #5

ch. 6

masterlist

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #282

“daddy’s flown across the ocean / leaving just a memory / a snapshot in the family album / daddy, what’d you leave behind for me?”

What is your favorite type of dance? I like modern dances, especially those unusual or creepy with unique music. They’re the dances I look forward to watching in dance competitions. Do you find making scenes in public fun? Oh fuck no. Lemonade or pink lemonade? Pink is Supreme in so many ways. Where do you feel safest? At home, especially if Mom is here. Have you ever been to a gay pride parade? No, but I’d love to. Would you take your dream job if it were out of the country? No. I don’t want to move to Africa. What do you like to do when you're home alone? HAHA okay so I almost exclusively watch Unus Annus when Mom isn’t home because I will almost without a doubt cackle at least once, and… explaining why I’d be laughing would be WILD. UA is a fucking gift & I’mma miss it when it’s gone. What kind of music calms you down? My best bet is nostalgic music that I hold very close, like Ozzy. The soundtracks to SotC and SH2 are also magical when it comes to soothing me. Who did you last go to a park with? Uhhhh… probably not since I took family pictures for someone. Got some nice ones. Have you ever been robbed? Thankfully, no. Are you working, a student, both, or neither? Neither, and at nearly 25, it’s fucking humiliating. I’m thinking of appealing my disability case (you very rarely get it the first time), but of course self-doubt and anxiety just slaps me across the face again and again by asking, “Do you really need it?” That shit is agonizing. Very highly regarded people in my life agree that it’s realistic for me, at least at this moment, while I sort out my mental health. I don’t plan on being on it forever, fuck no. But right now I am, no matter what anyone says, a leech in my home. What's your favorite holiday? Christmas. I prefer Halloween’s “vibe,” of course, but I am much more excited and just thankful at Christmastime, especially now as an aunt with children who *understand* the holiday. Their joy and excitement is enough of a gift to me. It’s always really hard on Mom because she’s convinced she doesn’t do enough (she cries at least once like… every year), but my sisters and I always reassure her. It’s also a nice opportunity to see Dad and my stepmom, also with my sister’s family, and once again we get to see the kids so happy. But enough about them; what I love most about Christmas is I generally am able to put my troubles into perspective and take the time to remember I am, in the big picture, lucky to have what and who I do. And SNOW!!!!! If you can’t tell I’m stoked for Christmas. Do you prefer male or female friends? Both are great, but I’m more relaxed with female friends because of the whole “scared of men” ordeal. What's your favorite dessert? Biiiiihhhhh lemme get my hands on ice cream. Do you ever go on chatroulette or omegle? Noooo, I never did. That shit creeps me out. Besides, I’m shy. What kind of tea do you drink? None. Do you know anyone in a gang? Not to my knowledge… What color is your fridge? White. We decided to use the fridge already in this house versus our old one. Is your phone mostly on vibrate, silent, or ringtone? It’s just about always on vibrate. Do you own black sunglasses? I don’t own any sunglasses. Are you currently looking for a job? Fuck if I know. Not actively, but if something suitable magically popped up, I’d definitely pursue it. Do you watch MTV? No. Do you like to tell people who you like? Historically, I tend to keep my mouth shut about it to people who know that love interest unless explicitly asked, and even then, it depends on if I think they’ll keep their mouth shut. How often do you braid your hair? It’s too short to be braided. I very rarely had it braided beforehand. What color is your microwave? Black. Do you wash your face in the morning when you wake up? If I remember, especially if I’m groggy. Are you interested in the ocean? No more or no less than the average person. What's a big turn on for you? Keeping physical stuff outta this, I’m just such a fuckin sucker for being authentically romantic lmao. Have you ever thought about being a teacher? Heeeeeelllllll no. What's the first thing you do when you turn your computer on? Close out of the stuff that automatically pops up after it starts. Do you drink Gatorade? Ugh, ew, no. Do you hate when people replace 0's with O's? EX: 9:OO AM. Lol no, it’s honestly aesthetically pleasing in some formats. Did you hate riding the bus? Some of my best school memories are the long bus rides home w/ Jason so uh- Do you ever use XOXO in texts, letters etc..? Nah. Has anyone ever told you they liked you to your face? Yeah. Have you ever touched an elephant? No. Reading or writing? Writing. Do you have a childhood nickname? Mom called (and sometimes still does lakjdf;alkwe) me “Twinkie.” She gave sweets-oriented nicknames to all her kids. Have you ever had a Moon Pie? UGH they’re gross. I have this faint memory as a kid of a sweetheart babysitter my sisters and I had always offering us banana moon pies as a snack or dessert, idr. I’ve always hated anything banana-flavored. Has your car ever had troubles? N/A What's your birthstone? Amethyst. Would you join the navy? I want nothing to do with anything remotely related to war. What's your favorite board game? Battleship. Do you like chess? I’ve never played it nor even know the rules. If you’ve ever tried drugs or alcohol, what was your reason for first trying it? I was absolutely parched after a long, sweaty walk and was offered it to “try” by my mom without me knowing it was alcohol… the “WAIT NO STOP” from everyone was so quick lmao. It was just hard lemonade, so nothing super serious. Do you think you could ever have an abortion if you unexpectantly turned up pregnant right this second? I probably would. There is no fucking way I can emotionally handle carrying a baby right now. But I’d feel like absolute shit, even though I’m pro-choice. I just don’t want to picture myself in that situation. Is there a situation where you caved into peer pressure and regretted it? Probably. Although generally, I’m very resilient to peer pressure when it comes to something I really don’t want to do. What is your favorite video game console? Why? PS2, of course. I think the best games came from that era, many ahead of their time. Example, the original Shadow of the Colossus graphics massively pressured the limits of the software, and it still to this day blows me away. Sure, you have some lag in return, but the end result was just magnificent. I seriously, seriously, seriously hope I’m able to play the remake one day. When you lost your virginity, were you sober? I was. As of this minute, what is going through your mind? How I need a change and purpose in life so motherfucking badly. Where’s the last place you went? I was riding around with Mom, doing some errands. Are both of your blood parents still in your life? Yes. When was the last time you went apple picking? Never. Do you have a good relationship with your cousins? We don’t really… have a relationship. We don’t talk, we just kinda “exist” knowing we’re related. What was the last kids movie you saw? I watched some of Hotel Transylvania 3 with my niece and nephew. Do you know anyone who was born in Africa? When I was still in college, there was at least one guy in my class who was. Tutored me in math. Patience of a saint, haha. Have you ever been to an internet cafe? I actually have zero clue what that is. Has the year gone quickly for you so far? I’ve barely discerned 2018-2020, if I’m being honest with you. It’s just a lump of time where I’ve done jack-all. I mean yeah, school fits in there somewhere, but mentally I wasn’t in a wonderful place and haven’t been “happy” for a long time. My mental state has been the same for a few years. How many siblings does your significant other have? N/A Are you one of those people who can drink vodka straight? Oh, I hiiiighly doubt it. I loathe the taste of alcohol. Do you share a middle name with any of your friends? I legitimately have one of the most basic white bitch middle names in America, I know tons. How many pairs of jeans do you own? None. Do you know the name of the pharmacist at your local drug store? One, yes, considering Mom worked there before the cancer and is still in touch with this pharmacist. What flavor is your toothpaste? Mint. Are you sleepy right now? I think I’m permanently sleepy. Do you like crime films and tv shows? Not especially. Are you bitter about anything? Many things. What was the first online account you remember having? Neopets. My older sister helped me set it up when I was somewhere around eight. Do you use emojis? More than I used to. I’m gradually converting from emoticons to emojis, oof. What was the last type of soda you drank? Mountain Dew. Do you remember much from high school? I probably remember too much from high school, if I’m being honest. I remember far too much in far too much detail during the almost four years I dated Jason. Where would you go for the ultimate honeymoon? Probably the Bahamas, mostly for the pink beaches, aha. It would also be an incredible photography opportunity. Do you know anyone who has a strong accent that is hard to understand? My former best friend’s dad was so southern that yes, I could barely understand him whatsoever. If you had to get a tattoo tomorrow, what would you get? If you mean a fresh, new one and not a glow-up on the Mark tribute tat I’ve mentioned five thousand times, a tribute to Teddy featuring his portrait, pawprint, and the Powerwolf lyrics “and we’ll meet where the wild wolves have gone.” I’m going to be picky as a motherfucker about the design itself, though, so realistically it probably wouldn’t be tomorrow since I’d probably commission people to draw in varying styles. Ugh, I need that tattoo gun, my man. What was the last podcast you listened to? Do you listen to it regularly? That would be 4 Peens in a Pod (it’s… not a porn I swear, it’s Fischfuck and the boys lmao). I’m waaaaaaaaaaay behind on it, though. I watch so many different things now that I’m behind on like… everything I watch/listen to. Are you on a first-name basis with your boss? (or last boss if unemployed) I think I was with all of them? What was the last thing you wrote in a Word document? This survey. Because I combine short ones into Big Boys that I usually don’t finish in one go, I save my progress on it. Who do you miss and what do you miss about them? I miss a number of people and would rather not retrospect on them. What were the best and worst costumes you’ve ever worn? *shrug* Do you know anybody who is gay and married? I think so. What did you last take painkillers for? A headache. Are there any hobbies you want to get back into? Ugh. A whole fucking lot. I’ve thought quite a bit recently on how I miss video editing, but I just don’t have the motivation and dedication for that anymore. Have you ever shared a home with a friend? Yes. What’s the craziest or weirdest place you’ve ever slept? Nowhere that strange at all… Probably just like, the floor, but even then with blankets and stuff. What did you have for lunch today and who made it? I haven't had lunch yet. Are you allergic to anything? How did you find out? Pollen is pretty obvious, while serious discoloring and itching let me know I was allergic to silver. Have you ever been on a date with someone you met online? How was it? Yeah, I was visiting her for a couple weeks. It was nice. Who was the last very physically attractive person you saw? In ~real life~, probably some friend on Facebook. Do you know anyone who is deaf? We recently found out actually that my youngest niece is deaf in her left ear due to a massive buildup of fluid in it. I’m so ready to hear about her reaction to hearing normally once it’s taken care of. Has there ever been a person you regret ever being friends with? Probably at some point. “Ever” makes this question difficult. Do you think you have a good understanding on love? Yes. What do you think of your parent(s)? I love them both immensely while acknowledging their flaws. What celebrity do you think should of never become famous? I don’t care enough to think on this honestly haha. Did you ever get into the Twilight saga craze? What about the Harry Potter craze? Neither. What's your opinion about Katy Perry's song "I Kissed a Girl"? It was bold for its time, for sure. I’ve never minded it. Actually since coming out as bi I’ve known that this song has to be included in the recession dances of my wedding if my partner is female lmao. Do you believe in heaven? If so, what's it like? If not, why? I hope there’s some sort of total bliss after death if you’re deserving of such, but I don’t know. I definitely don’t know how I actually picture it. Even if there’s not, well, I’m assuming I just won’t exist anymore, so I wouldn’t be able to care anyway. Sometimes I hope that's the case. What email service do you use for your main (or only) email account? Hotmail. Did you ever believe in the Tooth Fairy? Yeah. I remember there was one time where “she” didn’t trade my tooth for munz and I was so mad lmao. Mom apparently forgot and slipped something under the pillow while I was getting ready for school. How I fell for it, who knows man, kids are wild. How do you feel about Taco Bell? I’m not a Mexican food fan, really, but I do love their cheese (with or without chicken) quite a bit. The cinnamon bite things are bomb as FUCK, too. I’m still mad tilted they took potato products off their menu tho because I used to destroy the fiesta potatoes. How often do you go on to YouTube? I’m like… always on it. Not focusing on it at all times, but something’s in the background. Back when Spongebob Squarepants was famous, were you interested in it? Well of course, man. What's your dream pet? Ugggghhhh a sunset morph ball python, probably. Buuut I’ve seen some over $2k with their rarity. More realistically, I really, really want a Brazilian Black tarantula. And an arctic morph hognose. I want a lot of pets. ;_; Who's been your favorite teacher growing up, and why? God, I have a lot, honestly. All things considered, the answer is probably Miss Tobey, who was my physical science teacher in high school. She’s an extremely close family friend now involved regularly in my family’s lives. She can be… difficult and says shit before thinking, but we love her nevertheless. What's your favorite fairy tale? Fuck outta here if you say Shrek isn’t one. Do you have a favorite pen? Uh, no… I barely ever use pens anyway. Has a child ever asked you a question you found difficult to answer? Yeah; it happens sometimes with my niece and nephew. Name five books you've read in the past year. I think I’ve read the first three Wings of Fire book within the same year, and I’m currently on the forth. Other than those, I started The Testaments by Margaret Atwood, but only got through the prologue I think before my focus shifted onto WoF. I still plan on reading it at some point, though. ^Are any of those books your favorite? No. The prequel to The Testaments, The Handmaid’s Tale, is very high up there, though. Are you a person that enjoys re-reading books? Not at all. Once I read it once, I’m done. There are VERY few books I’ve reread, and most of those were children’s books from when I was little. Do you have a favorite talk show host? Don’t watch any. Which sounds the most refreshing: a hot shower or a cold one? I prefer hot showers unless I seeeeeriously need to cool down. Have you ever made your own soap? No. Can you sleep with socks on? UGH NO. When was the last time you were pissed beyond belief and why? Ummm good question. I don’t know about *that* mad. Maybe when Ashley’s mother-in-law shared a massively homophobic article that condoned conversion therapy on Facebook that resulted in me removing her from my friends and RAGING to my mom about it. That was forever ago, though. Do you have a favorite candle brand? No. What is your opinion on taxidermy? I have… very mixed feelings. If the animal was hunted for sport, then it’s fuckin disgusting; you literally killed an animal with the intention to show off the fact you’re a goddamn murderer. On the other hand, taxidermy of naturally-deceased animals can be educational, and even… artistic sometimes? I don’t know. I can’t really pick one stance over the other. Would you ever want to own a body part in a jar? Actually, yes, particularly of fetal animals (that WERE NOT killed for the sake of displaying), but for the same reasons above, I’m not sure if I would *really* do it. They are incredibly interesting to me, more so than taxidermy probably, but yeah, I still question the morality of it. What is the worst thing you have ever done to your own hair? I don’t think I’ve ever really done a “bad” thing to my hair. What qualities of yours do you think could potentially harm a relationship? I’m very clingy and, in the beginning, very paranoid that you’re going to leave. Have any of your childhood habits carried over into adolescence/adulthood? I had AWFUL separation anxiety from my mom for a very long time as a kid, and I guess that evolved into my extreme inability to handle loss well, maybe. I’d say they’re at least somewhat related. What is the first band that comes to mind when I say 'dark'? Cradle of Filth popped up first. As far as relationships go, what are your biggest deal-breakers? Abuse, arrogance, and distrust probably top the list. Be honest: do looks really matter to you? Nah. It’s nice to be physically attracted to my partner, but it’s not a must. Have you ever done something simply because you were of age? No. Do you think it's worth it to tell someone you had feelings for them when you don't have them anymore? I mean, what’s the situation? Are you hanging out, talking about relationships casually? I’d say it’s fine then if it’s relevant to the conversation. I don’t think it’s worth going out of your way to tell someone you liked them if you don’t anymore, though. Have you ever done something you once thought you'd be too chicken to do? Y’know that ride at fairs where you go up really high on a circular thing with other people and then drop abruptly? That. I screamed like a mf lmao. I had to put a lot of effort into not yelling “SHIIIIIIIIIIIT” lmao. What's a food you love but don't get to eat very often? Stuff involving shrimp, ig. What's your favorite mythical being? Dragons! Have you ever felt a baby kick? I don’t think so, and I don’t want to, considering it’s fucking terrifying to me. I can’t even see a baby move without screaming and wanting to hurl. When is the last time you did something truly fun, and what was it? Who the fuck knows… What is the worst thing you've ever done when you were really angry? Said things I shouldn’t have. Are there any pills you take on a daily basis? If so, what? A lot. I can’t be bothered to go through all of them. At what age do you first remember feeling butterflies in your stomach around someone? I’m not sure. Do you feel that way around anyone now? I don’t think so. What is your main heritage? German or Irish, idr which is more prominent. What is a song that you hate to admit you like? “Bitches” by Hollywood Undead came to me first lmao. What inspires you to get off your bum and do something productive? More than anything, watching inspirational YouTube videos. What part of your body have you had the most problems with in your life? I suppose maybe my ears? I had tubes put in as a kid, I had an absolutely agonizing ear infection once, I had earwax adhered to my eardrum, and they've always been STUPID dry and flaky. Are you watching your weight? Like a hawk, but it doesn’t seem to matter anyway. :^) Have you ever become really good friends with someone you found online? Most of my closest friends I’ve met online. What is the coolest tattoo you've ever seen? You’re asking the wroooong person, lol. I’ve just seen way too many… Have you ever created anything artistic that you're proud of? If so, what? Lots of things; drawings, some writing, photographs, video edits… What do you like on your hotdogs, if you eat hotdogs? Just ketchup and mustard. What is a subject that makes you uncomfortable? Sex. What is a subject you can talk on and on about and not get sick of it? MEERKATS and MARK What is the worst thing someone could do to you emotionally? Tell me I’m weak. Or that my mental illnesses truly do make me unlovable. Just essentially do fucking not make me feel what Jason did. What is the worst thing you've ever done to someone emotionally? Said some extremely mean and potentially scarring shit.

[fred-frederator-studios]

Dale Pon, R.I.P.

Pretty much the most famous media advertising campaign in history is “I Want My MTV!” –the May 2020 Google search returns 184,000 results, more than 30 years after the last flight ran– and it was the result of the brain of Dale Pon.*

* As I explain in detail in the pieces below, writer extraordinaire Nancy Podbielniak was the word spark for the campaign; it was George Lois who suggested ripping off “I Want My Maypo!” Dale Pon was the person who took these notions and turned them into brilliance.

Dale persuaded me and the powers that be at MTV that he could make it work, Dale who convinced MTV programmers to recording artists to participate for no fees. It was Dale who took the paltry budget allotted and strategized how to maximize the network’s cable distribution. And finally, it was Dale Pon’s dogged persistence and genius that caused cable operators across America to beg us to please stop running the campaign before all the telephone operators quit in frustration from all the people “demanding their MTV!!!” 

My great friend –and better mentor– Dale Pon, passed away from difficulties due to Parkinson’s and Covid19. There’s no way to convey all of the ways people expressed their sadness to me today, but one of them probably encapsulated things best by saying “Complicated but brilliant, creatively inspired, strategic like chess master , we were lucky to have been touched by his talents...” All too true. 

Dale could be –to say the least– a challenging personality. Determined to win, he could be a bulldozer crushing an ant. Warm at his core, he could be beyond generous will all he had at his disposal. Unlike many others with talent and raw intelligence, he was quick to share his remarkable thinking, lavish in his ability to elevate the talents of the shy and uncertain, and as bountiful with praises as he could be lacerating with his critical observations. He loved as deeply as he was able, and a constant explorer for the meanings of life. 

When it came to the work, there was no one better at understanding media, and getting fans interested in its rewards. I don’t know if it was his methodologies and personality, or the fact that media promotion wasn’t all that well respected in the ad biz, but Dale didn’t have too much of a profile in the advertising world. I think, ultimately, he was much more focused on the work than on the publicity. So, things being what they are, what I’ve collected seems to be the most comprehensive look at his career, at least the parts that I’ve directly touch. By no means is it comprehensive, I know nothing about his radio days in the early 70s, and little about his work after I joined the cartoon industry. But all of what I have is yours, below. 

I’ll lead with what a few of his colleagues and friends wrote a few years ago for Dale’s birthday. And then, below that, all the various campaign pieces (written from my perspective, of course) I’ve recalled over the years. 

.....

April 2016, on the occasion of Dale’s birthday.

Dale Pon, my mentor and friend. Fucking smart.

Dale Pon’s been on my mind lately, as he is almost every day, because of the ways he taught me to think about …. um,everything. I’ve written about some other important mentors before, but Dale’s influence was so staggering I could never figure out how to sketch it out in anything shorter than book length.  

“Dominate the space.” (He was referring to graphic design, but it might have served as a life philosophy).

“Of course, there’s an absolute truth.”

“You remember the first thing you see, but the last thing you hear.”

“The power of three.” (Broke that rule with this list.)

“Advertising is a frequency medium.”

“You make album tracks. I make hit songs.”

I’m not sure that he ever thought of himself as particularly quotable, but as you’ll see below, I wasn’t alone in internalizing. There were hundreds more bon mots, most of which he probably forgot as soon as he said them but stuff I’ve never been able to shake off, to this day.

His resume doesn’t do him justice, but quickly… For 40 years, Dale Pon was at the forefront of media programming and promotion for many of the major media companies, CBS, NBC, Viacom, Storer Broadcasting (where we met). He specialized in radio throughout his career, but when Bob Pittman moved into cable television, he prevailed there too (“I Want My MTV!” is still returns hundreds of thousands of Google search results, 30 years after it went off the air). He was wildly successful in an advertising agency partnership with ad legend George Lois, before setting up a solo shop, Dale Pon Advertising, in New York City.

Dale was brash and loud, very, and he certainly wasn’t to everyone’s taste. The friend who first recommended me for one of his jobs called in a rage when he quit and said if I really needed a gig so badly… I knew Dale’s work from its supremacy of the metropolitan subway system for the New York country music powerhouse (a paradox if there ever was one) WHN Radio, but it hadn’t occurred to me that actual human beings created advertising, or that it took any real brain power. Dale quickly disabused me of that notion, as he sent me to his tailor to buy me my first three piece suit (more appropriate for Park Avenue media than the cut off shorts I wore to our interview).

Most of all, he was really fucking smart. And deeply, articulately, astute about media. He could tell the story of radio stations or television networks better than anyone, and persuade their audiences to fall profoundly in love, by sticking to the basic human emotions like truth, desire, love. (My favorite? “Love songs, nothing but love songs” for WPIX-FM, directly appropriated for an Off-Broadway show). He didn’t end it there, with a creative, strategic and statistical brilliance that combined, to quote Bob Pittman (from another context completely) “math and magic.”

What I appreciated most was his intense, almost overwhelming desire to teach me everything he knew at exactly the moment I was desperate for his knowledge. In fact, as I observed him with myself and others over the years, it would be fair to say that if you wasn’t interested in being taught, Dale Pon wasn’t interested in you. And, not for nothing, it went both ways. He’s was as incisive a questioner and listener as one could want. Curious, intrigued, dying to know anything on almost any subject. In my case, it meant that we generally spent six or seven days together all the years we were together in two different media capitals. Whew!

Difficult? Challenging? Exasperating? You bet. I wouldn’t trade that time for anything.

Dale’s the one who changed the course of my work life, and as Scott Webb says below, “he changed me.” It’s because of Dale that I stumbled on my understanding that I wasn’t a music guy after all, or even a TV baby, but a pop culture sponge. I wouldn’t had the chance to participate in any of the culture shiftings I got to observe first hand. Who knows, maybe I would’ve stumbled through a life of complete dissatisfaction. That’s how profound his influence was on me.

Dale’s birthday recently passed by, and stuck for cogent things to say about him, I reached out to a few friends who’ve crossed his path and might be better at expressing themselves than I ever could. You’ll notice they’re pretty powerful personalities themselves, but Dale made an impression. Boy, did he make an impression. (I left out some of those controversial moments and unproductive comments.)

Well, our friends didn’t let us down. They got to the heart of the matter in ways I never could. Thanks everyone.

…..

Herb Scannell: Mythical.

Dale Pon is mythical.

He’s the man who “wanted his MTV” and got the world to say the same. My friend Fred always claimed that he learned whatever he knew from Dale and whatever I know I learned from Fred so it all comes back to Dale. Or blame them both. Happy Birthday Dale! Forever young!

…..

Bob Pittman: The Mad Scientist.

Dale Pon is the mad scientist of advertising. Full of passion, always with a breakthrough idea and the urgency to get it done quickly with no compromises. He made a huge contribution to my successes at WNBC Radio, MTV and even Six Flags theme parks. One of a kind….happy birthday to him from a big fan!

……

Scott Webb: “Most people don’t know how to think.”

Dale Pon didn’t just change my life he changed me. He encouraged me to be brave and fearless and never stop solving problems. He is one of the smartest people I have ever met and the teacher I will never forget.

You never know how things are going to happen. After 4 years at Sarah Lawrence, one of the most expensive liberal arts schools, I was clueless about a career. My secret wish was to write comics (mostly because I had no talent to draw). Unlike most of my class at SLC my parents were basically working class folks with a yankee work ethic who expected me to not move back home after graduation.

One January evening, I was talking with my friend Betsy K who had just graduated. She had just returned home from job hunting in the city. She had an interview at WNBC Radio; they weren’t hiring but were looking for interns. “What’s an intern?” I asked. I was so naive.

I immediately fell in love with the energy of the radio station. I had to work there.

“You’ll be working for Dale Pon. He’s very demanding. Do you think you can handle that?” asked Buzz Brindle, a WNBC program director. Me? Of course! I’ve got my Yankee work ethic and my Sarah Lawrence education. I thought I was ready for anything. But I was not ready for Dale Pan.

Dale was bigger than life, louder than anyone else in the company and frequently slammed the door to his tiny office. I found him brilliant, charismatic and intimidating.

My first big assignment for Dale was to create a chart of all the radio stations in New York and rank them by ratings performance over the past 2 years. I wanted to do a great job for him but the truth was that I was terrible at chart making. I was a liberal arts comic book kid and he had me doing statistical analysis and I knew if I did a bad job I would probably face his famous wrath behind a slammed closed door. But despite my inept chart building, Dale painstakingly taught me how to read the Arbitron reports and methodically went through my work and instructed me how to correct it. I learned more from him over that 5 month internship than I had in my last 2 years of college. But my lesson wasn’t in statistical analysis or radio promotion. Dale had high expectations of me, he believed in me and he was demanding in the pursuit of excellence.

A lot of people at the station didn’t like Dale mostly because he would raise his voice to make a point or because he was passionate about his beliefs, or would not hold back his opinion when something was mediocre, pedestrian or just plain stupid. Dale expected greatness in people, work and business. His mission was to win and often people found that difficult to embrace. I, on the other hand, found it awesome. I guess he reminded me of the comic book heroes I admired so much - characters who were extraordinary and could do things other people thought were impossible. Most people at the radio station were happy to have a job and get a paycheck and could care less about being #1 but for him that was all that mattered.

It didn’t hurt that he was so smart and insightful. He had the uncanny super power of understand exactly what the problem was – and he taught me that creativity was the ability to solve problems in fresh, innovative and smart ways.

“Do you know why I hired you?” he asked me at the end of my internship. “I didn’t want to hire one of those kids who studied advertising or media in college. Those kids have been ruined. They show up thinking they already know everything - and they haven’t even had a job yet. You didn’t know anything but you were willing to learn and think. Most people don’t know how to think.”  

Those were some of the most important words I ever heard. They lit a fire of confidence and trust in myself that did not exist before and served me throughout my life, not just in work but in life.

…..

Bill Sobel: He yelled at me on the phone…no idea why.

…..

Noreen Morioka: “Good creates things, and Evil destroys it.”

There is no doubt that we all have a great Dale Pon story. Dale never did anything average. He did everything in extremes. Whether you were laughing so hard that you couldn’t breathe or wanting to shake him like a rag doll, Dale is unforgettable.

One of my favorite Dale Pon stories is when he was pitching a new name for a network. Since the channel was going to be all re-runs of a lower level, Dale named it Trash TV. I loved it, but when I presented my designs, he thought what I did wasn’t trashy enough and proceeded to get another designer to put flies swarming around the proposed logomark. When he presented his concept to the network president, he stopped at the building dumpster and pulled out garbage to bring up to presentation. Needless to say, the meeting didn’t go well, and the president was furious that Dale brought garbage into his beautiful office. Stern words were exchanged on both sides and security was called to take Dale and garbage out of the office. He called later to let me know they were going to search for another name. The network changed their name several times since then, and each time Dale would just smile. We all knew his solution was genius.

Like you, Fred, Dale taught me a lot. He taught me never to settle, always come back stronger and most importantly what the difference between good and evil was.

“Good creates things, and Evil destroys it.” Thanks to this simple Dale Pon-ism, I live my life by.

I will always have a deep respect and love for that guy. Happy Birthday, Dale. You are the true original.

…..

Tina Potter: So thoughtful.  

Dale is a magnanimous gift-giver. I once told him the Chrysler Building was my favorite building in NY, and the next time I saw him, he brought me a beautiful framed B&W print of the building! So thoughtful. I still have it!

……

Judith Bookbinder: ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE.

I learned a lot from Dale in a very short time.

Dale taught me that ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE.

If you want to make something happen, figure it out or find someone who can do it for you.

This simple wisdom is something that has served me throughout my professional life.

…..

Ed Salamon: Directness and Simplicity.  

I always appreciate the opportunity to say something nice about Dale, but the stories that first came to mind involved women, drugs, and fistfights. Or were otherwise too self-incriminating. Here’s what I’ve come up with:

The genius of Dale’s creativity is its directness and simplicity (like “I Want My MTV!”). Unfortunately that sometimes resulted in it being underappreciated.

When we worked together at WHN Radio I once heard our boss say to Dale at the end of the day “We need a new ad campaign slogan for the station by tomorrow. Take twenty minutes tonight, walk around the Village and come up with something.”

When I later started The United Stations Radio Network with Dick Clark and others, we hired Dale to create the logo, which  he agreed to do out of friendship for only a nominal fee. The logo was a distinctive type face, with the letters stuck together (“united”). Some in the company commented that it was too simple; others appreciated its genius.

……

Tom Freston: A great bunch of guys.

Dale is a great bunch of guys. Argumentative, persistent, a perfectionist, fun, difficult, and smart as hell….winning, ultimately, most of his arguments. Happy birthday.

…..

Therese Gamba: “Work smarter, not harder.”

Long before there was “Better Call Saul” it was “Better Call Dale”  when you were faced with a creative challenge.  Dale had a long term relationship with MTV Networks having been part of the launch team for that iconic channel.  So when The Nashville Network had to be relaunched  as the new home of the WWE (then the WWF), oh and it had to be done in three months, there was only one person to call.

My first meeting with Dale was over lunch at the Mercer Kitchen.  Fred had prepped me that Dale liked metrics and to be ready for a lot of questions.  But as anyone who’s met with Dale will tell you, you can never be fully prepared for the hurricane of creative energy that is Dale Pon.

I was prepared with my Venn diagram of the overlap between TNN’s current viewers and the WWE’s viewers (no surprise, not a big cross section). Then the questions started in what felt like a ping pong match at warp speed.  

Two hours into the lunch I had held my own and received the nod from Dale that I was on the right track. I was exhausted, relieved and thrilled to have passed the test. I learned that once you’ve basked in the glow of Dale’s approval, you were hooked.  I also learned that I had become a member of an exclusive club, “Dale’s World.”  My fellow club members all know the stories, share the memories and still live by what he taught us.

Dale always said “work smarter, not harder.”  That mantra has never failed me just as Dale never failed to be supportive, inquisitive and completely one of a kind!

Happy Birthday dear Dale!

(From left): Dale Pon, Anne Grassi, Scott Webb at WNBC Radio, circa 1980.

Alan Goodman: “I’ll give you 50 bucks to fuck up this guy’s haircut.”

Two stories about Dale Pon –

1. I was in Paris with Dale (who ran our advertising agency – my mentor was now my supplier) and MTV’s VP of Programming, Les Garland. Dale and Les weren’t pals. How tense was it? We had dinner together one night in Paris and Les bought us all expensive Cuban cigars. Outside, Dale waited until Les split off to go to his hotel. The first second Les was out of sight, Dale pitched his cigar in the gutter.

We had flown on 10 hours notice so we could shoot Mick Jagger saying “I Want My MTV!” Dale had already shot a number of other MTV generation stars shouting the line, and some were even biggish. But Jagger was THE “get.” We knew that once Jagger blessed our campaign by participating, we’d get anyone else we would ever want. (We did).

We waited around the hotel a couple of days until we got the bat signal that Mick was ready, and raced over to his hotel to set up. Very quickly, what was supposed to be Dale’s shoot had become Les’ shoot. Dale was pissed, rigid with anger, sequestered with me in the adjoining room forced to watch the proceedings on a monitor. I went over to him to try to diffuse the situation. I can’t remember what I told him. But I remember his response, word for word:

“Do you think I need to hear any of this right now?”

I realized why I was in Paris. I was there, as the client, to witness who threw the first punch.

I had spent every single day of the past four months in the office trying to figure out how to do a job I had no idea how to do. I was exhausted. I had zero interest in the kind of politics and shenanigans that network executives pull, and I didn’t want to be there. That’s it, I decided. I’ve had enough. I’m a writer. I have a talent. I can make a living. I will get back home and I will immediately quit.

I said nothing. I smiled through the rest of the shoot. We stopped at a bistro after we wrapped, and had a lovely dinner and wine with the crew. It was a celebration. For good reason. We had Jagger. I stayed quiet. Silent, even. No one knew of my plans.

When we reached the hotel, Dale drew me aside and sat me down.

“You’re not going to quit,” he said. What?! Huh?! How did he know? On top of everything, the man can read minds??!

“You’re not going to quit. You are at the very beginning of something that will change the world, and you will have a great career. You have to stay there and be a part of that and do what you do really well. You cannot leave. Do you understand? You cannot quit.”

He went up to bed. I went home the next day, and didn’t quit. Instead, I stayed and helped make the thing that changed the world. And it was the beginning of a great career.

2. I went to get my hair cut at Astor Place one day. I walked up to my guy, and there in the chair was Dale. I didn’t know Dale used my guy. Dale looked up at me, looked at the barber, and told him, “I’ll give you 50 bucks to fuck up this guy’s haircut.”

…..

Scott Webb (unedited): “He didn’t just change my life he changed me.”

You never know how things are going to happen.

I was a few short months away from graduating from Sarah Lawrence College with no idea what I would do for a job. I was a kid who had grown up reading and loving comic books. After 4 years at one of the most expensive liberal arts schools I was clueless about a career. My secret wish remained to write comics (mostly because I had no talent to draw). Sarah Lawrence was a great place for me. It was there that I understood how to learn. I was naturally curious and SLC exposed me to a world of ideas and brilliant people (students and teachers). But Sarah Lawrence was not a place where I could start a career path. 5 months from graduating I felt the looming pressure of finding a job and making money. Unlike most of my class at SLC my parents were basically working class folks with a yankee work ethic who expected me to not move back home after graduation.  

One January evening, I was talking with my friend Betsy K who had just graduated. She had just returned home from job hunting in the city. She had an interview at WNBC radio with a guy named Buzz Brindle. She said they weren’t hiring but were looking for interns. “What’s an intern?” I asked. I was so naive. She explained that an internship is where you work for free - for experience and to get your foot in the door. WNBC was part of NBC - one of only 3 existing TV networks at the time and my eyes lit up at the idea of of doing anything with a big media company. So I lined up a meeting with Buzz to see if I was intern material.

Buzz was sweet and avuncular and I immediately fell in love with the energy of the radio station. I had to work there. “We’re looking for interns in the promotion department” Buzz explained and I just nodded as affirmatively as possible. “You’ll be working for Dale Pon. He’s very demanding. Do you think you can handle that?” Me? Of course! I’ve got my Yankee work ethic and my Sarah Lawrence education. I thought I was ready for anything. But I was not ready for Dale Pon.  

I interned at the station 2 days a week and It appeared I was the only male in Dale’s promotion team. I reported to a woman named Anne Grassi but Dale was the boss. Dale was bigger than life, louder than anyone else in the company and frequently slammed the door to his tiny office. I had never worked in an office before. I found him brilliant, charismatic and intimidating. The other interns and I would huddle in the conference room where we did our work and wait for our next assignment.

I did many things as an intern but my first big assignment for Dale was to create a chart of all the radio stations in New York and rank them by ratings performance over the past 2 years. This was no small task - this was way before computers in offices - and required me to go to the NBC research department to collect dozens of Arbitron ratings books and laboriously extract the data he wanted and lay it out graphically. I wanted to do a great job for him but the truth was that I was terrible at chart making.

I was a liberal arts comic book kid and he had me doing statistical analysis and I knew if I did a bad job I would probably face his famous wrath behind a slammed closed door. But despite my inept chart building, Dale painstakingly taught me how to read the Arbitron reports and methodically went through my work and instructed me how to correct it. I learned more from him over that 5 month internship than I had in my last 2 years of college. But my lesson wasn’t in statistical analysis or radio promotion. Dale had high expectations of me, he believed in me and he was demanding in the pursuit of excellence.

The chart was part of his battle plan to make WNBC #1 in the NYC market and when I understood the big picture of what he was doing I felt even more inspired and willing to do anything in the service of that cause.

A lot of people at the station didn’t like Dale mostly because he would raise his voice to make a point or because he was passionate about his beliefs, or would not hold back his opinion when something was mediocre, pedestrian or just plain stupid. Dale expected greatness in people, work and business. His mission was to win and often people found that difficult to embrace. I, on the other hand, found it awesome. I guess he reminded me of the comic book heroes I admired so much - characters who were extraordinary and could do things other people thought were impossible. Most people at the radio station were happy to have a job and get a paycheck and could care less about being #1 but for him that was all that mattered.  

It didn’t hurt that he was so smart and insightful. He had the uncanny super power of understand exactly wha the problem was - and he taught me that creativity was the ability to solve problems in fresh, innovative and smart ways. “Do you know why I hired you?” he asked me at the end of my internship. “I didn’t want to hire one of those kids who studied advertising or media in college. Those kids have been ruined. They show up thinking they already know everything - and they haven’t even had a job yet. You didn’t know anything but you were willing to learn and think. Most people don’t know how to think.”  Those were some of the most important words I ever heard. They lit a fire of confidence and trust in myself that did not exist before and served me throughout my life, not just in work but in life.

Dale Pon didn’t just change my life he changed me. He encouraged me to be brave and fearless and never stop solving problems. He is one of the smartest people I have ever met and the teacher I will never forget.

.....

Susan Kantor and David Hyman were on the opposite side of their relationships with him, Susan as a long time account executive in Dale’s agencies, and David as a client. Drew Takahashi, a trusted friend and wonderful creative partner.  

I’m particularly fond of the pull quote from David’s recollections. Having had hundreds of restaurant meals with DP over the years, waitress confusion was probably my overriding remembrance.

Susan Kantor has traveled to the upper heights of television since her time with Dale Pon in the 1980s. But when you read her memoir below he prepared her well, as he did with all of us.

Drew Takahashi is a director who co-founded (Colossal) Pictures, San Francisco, one of the most creative production companies of the 1980s and 90s, and one of the key creative suppliers to the first decades of MTV.

David Hyman became my head of marketing at the MTVi Group when the company purchased Sonicnet.com, one of David’s early digital music endeavors (he’s gone on as founder of MOG, one of the seminal digital music streamers).

…..

Susan Kantor: “Lead, don’t follow”. Love, Dale”

Hands down, Dale Pon was my most influential career mentor. Ridiculously smart, enormously passionate, admirably courageous and truthfully a little scary.

We would all brace ourselves for the moment the elevator doors opened and the sound of his fiercely determined walk in his trademarked cowboy boots could be heard. With the first, “good morning” would come a rapid fire interrogation of where we were at on all the “to do’s” he had just given us an hour ago. “Why isn’t it done yet?”

Leslie Fenn-Gershon and I used to joke about putting a Valium in his Perrier so we could get through the day.

When I got to the office in the morning there would often be a “note”, on my chair written with red Sharpie marker on yellow pad lined paper (pre-email), from Dale.  His handwriting, had as much conviction as his spoken word.  These encouraging notes were meant to guide, remind, teach, mentor or simply, to show his appreciation - often complimentary, occasionally piercing. I still have them.

“Lead, don’t follow”. Love, Dale

“Let’s make things happen!” Love Dale “

“There are children and there are parents. Be a parent.” Love, Dale “

“Everyone wants to be told what to do. Tell them.” Love, Dale “

“We had a good day today. Thank you for your help.” Love, Dale

As we chased rock stars around the globe helping MTV and VH1 revolutionize the music industry, and traversed across the county to position many TV and radio stations in their market, Dale always imparted the importance of what we were doing and demanded we do our very best, every day.

He recognized my innate work ethic, enthusiasm and willingness to do whatever it took to learn and succeed – he also knew how young and naïve I was.  Ripe for mentorship and direction. I got both, and then some. The Dale Pon “boot camp” was not always pretty, but it was always colorful, impactful, memorable and most importantly, meaningful.  

Not only did he teach me all about advertising and the importance of finding the unique selling proposition and saying it as simply as possible so people would remember it, he showed me the world and how not to be intimidated by it. He made me self-aware of my talents and my shortcomings. He also taught me there was no substitute for doing the work.

To this day, I love you Dale and I thank you for believing in me and giving me the chance of a lifetime.

Belated birthday wishes and hope to see you again soon!

…..

Drew Takahashi: “…he gleefully pushed me to do stuff I hated.“

After seeing you and the MTV crew took me back to good/bad old days. I realized I missed Dale Pon.

Back in the day I didn’t know he was a mentor. I only knew he gleefully pushed me to do stuff I hated. In the end I realized you and he knew what was better for me than what I knew. Someday I’ll learn my lesson.

Steve Linden and I went to shoot with Dale for WNBC [AM]. He asked us to meet him at Windows on the World bar for drinks and dinner. He showed up two hours later and Steve and I were suitably toasted. Then he insisted we join him in a very alcoholic dinner. I was so hungover the morning of the shoot I didn’t know how I could direct the talent, Don Imus. Dale apologized for needing to shoot something first so we didn’t roll my spot until the afternoon. Saved my ass.

Many more memories. The weirdest was him in the Colossal bathroom cleaning crabs of their guts for a surprise picnic in the middle of our animation camera shoot.

…..

David Hyman: “[He] always confused the waitresses.”

Here’s mine:

Dale came up with the name of my company, Gracenote.  I think that just came really easy to him.  

For a while he was a really great teacher to me. I stubbornly couldn’t take the occasional abuse that went with it, even though it was probably good for me. I was honored to be asked as the voice over for a $30 million tv ad campaign by Dale and encouraged to do voice over work. Thrilling to be informed I had career chops outside of sales & marketing.

Dale is the only person i know that would always order two margaritas for himself (at the same time). It always confused the waitresses.

.....

With Dale Pon @WHN Radio. 1977, New York City.

It was against all odds, but my late 70s stint in country music radio hooked me up with a mentor who made the difference.

Before I got to New York’s 1050 WHN, I was aware of the station. Well aware. Sometime in 1976, my friend/future partner/father of my beloved nephew and niece, Alan Goodman, asked me whether I’d seen some giant subway posters (the top photo above). Of course, I’d noticed them, with large portraits of Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, The Eagles, Charlie Pride, Loretta Lynn, Kenny Rogers, Olivia Newton-John, Linda Ronstadt and seemingly dozens of other traditional and contemporary stars of the era. There were so many, they seemed to be everywhere. And, they were gorgeous, well designed, in a sea of drop-dead-New York graffiti, hum drum posters, homeless campers and mess, standing out like nothing we’d ever seen down there before. Too bad it was for music we couldn’t stand.

After I got the job with the station’s creative director and ad man, Dale Pon (another story for another time), I found out a bit about the thinking at the station and the advertising campaign. How did a city that was the home of the most sophisticated popular music of all time –to the likes of Duke Ellington, George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Frank Sinatra– welcome the shitkickers in and become the second most popular radio station in the United States (or the world, for that matter)?

Dale was the supremely gifted Vice President of Creative Services, and he introduced me to Ed Salamon, the station’s innovative program director (Neil Rockoff was the General Manager who brought them together), who used a Top 40 radio approach* to country radio, upending the entire (typical New Yorker’s) notion that country music hadn’t evolved since Hank Williams.

No ordinary radio promotion guy, Dale had been a media buyer at Ogilvy, a radio upstart (a mild description) when the world switched from AM to “progressive” FM, and run radio ad sales teams. In the 80s, he would go on to successfully run his own advertising agency, and together we started one of the most famous media campaigns of all time, “I Want My MTV!”).  

Dale Pon wasn’t going to promote the station as cowboy boots and hats, like the last team did. He wanted big ratings for WHN, big ratings. They all did.

* If you’re interested, Ed’s written a book that details his contrarian, and wildly successful, methods called WHN: When New York Went Country.  

WHN Radio illustrations from top to bottom, all creative direction by Dale Pon 1977: New York City subway station double truck posters (L-R) Olivia Newton-John (obscured), Linda Ronstadt, Elvis Presley; Olivia Newton-John; Kenny Rogers; Television/Radio Age cover ads; Linda Ronstadt double truck subway poster.

.....

I Want My MTV! Early 1980s, New York City.

MTV had been on the air for six months and we’d fired the storied Ogilvy & Mather and hired Dale Pon’s LPG/Pon (a joint venture with George Lois) at my insistence. Now they were presenting their first trade campaign for advertisers and cable operators and my first big decision was being called into question. America is fast becoming a land of Cable Brats! “It’s audacious! Outrageous! Just like you guys.” George Lois was a big talker, a big seller, and a bit of a smart ass, loudmouth. He was also smart. Even though I knew he designed the “cable brats” thing, it was my brilliant mentor Dale, who’d never steered me wrong creatively or strategically, who was behind the whole thing. His ex-girlfriend, and now one of my best friends, Nancy Podbielniak, had written the copy. Besides, I agreed with Dale that generally trade advertising was a waste of time and bigger waste of money. Consumers were where it’s at, and weren’t all the tradesmen we were hopping to reach consumers too? If we had a knockout punch of consumer advertising our job would be done. I knew he was keeping his powder dry for the big show.

America is fast becoming a land of Cable Brats! There’s an incorrigible new generation out there. They grew up with music. They grew up with television.  So we put ‘em both together – for the Cable Brats, and they’re taking over America! They’re men and women in the 18 to 34 age range advertisers want most – plus the increasingly important 12 to 17 segement. The Cable Brats buy all the high volume, high ticket, high tech, high profit products of modern America. They’re strong-willed, cunning, crazily impulsive – an advertiser’s peerless audience. They look and listen and they want their MTV. And they buy, buy, buy. Rock'n'Roll wasn’t enough for them – now they want their MTV. (The exploding 24-hour Video Music Cable Network (and it’s Stereo!)

George was certainly right. It was audacious, and it was a touch outrageous. Somehow, the tone wasn’t quite right, but after the crap Ogilvy had done for us, it was way better. Besides, hidden in there was the sand grain that was going to lead us to our pearl.

.....

I Want My MTV! 1982, New York City.

I WANT MY MTV! took the phenomenon that had taken over the imaginations of young America and supercharged it into a famous brand with just about everyone in the country. I just googled [in 2010]  “I Want My MTV” and it popped up almost 4,760,000 results. Pretty amazing for an advertising campaign that ceased to exist 22 years ago.* Pretty potent.   The whole thing was the work of my mentor and friend Dale Pon. He’d been my first boss in the commercial media, at WHN Radio in New York when it was a country music station. He’d recommended me for my job at Warner Amex Satellite Entertainment Company, as the production director of The Movie Channel, and eventually as the first Creative Director of MTV: Music Television. We’d fallen in and out over the years, but in late 1981, when it came time for us to hire an advertising agency again –at first, the top dog had vetoed Dale as not heavy enough for a company like ours– with a lot of help from my immediate boss Bob Pittman, I was able to convince everyone that Dale understood media promotion better than anyone else in America. Anyone. Besides, didn’t he have “insurance” with his partner, legendary adman George Lois?

Dale Pon (via MTV: The Making of a Revolution)

No one had ever encountered an ad executive like Dale, because he had the unique ability to be completely and analytically strategic –”math and magic” Pittman might call it– and be wildly, and intelligently, creative at the same time. An almost unheard of combination, especially in media advertising. Sure, he had a volatile nature, in advertising that was often a given (look at his partner). But it was his strategic, creative abilities that really set him apart.

We’d already done our first trade campaign, the “Cable Brats,“ to the discomfort of most of the suits in the corporate marketing group (Bob and his team, me included, were in programming). But Dale didn’t buy into the efficacy of trade ads anyhow, so now were onto the big show, television advertising. The only problem was that we all recognized that an effective campaign would cost about $10,000,000. Our budget only had $2,000,000, and if we didn’t spend it quickly the corporate gods would probably take it away in the fall.

"I want my Maypo” commercials, created by John Hubley

Looking back, the core creative ended up being the most straightforward part. Dale’s closest friend and creative partner, Nancy Podbielniak had written the cable brats copy and had a tag line “Rock'n'roll wasn’t enough for them – now they want their MTV!” That rung a bell in George Lois, someone who never missed a chance to abscond with someone else’s good idea, and decided to rip off his own knock off of a Maypo campaign from the 1950s and 60s (animator John Hubley originated it as a set famous animated spots, and George had unsuccessfully knocked it off using sports stars) and presented a storyboard that completely duplicated his version. Rock stars like Mick Jagger were saying “I Want My MTV” and crying like babies, implying they were spoiled children being denied. No one was buying it until Dale let me know that there was no way he’d ask Pete Townshend or Mick to cry for us. “Pride! They need to show their pride in rock'n'roll! They’ll be shouting!” After a little corporate fuss we were able to sell it in.

AMERICA! DEMAND YOUR MTV!

Now, it was the next part that was completely and utterly brilliant. Because Dale came from the school that great creative was all well and good, but unless it could move the business needle, what good was it? In this case, the needle wasn’t ratings (cable TV didn’t have ratings in 1981), but active households, distribution for MTV. Cable operators were all relatively old guys who thought The Weather Channel was a better idea; they’d turned a deaf ear to their younger employees who were clamoring for us instead.

To dramatically simplify the strategy Dale organized, he decided to only advertise in markets where:

• There was enough penetration to justify a modest ad spend.

• But where there were critically large cable operators on the fence about taking MTV.

• And that we could afford a 300 gross rating point buy (three times heavier as any consumer products agency would suggest) for at least four weeks in a row (the traditional media spend would call for pulsing 10 days on and 10 days off).

The “G” in LPG/Pon was Dick Gershon. Along with data from our affiliate group, he crunched and crunched and crunched until he came up with a list of markets and dates we could afford. It was 20% of what we needed, but everyone figured if we could really start to knock off a bunch of cable systems, get them actually launch our network, the domino effect would solidify MTV’s hold on the market forever.

Strategy in place, the creative was back on the front burner. The basic campaign was a great way to get famous rock stars endorsing our channel, but where was the close? What would actually make the 'ka-ching’ we needed? Luckily, back in the day there was only one way to for a homeowner get anything from your reluctant jerk of a cable operator (they figure they held all the cards, why should they do anything to make life better for their consumers?). And what was it that young adults loved to do? Dale knew immediately.

No one alive in front of a television set in the summer of 1982 could ever forget

Pete Townshend, with the wackiest haircut of his career, shouting at the video camera:

“America! DEMAND your MTV! Call your cable operator and say, "I WANT MY MTV!!”

We shot the spots wherever the rock stars would have us for 20 minutes (they still weren’t really sure this MTV: Music Television thing was going to be good for them). Our director and producer, Tommy Schlamme and Buzz Potamkin, got together with some puppeteers to choreograph the 'dancing’ stereo television. I asked my partner to go into the studio to edit the music sections when they weren’t rocking enough, and –poof!– famous advertising.

Nothing to it, yes?

* For comparison, “I Want My Maypo” posts 112,000 results on Google. Or “Where’s the beef?”, another famous 1980’s campaign for Wendy’s returns 176,000 (or if you only use that phrase, which has been appropriated for all sorts of uses, you get 2,640,000).

.....

“Mee, mee, me, meeee!” MTV Networks Online, 1999/2000 New York City

MTV got Sonicnet in the middle of another transaction they thought would be more important. But as the internet heated up in the business world’s consciousness, Sonicnet.com became something they thought to pay attention to. Which meant that, as president of MTV Networks Online, I was trying to help make the thing successful.

MTV had also acquired a then-unique personalized radio application. Coupled with Sonicnet, we decided an ad campaign would supercharge the site, something large media folks like us thought was necessary. (It wasn’t.*)

Over a few objections, I hired my brilliant, challenging mentor Dale Pon to create our campaign. Dale had done our the iconic “I Want My MTV” for me in the early 1980s and constantly proved himself to be the most creative and effective media ad man in America. The stunningly talented and perfectly musical film director Tim Newman was already on our online staff (after turning his back on a career that included some of the greatest music videos of all time), so he was really the only person who we thought could direct the spots. Dale hustled our head of marketing, David Hyman, into his one and only –and perfect– voice acting job. (And, I should put in a word for the Sonicnet logo. Designed by AdamsMorioka, from a concept developed by Fred Graver.

You can see for yourself that Dale knew how conceive big ideas to bring out the best from stars. With Tim in the director’s chair, the results were pretty stunning. And, to cap it, Dale really knew how to use MTVi’s clout to reach for the stars (like Isaac Hayes, James Brown, Joshua Bell, Jewel, Pat Metheny, Sheryl Crow, Beenie Man, Gang Starr, Faith Hill, Lindsey Buckingham, Don Henley, Al Jarreau, Alice Cooper, Blink 182, Kenny Wayne Shephard, Bon Jovi, Buck Cherry, Charlotte Church, Christina Acquilera, Dwight Yoakam, The Ruff Ryders, Eve, Johnny Resnick (The Goo Goo Dolls), kd lang, Buck Cherry, Kelis, Lindsey Buckingham, Melissa Etheridge, Moby, Seal, Sisqo, Static X, SheDaisy, Hillary Hahn, Charlotte Church, Yo Yo Ma, and Sting.)

This campaign, like every other one I’d worked on with Dale over the decades, was a hoot. One of the best things to come out of my one year in the early corporate internet. 

…..

* IMHO, one of the great mistakes media companies made during Web 1.0, was thinking that their traditional audience reach would give them huge advantage in building web destinations. They’d made the exact same mistake in the transition from broadcast to cable. It didn’t occur to them in either era that a basic misunderstanding of the newest medium –not knowing what the audience wanted from the upstarts– would not attract anyone to their websites.

And, by the by, the same mistake has been made from popular websites bungling the transition to mobile. And, so it goes.

[mattlassen]

My Ascent into MADness

          I’ve seen a lot of eulogies to MAD from contributors and fans alike the past week since the news broke that they wouldn’t be printing new material going forward. Yes, it is a loss for me as a MAD contributor but to be honest, I have been processing this loss and the end of MAD for a little while now. As Tom Richmond said so dead on, this was not something we didn’t see coming.

           I wrote some tweets as a tribute to MAD the day after the announcement went public but I feel I owe it more. (I really am a millennial - I thought a tweet or two was enough!) MAD was a big part of my life. It changed my life. It deserves more than Twitter. We all do!

           I was a writer and artist (occasionally) for MAD since I interned at the age of 19 but not many people know how I encountered MAD for the first time. I was born with a pencil in my hand as my mom says which makes me question what she was eating and drinking during pregnancy. I was always drawing and dreamed of being a comic strip artist after my dream of being a basketball star went by the waist side when everyone got taller and left me well by their waist side! During high school, my family took a trip to California and being big fans of Peanuts (my mom and I), we visited the Charles Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa. It was an amazing experience. We went around the whole museum while my dad and brother tailed off to let my mom and I experience it more in-depth at our leisure. When I met up with my dad later, he said “I was sitting in on this artist talk and the guy is pretty good. Maybe you’d be interested.” We went in and Tom Richmond was doing a talk about caricatures. They were amazing. Funny, exaggerated and completely dead on. You knew who it was right away! The perfect caricature.

           As the talk ended, Tom showed the opening spread artwork he just finished for MAD Magazine for the movie, Spiderman 2. Wow. Caricatures, amazing line, color and backgrounds together. Oh and stupidity! Spiderman’s pants were coming down so his underwear was showing, Doc Ock had big bandages on his tentacles and there was a paper that said “Man bites Dog, Dog sues.” The best was a spider web coming from the middle of Spiderman’s legs which I remember Tom saying, “Yeah, I’m surprised I got away with that one.” I left amazed but also thinking I can’t draw like that. Uh-oh.

           The museum announced that they would be doing a caricature workshop with Tom in about five minutes upstairs for free. We all went with a little encouragement from my parents. Tom started by asking for a volunteer that he could do a caricature demonstration of. My parents were very insistent that I do it, but being a teenager at the time (who looked quite younger than his actual age, short and scrawny!), I didn’t want to. I was picked and had to go up in front of everyone for an artist to pick apart my face and draw me. Yay! I was a good sport and a very jokey guy so I can take a joke just like I dished them out. He drew me on chart paper with big muscles and a mom tattoo because hell, my mom was the whole reason he was drawing me! I left the workshop with a caricature in my hand and MAD Magazine in my head. I need to get the magazine that had this Spiderman art in it. Many years later after hanging and talking to Tom on multiple MAD occasions as contributors, I told him this story at a party after a beer or two. He was a bit surprised to say the least.

           We went to a mall shortly afterwards and I was searching for the MAD art in the newsstands but it wasn’t out yet. I settled for the latest issue and was amazed by the diverse amazing artwork in the magazine. Since I met Richmond, I was fascinated with his work and it really stood out but there were other guys that were cool too like Mort Drucker, Hermann Mejia, Tom Bunk and John Caldwell (my all-time favorite since he was much goofier looking and simplified with his artwork just like I liked to draw!) Plus, he had this squiggle in his line which was intriguing. How? Why?

           I became obsessed with MAD for the art. I didn’t read it as much as I should have early on but I was just obsessed with the artwork as a budding cartoonist. The words were secondary to me. It was an art magazine. I drew everything in high school with chicken fat - gags on top of gags. My MAD subscription and obsession continued when I entered college. I went on the MAD website and saw they had internships in the New York offices for art and editorial. I was in no way a graphic design person. I hated it. Type and layout was boring. I wanted to be a cartoonist! I applied for both art and editorial. I wrote and mocked up my own outtakes from different TV shows such as The Office, Muppets etc. which was a recurring feature in the magazine at the time. It was something fun to do on a rainy Saturday night. I submitted and thought nothing of it. I wasn’t going to get it. Another summer doing art and taking summer classes. Yay.

            I checked my email on a slow Monday morning and to my astonishment, there was an email from Amy V. at MAD offering me an editorial internship. I was stunned. I told my family and they were ecstatic for me and soon I was starting my first day as a MAD intern. It was insane. The only magazine, I liked and I was going to work there. I got there and we had a morning staff meeting first thing. The whole staff (which wasn’t big at all!) and the four interns (two editorial and two art). I was nervous but was eased when the staff was grilling us about the magazine and I was the only one answering everything. I remember art leaving after giving their report on the status of their pieces and what they needed etc. John Ficarra, the editor (and best Benjamin Franklin impersonator I’ve ever met) took a piece of paper and wrote down what Michael and I would be doing. I got a big speech from my family about interns and how I shouldn’t expect much, I’m going to get coffee and do meaningless jobs that others didn’t want to do etc. John said “Okay, you’ll be writing fundalini pieces in house such as “The Godfrey Report”, “Celebrity Cause of Death Betting Odds” - give us a list of celebs to approve before you start and Fundalini asks “What If…?” etc.” He also said, we will have brainstorming writing sessions where you will work with us etc. I don’t think I blinked for the two minutes he was talking. Then he said, Dave will show you your office and get you guys set up. We had an office. We had our own desks. We had our own computers, phones. What?! Where was the coffee I needed to get them?

            We went right to writing, Michael and I. We came up with a bunch of celebrities etc. and got to know each other. I was always an art person and a little funny in classrooms and parties but never would I think of myself as a writer. We got a bunch of issues from the storage closet and focused in on the material we had to write specifically. I was seeing the magazine in a completely different light. It was incredibly smart and funny. Why wasn’t I reading this cover to cover all the time? We started writing together and putting out stupid jokes to try to make each other laugh. Sometimes successfully and most of the time, not. The soul crushing silence became the most dreaded thing in my life. The joke didn’t land and you just embarrassed yourself. That writing session was broken up by a call to come to the editor’s office because Al Jaffee was there dropping off the new Fold In. What?! This day is getting more surreal. That was cool is an understatement. Eventually, throughout the days at MAD, Michael and I wrote by ourselves and didn’t really collaborate on any pieces mostly because we had different comedy sensibilities and it was easier to write by ourselves. I started writing all day long and printing out my pieces to read and revise on my commute home.

            I got to sit in on fold in meetings, department writing sessions, general pitch meetings from writer submissions and what direction they wanted to go with content. I quickly figured out that I wasn’t as quick and funny as everyone else thought I was. These guys have been doing it for decades. Damn were they good! My first department writing meeting, they had an article about Fast Food and they needed a fake department name. I didn’t even get to process what the article was and the editor says “When Grease Meets West?” to which he is interrupted by Charlie singing “All We Are Sayyyyinnnnggg…Is Give Grease a Chance.” I was dumbfounded, out of my element and intimidated. I need to get better and quick.  

            As the six-week internship went on, I wrote so many pitches and submissions. I wrote three or four pages of Godfrey Reports (maybe nine got in), multiple Celebrity Cause of Death Betting Odds (three or so that got printed), so so many what ifs, that were off the mark. I loved it there! The people were funny, they were welcoming and better yet, they were kind and nurturing. They told you what worked and didn’t work. They didn’t care who had the best idea or the funniest line in the room, they liked that it was the best and funniest! It was comedy boot camp and you wanted to work there forever.

             We helped write fundalini pieces, department titles, articles in house, even an article introduction and so much more. I was like a staff member. I would get there early and leave later than I needed to. I met legends and heroes of mine when they would visit the office including Al Jaffee, John Caldwell, Teresa Burns Parkhurst, ironically, Tom Richmond and Hermann Mejiia among others. We got to go through original art for auction (where I found three Don Martins which they had to pry from my hands before I drooled on them), got to admire and examine Mort Drucker original pages that he just fed ex’ed in for a new parody with the staff, see the construction of a cover putting Obama and Alfred together (like 20 or 30 different versions) and the same for the Knockout Obama, Hillary piece both by Mark Frederickson. I felt like a staff member and left being assigned an editor to submit to and now you are a contributing writer, if you want to be. Submit anything you want. Now I’m a writer. They didn’t know who I was six weeks before. I’m just a college kid. I’m a contributor now? That was the best thing about MAD, they didn’t care what else you did for other people, they wondered what could you do for us. Don’t show me work you did for other people, show me a piece you wrote specifically for us. They looked at potential and built up talent to a new level.

            I wrote and wrote and there was a lot of near sales but a lot of not quites. I sold to MAD Kids before Christmas. That was a cool Christmas gift. In January, the magazine lays off three staff members and goes quarterly. There’s a famous Stephan Pastis line that I always remember and works best here “I finally get to play for the Lakers and the stadium is collapsing underneath us.” I came back the next summer and interned in the art department. Now, I’m getting to know people I knew but didn’t work with closely at all. Same old MAD but completely different. Instead of being with the editorial guys, I was with the art guys, Ryan, Sam and Doug. All smart, funny and amazing guys themselves. I came right into a deadline for the magazine and was put to Photoshopping different things. I was then tasked with restoring fold ins for a upcoming fold in collection. The previous intern did about ten or so which meant we were a long way away from completion. Over the next six weeks, I restored over 450 or so fold ins for the book, got to have lunch with and meet more artists and writers including Harry North, Jason Chatfield, Shannon Wheeler etc. and go through more original artwork to send back to the artists. Any cartoonists dream. I think Adam Cooke and Michael Slaubaugh visited that summer too! During this time, I wrote a piece on the weekend and submitted it to Dave Croatto, my editor, to which they eventually bought! Now I was actually a contributor to MAD! Not in house pieces but as a writer.

            After leaving MAD as an art intern, I looked for other places to intern/write for/work for. I knew MAD wasn’t going to pay the bills! I interviewed at The Onion where they told me I would hate working there after working at MAD because they didn’t care if it was the funniest idea or line in the room, if an intern said it they would ignore it. Nothing was like MAD and would be like it. I became very loyal to MAD. I only wrote for them. I didn’t consider myself a comedian, I was just a writer for MAD and MAD only. I temped after college in the editorial department for a month (literally, the day after my last final ever and took a day off for graduation!) We started the blog, established daily posting and internet presence through the current events that was happening. I started submitting more and selling on a more consistent basis. I valued their opinions and their direction. Nothing made me happier than seeing a MAD guy on the floor of a convention or visiting the office once or twice a year. They changed my career and the way I looked at things by just giving a 19-year-old kid a chance and some criticism and encouragement. They let me submit cartoons and I started to sell those too!

           I continued to write for the magazine and even got a page in their new book, Inside MAD, to write about MAD as a contributor. I did other freelance art jobs and eventually went back to graduate school to become an art teacher. Even throughout the four years I’ve been teaching, I continued to contribute and write consistently for the magazine. There are too many stories and memories to recount. (Believe me, this could be much longer!) When MAD announced they were moving to California, I went into mourning. My buddies were leaving. There were talks for years about this happening and they resisted as much as they could. I didn’t know what was going to be next for them and the magazine. I wanted to continue writing because it was my outlet and a nice hobby for me to destress from life and my full time gig of teaching cartooning. It wasn’t a job for me, it was fun!

           The new year came and it meant starting over with a new staff. It was hard. I tried but my heart wasn’t in it as much as when the New York staff was there. I wrote pieces and sold pieces (many that didn’t get printed because of the shortened run) but contributed none the less. As my job got more intense, I wrote less and less and without the same relationship, I had in the past my motivation folded a little bit before MAD did. My mourning period has lasted for a year and a half so the end of MAD wasn’t such a surprise or as much of a loss as it would have been otherwise for me. It still is a loss, don’t get me wrong but less so. This isn’t any slight to the West Coast MAD staff at all. It was me, not them. MAD became a fun hobby for me. Not my sole income and my way of life. I did it because I had the ideas and I enjoyed the people and the work. Plenty of people make fun of politicians, celebrities and the stupidity of the life but I occasionally got paid for it.

            I’ve been asked if I will try to get into other publications. I don’t know. Maybe. You might just see more MAD like pieces in my own webcomics and cartoons. The influence will be there forever and I hope people can clearly see that through the bad puns, the political stupidity and the irony.

            MAD is the cartooning and comedy bible. I loved the art as a cartoonist and grew to love the writing and minds behind everything as a contributing writer. My art and views are completely changed by my experiences working and being a MAD idiot. Everything I do is so idea based now because of MAD and being a MAD writer. They weren’t afraid of new blood or printing work from an unknown artist or writer. They gave chances and crafted things that were truly unique. I thank them for changing my life and letting me be a part of theirs and their legacy for the past decade. All of the amazing people and contributors I have met because of it is amazing. I will miss the occasions we would meet, share a joke or even lament about things. My life would be something very different if I didn’t go to a museum in Santa Rosa, if I didn’t submit an internship application and if I didn’t pick up a MAD Magazine on vacation. I would be called an idiot in different, not so surprising and endearing contexts and I wouldn’t have an Alfred sized hole in me today. I’m proud to sound off like I have to other MAD NY staffers and contributors in our coded communications.

Forever MAD

[yourmandevine]

Come on, come on, come on: get through it

NOTE: A lot of people who have read this have shared their condolences and well wishes, which is really nice. Some have also asked if there was anything they could do for Sean’s family, which is amazing. If you’re able and feel moved to, there is: There’s a college fund for Winnie. Thanks to everyone who has reached out.

***

One of the best friends I’ll ever have died on November 29, after a fight with cancer. He was 36, and he leaves a wife and a young daughter, all of which is an infuriating sin. I’ve been trying to find a way to sit with that. I’m not sure how well I’ve been doing.

I gave the eulogy at his funeral mass. Whenever I’ve talked to people about that, they have apologized to me, have said they were so sorry that I got asked to do that, that I had to do that. It’s weird: I never looked at it like that.

I feel so lucky that I got to know Sean Enos-Robertson -- to really know him, what he cared about, what he loved, what made him so special. You rarely get to know anybody like that, and when you do, sometimes you don’t wind up liking what you see. That never happened with Sean; he was a font of joy, someone who lived to make the lives of others just a little bit better. His wife asked me if I’d write something down and talk to people about this beautiful, amazing person I was so lucky to know. That wasn’t a burden. It was a privilege. An honor.

And now, a few weeks later, as I’m trying to figure out how to process this, I keep thinking that I’d like to share that.

You guys won’t get to know Sean, which is so, so decidedly your loss. But maybe this lets you know how much he meant to me, to us, and to so many other people, and it makes you think about the people who mean this much to you. And maybe you tell them.

Maybe you tell them while you have the chance, because telling people you care about them, and who they are in your life, and why you love who they are full stop is one of the best things there is, and there’s never a wrong time for it so long as it’s before the end. I got to tell Sean how I felt before he died, and I got to tell his family, and his friends, and his students -- my God, his students -- and now I’m telling you. Sean Enos-Robertson was brilliant, the best, a light in a lot of lives. I miss him, and I love him, and I always will. Here’s why.

***

Hello, everybody. My name is Dan Devine, and I'm a friend of Sean's. I am a friend of Sean's. I'm not going to use the past tense for that; it didn't stop being true last Thursday, and it's never going to.

On behalf of Courtney and Winnie, and of the Robertson and Enos families, I'd like to thank you for being here. In a broad sense, Sean believed in community: in the power of people uniting for a common good. More specifically, Sean believed in love. He loved his family — his wife and daughter, his parents and in-laws, his brother and grandmother. He loved his friends. He loved his students and colleagues. He loved the people he leaned on, and who leaned on him — those of us here today, and many others who couldn't make it, but are sharing their love, and our grief.

Sean was one of my favorite people. He was magnetic. He was invigorating. He was cool as hell.

Sean radiated. He was a candle: someone who lit up and warmed every room he walked into, every person whose life he touched. This ... this is a tough room to light up. So we're going to have to do it together.

Before we do it, though, I want to acknowledge a hard truth I've been sitting with, and that you might be sitting with, too. It is deeply, impossibly unfair that Sean is gone — that he was taken from us so soon. Too soon. Way, way, WAY too soon. That's real, and it's OK to feel that.

In my better moments, though, I can set that aside and make room for gratitude — that Sean walked into my life in the first place, that I got as much time with him as I did, and that I got so much exposure to such a shining example of how to love.

There's a song by Tom Petty that I really love called "Walls." There's a line in the chorus that goes, "You got a heart so big, it could crush this town." That was Sean. Sean loved openly, fearlessly, completely — he hugged like you could win medals for it. He loved with everything he had, with his whole body. And if you don't believe that, then you never saw my man dance.

He loved music, and especially sharing it — I don't think anybody made me more mix CDs to try to put me onto something that I hadn't heard. (I'm pretty sure I have about five different "best of Blur" mixes. Sean really loved Blur.)

I met Sean at Providence College in the fall of 2000, right near the start of our freshman year. I'd seen him around at meetings for people who wanted to apply for shows on the college radio station, WDOM, but we didn't become friends right away. I know exactly when that happened: October 29, 2000. (I looked it up.)

That night, Mike Doughty, the singer from Soul Coughing, played a solo show at the Met Cafe in downtown Providence. I took the PC shuttle downtown by myself to catch the show, and somewhere around the weird acoustic cover of "Real Love" by Mary J. Blige, I saw that tall, skinny dude again. We awkwardly sidled up to one another to watch the show, and wound up walking back to campus together. We talked about bands and school and the station and whatever else two 18-year-olds talk about, all the way back home, and that was that. From that moment on, that was my man.

We hung out a lot, as evidenced by the staggering number of old photos I've looked through recently in which one or both of us had extremely tragic haircuts, facial hair, or sideburns. We lived together for two wonderful years in an awful apartment in Cranston, R.I.

The first year, we lived with our friend Todd. We had two parking spots for three cars, so one of us would always be blocking somebody in. Whenever it was time for the blocked-in person to get out, he'd ask, "Are you behind me?" And always, every time, Sean would answer, "100 percent, man."

It was this small, dumb thing, but it always made me laugh. Sean was really good at that.

We learned how to be adults together, finishing school and trying to figure out how to pursue our passions. After searching a little, Sean found his. In 2007, he took a job teaching history to middle schoolers at Harlem Academy. He shared with scores of students his belief in civic responsibility, in actively engaging with our nation's past, in interrogating history to learn about how we got where we are and how we might make decisions about our future. He loved teaching, and he was incredible at it. In 2016, the Gilder-Lehrman Institute of American History named him the New York State History Teacher of the Year, and they don't just give that out.

Sean's commitment to his students went beyond the classroom. I got a much clearer picture of that when Courtney sent me a note she received after his passing from one of his students, sharing both condolences and her memory of Mr. Robertson as someone who "would always reach out to me when he thought I needed it." One day, in eighth grade, this student confided in Sean that she thought she wanted to be an artist. She braced for stereotypical adult dismissal, the classic speech about "getting a real job."

Instead, she got a giant smile and an inspiring conversation about Courtney's job as a graphic designer, about that being a real path, and about how she might be able to realize her dream. Courtney invited her to visit her job to see firsthand how it was done, and that it could be done. She's kept that dream throughout high school, and now into college, thanks in part to Sean's willingness to listen, to care, and to open his life to a student in need. I'm willing to bet there are a lot more stories like that.

The student concluded her note with a beautiful sentiment: "I pray that you and Winnie and the rest of Mr. Robertson's family and friends are able to find peace and comfort, and I pray that you are able to think of him and feel peace and joy, because I genuinely think that's what he would want." I think she's exactly right. Sean wanted to lift people's spirits, to lighten their moods; on the day he invited some of us Brooklyn friends over to tell us that his fight was coming to an end, he kept moving back and forth among playlists of incidental music, setting a soundtrack to hum underneath all the laughs and tears and reminiscing. Even then, dude was still DJing.

We learned how to be somebody's partner, and eventually somebody's husband, together. Sean met Courtney in 2002, and as I remember it, he knew very, very quickly that he'd hit the jackpot. I'm sure that they had their share of tough times over the years, especially recently, but they always seemed immensely supportive of one another. Their love, from the outside, always seemed easy, in that way that let you know it was right, secure for the long haul.

Something Sean and I had in common, and that I've always felt grateful for, is that we always knew our magnetic north. Everything in our life oriented around the person we wanted to spend it with, and wherever work or school or whatever tossed us, we could always go back to that, back to our person, and get pointed in the right direction. Courtney was his compass, his best reason for doing everything.

When they were going to get married, Sean asked me to stand up with him as his best man, and to give a toast. I dug that toast out of a box last week, and here's the part that matters: "I think that all guys — the honest ones, at least — will admit that the women in our lives do a lot of the heavy lifting in helping us become decent, valuable men. And this is no exception [...] When Sean called to tell me that he and Courtney had gotten engaged, the first thing I remember thinking is, 'They deserve each other.'"

Their time together deserved a better ending than this. But what came before — the 16 years of knowing this great a love was possible, the nine years of marriage, the two and a half years of Winnie's life? That was exactly what they deserved.

Courtney is one of the strongest, fiercest, most remarkable people I've ever met — a woman who has faced unimaginable challenges and kept putting one foot in front of the other. I can't fathom what today is like for you, Courtney, but I want you to know: we are going to be awesome for you and Winnie right now. And tomorrow, and the next day, and all the days after that. I'm sorry, but you're stuck with us.

We learned how to be fathers together. Sean was there for me when my Siobhan was born, ready to cradle this tiny thing in his arms and envelop us with love, and to look me in my bloodshot, frantic eyes and let me know that I didn't have to be OK, because I was never going to be alone with it all. I wanted to do the same for him when Winnie was born, but Sean never seemed to need it. He was just ready: all open arms and full heart and perfect love.

Winnie is amazing, and brave, and funny, just like her dad. She's one of my favorite people, too, and I ache for her. But I'm also so grateful that there are so many people who will line up to tell her just how fantastic her father was. She will always know how special he was, and how special she was to him, and how much he loved her. We'll make sure of that. It might be the most important thing any of us do once we leave here today.

This hurts. This is hard. It's not supposed to go like this. But we don't get to make these kinds of choices. All we can do is deal with the fallout.

I'd ask you to remember the words of Sean's student: "I pray that you are able to think of him and feel peace and joy." Sean Enos-Robertson spent 36 years doing everything he could to bring peace and joy to everybody he met. Sean loved with his whole soul, and we can do that, too. We can do that for him. Let's be candles. Let's radiate.

[joshuaduncan-blog1]

MARKETING SEMINAR SERIES #3

Provide an overview of what the speakers said

For the second last week for our marketing seminar, our class had the pleasure of having Brady Dahmer give us a presentation about his career. Brady Dahmer is the founder of the Central Branch marketing agency out in Vancouver Canada. He was able to bring in a lot of insight into the inner and outer workings of what it takes to run and operate a successful agency especially with the global situation that the world is currently facing. As somebody who is looking to enter the agency workspace in the future, being able to listen and learn from somebody who is currently in the industry and running his own business, Brady was able to provide me with a lot of questions I was wondering about the what it’s like in an agency environment and what led to him building a company. 

The Power of Volunteering

I want to start off by saying, it was nice to hear a very successful story from somebody that was born and grew up in the tri-cities just like me. Brady was born and Kitchener and went to school in Toronto which follows a similar path to me. Mr. Dahmer went to school for graphic design, which turned out to be very valuable for him in progressing his career.  One of the main points that Brady Dahmer wanted to emphasize was the idea of volunteering and doing many other things that can help progress your career further than you could have imagined. Brady had a long and extensive list of places that he had volunteered for not only when he was in his undergraduate but also when he was working full time. Being able to volunteer at places like the Toronto Film Festival for multiple years allowed Brady to learn and work on many different aspects of marketing event planning, but also utilizing his design skills and advertising to help promote the festival. This also helped Brady in the future when he began planning his own film festival in Vancouver. Being a recurring figure and volunteer at the film festival allowed Brady to build relationships and expand his network. One of the recurring themes within these e-journals has been the need to increase the number of people in your network. It’s one thing to have people in your network, but actually working with them over an extended period of time and building an actual lasting relationship is much more valuable than just adding people onto your LinkedIn account.  Furthermore, the presentation spoke about enhancing and working on your skills in your free time. Doing side projects, freelancing and just generally betting on yourself can go a long way. For somebody that will most likely be looking for a full-time job after my co-op, it will be very important for me to continue to learn different skills and possibly offering and volunteering my services to possible start-ups and other smaller companies to add to my portfolio to show potential interviews what I can do. 

Pro and Cons of Agency Work

To continue, the second half of the presentation spoke about what it’s like working with a client, with Brady showing us examples of the work that he’s done. During the Q&A session, one of my classmates asked what was the best and worst thing about working in an agency. Brady said that the best and worst part was working with clients. I had a feeling that this word is a major part of working in an agency. Your experience will be very different depending on who you are working with. You might have this great idea that you think would be great for the campaign, until the client either might not like the idea or wants to take it a different direction. There’s a balance that needs to be found when working with a client on a project. You want to be able to create something that you are proud of while also making the client excited about what was created. There will be times when you have a great client you are working with you both get along great. But, there will be times when the client might be very difficult to work with and you’ll have to try and hide your frustration with them. There was also the aspect of what it’s like working for a large agency and a smaller agency. Both have pros and cons, but Brady highly recommended working for a small agency. It allows for the chance to be a part of a small group and lets you work on all the aspects of creating a final project. You would be able to see how people think and what ideas they come up with. Smaller agencies tend to have more freedom in what tasks you can do. Hearing this from Brady was very helpful. I know that I want to be working in an agency in the future, but do not know exactly what area I want to focus on. So, I think that looking for a smaller agency in the future to work for. That might give me a better insight into what I want to do in my future.

Final thoughts 

I think that Brady Dahmer was able to provide our class with some creative insight on what it’s like work in an agency and the different ways we can use our out of school experiences to further our careers. I believe that this was one of the better seminar classes that we had during this semester and I’m going to try and find new ways to better expand my network in a more meaningful way while also extending my marketing skills to put me in a better position to get achieve my future job.

[allenmendezsr]

Best Baby Shower Games On The Internet - High Conversion Rate

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Best Baby Shower Games On The Internet - High Conversion Rate

 Buy Now

    For the Busy Hostess!

(and EVERYONE’S going to be asking for your “Secret” to having such fun and successful showers!)

Choose from 75 UNIQUE, EXCITING and BEAUTIFULLY-DESIGNED baby shower games for your next shower — some you won’t find ANYWHERE else on the web! All games are available for Immediate Download — no “expertise” required. And your Satisfaction is Guaranteed.

I’m convinced that these games are the best on the internet, and if you could just see them, print them, and use them, I know you’d feel the same way.

From: Dana Brigola Thursday, 8:45 a.m.

Dear Fellow Baby Shower Hostess,

You’ve got a baby shower coming up. There’s a pressing question on your mind – “What games will you choose?”

You want baby shower games that will

keep the guests happy

involve everyone

not take hours to create

not cost a bundle

Let’s face it. You’re busy with kids, work, or school – and now you have a baby shower to host. You have too many things to plan and not enough time to get it all done.

These games are a big hit for the hostess who values her time and wants it all! Time is too precious to get caught up for hours on the internet searching for the best games. Your internet research has paid off – you’ve found the best games right here.

This all started when I created a couple of baby shower games for a friend’s baby shower. They were a huge hit with the guests and I was asked by more than one person where I had gotten them. That’s when a light bulb went off – I decided to create these 75 memorable and fun-filled baby shower games for the busy hostess.

I spent over 500 hours personally researching the internet, probing friends for the fun ideas, and creating the best games on the internet.

I even drove my husband nuts: “Honey, can you tell me which font looks best?” His reply: “How am I supposed to know – just pick one.”

Thank You for creating such a useful tool at a low cost. I’ve spent so much money already on everything else and I just wanted to tell you, good job and I’m sure I’ll enjoy everything! 🙂

Michelle Cisneros

My baby shower went great..We played Bingo, baby food tasting , word search and the right/left story. Everyone had a great time and loved the games. Thank you for all the great ideas. This was well worth the investment.

Brenda Nolind

Shower was for my step-sister Kasey. It was on Sunday Aug. 27. We played Baby Work Unscramble, Celebrity Baby Names, Unique Celebrity Baby Names. There were soooooooo many games to choose from! Everyone there really enjoyed the games so of course I told them about your web page & how you can purchase the games & down load them right then & there. Thanks so much! Very cool!

Tiffany Brown, Waynesboro, PA

The baby shower turned out fine and the games was a big hit especially the rice and safety pin game. Thank you for all your help the package was a life saver.

Jo Anne Anderson

Quality, Not Quantity

Have you noticed that some websites offer over 200 games for baby showers? Goodness, that’s a LOT. I checked out some of them and found that the quality of their games was not quite what it should be.

If you’re just interested in purchasing the package with the most games, then this one is not for you. I can’t compete with quantity alone — and I don’t want to.

And think about it, do you really want to preview 200 games? How would you have enough time to do anything else?

I guarantee that you’ll have enough on your plate selecting from the wide range of great games I’m offering. And these are quality games, with quality fonts, and quality images.

I’ve personally selected the best ones for you and created them with lots of TLC (tender loving care). These games are the ones that you’ll go to over and over again.

Games for Multiples Are Here

Is the Mommy-to-Be expecting twins or triplets? If so, you’ll get to pick from several games designed especially for her.

Games like Twins Trivia, Famous Pairs, Famous Trios, and Triple the Fun are sure to make your baby shower a huge hit.

African American Images Are Here

One thing I noticed from other baby shower games websites was the lack of African American graphics on the games. That’s why I created a second version of some of the games, featuring African American images.

There are ten games exclusively with African American images on them. Plus there are several more with images of African American babies appearing with babies of other races.

The rest of the games have generic baby symbols, such as rattles or pacifiers.

Games with African American graphics give you an option to choose the game and image that’s right for your baby shower.

Couples Games Are Here

Throwing a couples shower? No problem. There are several games that specifically have a “Daddy” vibe. Not to mention, men can play just about any of the other games too.

Some couples games are Animal Families, Mothers and Fathers in Genesis, Mommy and Daddy Animals, Celebrity Parents and Kids, Baby Shower Outburst, Baby Shower Scattegories, and Whose Genes Should Baby Get.

Great Mix Between Traditional and One-of-a-Kind Games

When I first started creating these games, I focused on unique, one-of-a-kind games. One girlfriend said, “I love these games, but where is BINGO and Word Unscramble?”

I then realized that a lot of women want these “classics“, so I included the best ones. So if you’re one of the traditionalists, you’ve got your games here.

Examples of some classic games included are Baby Shower Bingo, Baby Word Find, Baby Word Unscramble, What is Mom Wearing, Mystery Baby Food Tasting, Nursery Rhyme Titles, Memory Game, and Draw the Mommy.

For you hostesses that are more intested in one-of-a-kind games, I promise that you’ll find what you’re looking for here. That’s because I created a lot of them myself – from scratch. They’re guaranteed to be original. You won’t find them anywhere else on the web or in a store.

A few of my exclusive games include Baby Shower Sudoku, Lessons of Schoolhouse Rock, Baby on the Big Screen, Baby Names in Geography, Grown in the Wild, Whose Gene’s Should Baby Get, Comic Strip Trivia, and What’s in Common.

Believe me, there’s no shortage of great games for you to choose from.

MY ONLY CONCERN is that you’re going to be overwhelmed and spend too much time trying to decide which of the 75 games you want to play.

Your games made the baby shower more fun and organized. Everone enjoyed the baby bingo and the word scramble. The actual games are printed up in such a colorful way and everyone admired them. We have another baby shower coming up soon, so we plan to use some of the other games. Thankyou for making this part of our shower planning easy and fun.

Peggy Gallery, Wisconsin

Dana: Thank you so much for offering this great product. I was so worried about this shower – you know, same old same old games. What a great time we had! We played probably six different games, but the two that stood out the most were the “Whose Genes” and the “Mr and Mrs Wright” passing game. I had so many compliments and everyone asked where I had gotten the ideas for the games. I gave them your website and I’ll bet they will contact you too! Thanks again.

sLori Boes, Fremont, MI

The baby shower games were great.I used disney songs and a raffle and the best was baby bingo. your site is great thank you so much.

Michelle Sheffler

The games were very easy to look at and print. We really enjoyed the games and the ice breaker ideas. Thanks so much!

Kelly Jett, Scott City, KS

Fun Extras That Make This Package Complete

There are times when you want to create your own games, but need paper to do so. I’ve included several blank, do-it-yourself pages for that purpose.

You’ll find blank pages, lined pages, and half pages with different graphics and designs for you to choose from — including pages for twins, boys, girls, Caucasians and African Americans.

So go ahead, make up your own games with these gorgeous pages!

Also, since many baby showers have children present, you’ll also find several coloring pages to keep the kids busy. They can have a coloring contest or just present the finished picture to the mother-to-be as a memorable gift.

Here’s a Complete List of the 75 Games You’ll Receive:

Animal Families

Animal Mommies

Baby Animal Names

Baby Gift Bingo (2 versions)

Baby Jesus

Baby Letter Race (2 versions)

Baby Moses

Baby Names A to Z

Baby Names in Geography

Baby on the Big Screen

Baby Safety Trivia (2 versions)

Baby Shower Draw

Baby Shower Outburst

Baby Shower Scattegories (2 versions)

Baby Shower Sudoku

Baby Shower Sodoku – Shower Fun

Baby Shower Word Mix

Baby Word Fill in the Blanks (2 versions)

Baby Word Find

Baby Word Unscramble

Baby’s Birthday Predictions (3 versions)

Best Baby Advice

Birth Records

Blank Game Cards (13 versions)

Boy’s Name Word Find

Celebrity Baby Names

Celebrity Parents and Kids

Charlotte’s Web

Children’s Characters

Children’s Stories Crossword Puzzle

Coloring Pages (20 versions)

Comic Strip Trivia

Complete the Nursery Rhyme

Disney Movie Crossword Puzzle

Disney Songs

Disney Who Am I?

Dr. Seuss Trivia

Draw the Baby

Draw the Mommy

Famous Pairs

Famous Trios

Girl’s Name Word Find

Grown in the Wild

Lessons of Schoolhouse Rock

Looney Tunes

Memory Game

Mommy and Daddy Animals

Mothers and Fathers in Genesis

Mystery Baby Food Tasting (2 versions)

Name Meanings

Name Origins

Name That Price

Name the State

Name the TV Kids

New Baby Crossword Puzzle

Newborn Trivia (2 versions)

Numerical Trivia

Nursery Rhyme Titles

Old Testament Brothers

Peanuts Trivia

Right and Left Story

Sesame Street Characters

Signature Scramble

Silly Old Bear

Super Hero Trivia

The Muppet Characters

Toddler TV

Triple the Fun

Twins Trivia

Unique Celebrity Baby Names

What is Mom Wearing?

What’s In a Name?

What’s In Common?

What’s In Your Purse?

Whose Genes Should Baby Get? (2 versions)

Most of these games come with instructions written on a separate page for you to print out (the others are self-explanatory and don’t need instructions). Also, the answers to the games are also available on a separate page, if applicable.

Fast & Easy Electronic Download

There is No Shipping — these games are electronic and are available for immediate download onto your computer. I’ll show you how with step-by-step instructions — it’s fast (less than 1 minute for users with high-speed internet access) and VERY easy.

There is No Expiration on these games — BUYER BEWARE: some websites give you a password to access the games you buy, and after a certain time period, BAM! You can’t access your games anymore! Now, if I paid good money for some games, I would want to have them permanently, wouldn’t you?

Once you buy these baby shower games, the entire set will be downloaded onto your own computer. That way, you can access and print them whenever you want, as many times as you want. There’s no expiration date, so if you need them for another baby shower 5 years from now, they are right at your fingertips!

The shower was great. We played celebrity baby names, bingo, Mr. and Mrs. Wright, Animal baby goups, and identify the baby food. Eveyone wanted to continue to play bingo so we played twice. The big hit was the Mr. and Mrs. Wright game. The games really made the party flow.

Angela Sherick, Los Angeles, CA

Dana- The shower was great and everyone had a fun time! The baby bingo was a hit…my only suggestion is to modify it for a smaller number of people say up to 25 and/or 25 to 50. There were about 15 in attendance and there were many that I called that no one had due to the number of cards handed out vs. number of words in word bank…but it was still fun:) Contact me anytime for feedback or help:) Thanks-

Kristy, Indianapolis, Indiana

The baby shower was great- we did Baby Shower Bingo and the word scramble thanks for the great website!

Lisa Barbosa

HI DANA! I love all your games, I’m giving a baby shower for my daughterinlaw.She already have a little girl ,So this time around she will be haveing a son. But I did not give her a shower and had no idea about games and other ideas so you are a big help. Again great purchase for me thank you. Aloha Jackie!!!!!

Jackie Cadiirao

Super Bonuses, Valued at $59 – Yours FREE – Just for Trying These Baby Shower Games

I’m going to “Sweeten the Deal” for you. Everybody loves FREE things – I know I sure do. I want to entice you to try out these Baby Shower Games because I know you’ll be 100% Satisfied – and so will your guests.

Free Bonus #1 — $17

Baby Shower Raffle Tickets

Raffle tickets are very popular at baby showers these days for door prizes. They can be passed out to each guest, or used to raise money for the Mom-to-Be and the new baby (simply ask guests to purchase the raffle tickets, usually for $1 to $5 each.)

Each ticket has its own unique raffle number. You decide whether you want to call out a number or a name for the prize.

There are 5 sets of raffle tickets that I’ve created — that way, you can pick the design and color that fits your baby shower:

Baby Items with Colored Backgrounds

48 tickets with 24 different designs

Baby Items with White Backgrounds (saves printer ink – you can also print these on colored paper for variety)

48 tickets with 24 different designs

Baby Animals with White Background

64 tickets with 8 different designs

Baby Animals with Blue Background

48 tickets with 8 different designs

Baby Animals with Pink Background

48 tickets with 8 different designs

All 5 designs are yours FREE!

Free Bonus #2 — $12

Baby Shower Ice Breakers

Ice Breakers are games or activities used to loosen up the guests or to get them to meet each other.

Nobody likes a boring baby shower. If your guests don’t know each other, you should definitely have at least one ice breaker to get the party rolling.

I’ve included 11 exciting ice breakers in this free download, some classic ones and some completely unique. All of them are sure to make everyone LAUGH and get your Baby Shower off to a great start.

Everybody’s a Star for 10 Seconds

Sing to Me

Commonality

Fun Baby Shower?

Whose Line Is It? Baby Shower Style

Around the Room Introductions

Circle of Love

Problems and Solutions

Lullabys and Nursery Rhymes

Let’s Hum

Magic Trick Mom

Free Bonus #3 – $17

50 Baby Shower BINGO Cards

Baby Shower BINGO continues to be a favorite baby shower game. And these lovely cards are sure to be a winner at your shower!

You’ll receive 50 unique game cards with baby-related words, such as “booties,” “Mickey Mouse” and “Mommy” randomly filled in the boxes. Simply cut out the word cards and put them in a hat, print out the number of Bingo cards you need, and enjoy!

Click here to see a larger picture of Baby Shower Bingo

NOTE: THIS GAME IS BRAND NEW AND I WILL START CHARGING FOR IT SOON.

For a limited time, you’ll receive it FREE as a Bonus. But Hurry and Buy Today to take advantage of this offer!

Free Bonus #4 — $13

Baby Shower Ultimate Planner’s Lists

Every baby shower hostess has a lot on her plate when it comes to planning. Lists make her job a lot easier.

That’s why I created the Ultimate Planner’s Lists for the busy hostess. Now you can be organized and relaxed when planning your next baby shower.

Six lists and worksheets that are a MUST-HAVE for easy shower planning are:

Baby Shower Planning Calendar – Starting with 6 Weeks Before the shower and counting down to 15 Minutes Before, this ultimate checklist is vital for staying organized and making sure everything is completed in a timely manner.

Responsibility List for Co-Hosts – Keeping up with the To-Do List for your Co-Hosts will be a snap with this list where you’ll assign responsiblity for the decorations, guest list, games, inviations, etc.

The Budget – It’s important to budget so you don’t spend more than you intend to. With this form, you will estimate your costs and be able to compare them with what you actually spent.

Hostess Must-Have List – This is a checklist of “extras” that you may not think about, but should have at the shower (aspirin, scotch tape, trash bags, etc.)

Guest and RSVP List – Having an organized guest list makes your job of sending invitations and keeping track of RSVPs a whole lot easier.

Shower Gifts – The Mother-to-Be will appreciate this list that keeps track of who brought each shower gift.

What Do These Games Cost? What Should They Cost?

To determine the price for the Baby Shower Games, I looked at several factors. If you were to hire a professional to create your baby shower games, it would cost you at least $40 for just two games. That’s at $10 per hour (a very reasonable price) times 4 hours. And that’s being conservative. Here you have 75 games.

I also looked at the price for purchasing games at a party store. The prices ranged from $5.95 to $24.99 — just for one game!

Based on this information, I arrived at a reasonable and afforadable price of $29.99. I want you to have the “best deal on the web”, so I’ve lowered it to an incredible $24.99!

IMPORTANT UPDATE: The price has been lowered yet again! I’m in the process of performing market testing on the price of my games, so for a limited time, the price is $19 – an unbelievable bargin.

However, please be warned…

I cannot keep the price this low for too long. I want you to know that I WILL raise it after a couple of months of testing.

AND THINK ABOUT THIS: $19 is the price of a pizza and drinks. We’re not talking about a lot of money here. Plus, the best part is you can share the cost of these games with the other hostesses and you get to keep them all for yourself to use at all of your other baby showers! Spread across just five showers, you’re paying under $4 per shower. That’s a BARGAIN!

My Guarantee to You

I insist that you try these baby shower games. Print and use them as many times as you’d like. Because once you’ve tried them, I’m convinced that you’ll NEVER want to send them back!

But, if you are not satisfied with your purchase, you have eight full weeks to let us know. You will receive a full refund – we want you to be happy with your purchase.

Like I said earlier, I���m convinced that these games are the best on the internet, and if you could just see them, print them, and use them, I know you’d feel the same way.

Finally, because you’re entrusting me with your time and confidence, I want you to keep the FOUR BONUSES – Free of Charge – even if you decide to return the Baby Shower Games. That’s a guaranteed gain no matter what you decide!

Common Questions

“I’m at work, how will I be able to download the games onto my computer at home?” You have two options: 1) After payment is made, you will be directed to a web page where you can download the games. Write down the URL of that page (http://www.best-baby….), and go back to it once you get home. 2) Download the games to your work computer, copy them to a CD, then delete the games off your work computer.

“What if I don’t have a color printer or no printer at all?” You’ll need to print them at a friend’s house, your office, or at a printer. You have two options: 1) You can copy the games from your computer onto a CD and bring the CD to a friend’s house. 2) View and print the games online (there is a link where you can do this).

“I don’t know anything about computers. Will downloading the games be easy?” I wrote all of the instructions for the download with you in mind. They are detailed and have pictures of each pop-up involved during the download. If you have problems, you can visit my FAQ page, or contact me by email or telephone for assistance.

“My baby shower is in a few hours. Will I have my games in time?” Yes. As soon as payment is made, you will be directed to a download page – you don’t even have to wait for an email. For high-speed internet users, downloading will take less than a minute. For dial-up internet users, it will take longer, depending on your computer, connection, etc. You can also view and print the games from online, instead of downloading them. This is an especially nice feature if you have dial-up access and need the games immediately. Of course you can still download the games onto your computer in addition to viewing them online.

Again, Here’s What You’ll Receive

75 beautifully-designed Baby Shower Games (189 pages)

FREE – 5 sets of Baby Shower Raffle Tickets (32 pages)

FREE – 11 Baby Shower Ice Breakers (22 pages)

FREE – 50 Unique Baby Shower BINGO Cards (58 pages)

FREE – 6 Baby Shower Ultimate Planner’s Lists (23 pages)

Money-Back Guarantee

The Choice is Simple

Imagine how you’ll feel when your guests rave at how much fun they had. Imagine being the “hit” of all of your baby showers.

Remember — for a limited time, the price is an incredibly low $19 — it will go up soon, so you must act quickly.

To start downloading your baby shower games and bonuses in the next five minutes, click the Blue Order Button Now. IT’S SECURE!

As a reminder, The Best Baby Shower Games package is only available as an electronic download. It’s an executable file (.exe.) that will download and unzip the PDFs to your computer. Available for both Windows and Mac users (Mac users will download pdf files.) The games are from a U.S. perspective, so the games reflect that (for example, U.S. television shows and $ currency.)

Happy Hosting!

Sincerely,

Dana Brigola

P.S. Remember that this Low Price of $19 WILL NOT LAST LONG. I’m in the process of figuring the best price for my product, which means that I will continue to raise my price periodically while performing market evaluations. What this means to you is that you need to hurry and click the blue order button to take advantage of the lower price before it rises again.

P.S.S. Also remember that along with these 75 super-fun baby shower games, you’ll get 4 Awesome Bonuses, valued at $59, ABSOLUTELY FREE, even if you decide to return the games! Some of these bonuses will only be available for a short time — then I’ll start charging for them.

P.P.P.S. Remember that my Guarantee to you is that if you’re not ABSOLUTELY THRILLED with these Baby Shower Games, you have 8 Full Weeks to let me know and I’ll gladly refund your money. I want you to be happy!

[tired-fics]

The Aftermaths of a Bet

A/N: Hey I’m back with an old one shot I wrote like two years ago! I got some help to translate this one. It was also posted on FF.net. (I will also post the original French version if anyone is interested ;)) Hope you’ll enjoy!! :))

~~~~~~~~

Fandom: One Piece Sabo x Reader (female/she) Word count: +/- 1900 Warnings: none Summary: Y/N is in a club, trying to win a bet with her best friend. The night starts getting interesting when she meets Sabo. Turns out she wasn’t the only one with a bet.

~~~~~~~~

What am I doing here?

That's what I'm asking myself since I put a foot in this nightclub where my best friend dragged me. Claiming that I had to see other people. But I didn't want to! I was happy on my own, in my little world, my little bubble. So she had to bargain. I would pay her a drink if someone invited me to dance and I accepted, she would give me a month peace if it wasn't the case. So, I don't need to tell you how much I try to be discreet so nobody would ask me for a dance.

Sitting in a couch between people who had drank too much and couldn't stand on their feet any longer, I looked like a weirdo with my white sweater and my old jeans that was only distressed near my feet. My occupation: looking at the others. I do that since I'm a child. Looking at their acts, their reactions, their clothes.

A girl that tries to flirt with another (if she only knew she already had a boyfriend), friends that are making a drinking contest, a guy that gets slapped and returns to his friends that are laughing at him. The classic in a nightclub, in some.

But between all these people, a trio was intriguing me. Three guys, three friends. The first one, tall, Stygian and that would make all the girls on earth fall at his feet without a problem. The second, smaller, with dark hair and with a big smile on his face. And finally, the third one, approximately the same size as the second and with blonde hair. All three seemed to have a good time. Laughing, talking but also gazing at girls. Not much, but we could see some eyes losing themselves on bodies of gorgeous young ladies at time.

The blonde one turned to me and offered me a smile. I give him one back, only way smaller. I looked to another part of the nightclub and saw my friend dancing against an unknown man. He had red hair and could easily masquerade as a vampire. Why did she always end up with such... creepy guys?

"Guys, do you think I have a chance with her?" Sabo asked his friends.

"Don't know. She doesn't seem very motivated" told his dark haired friend.

"That doesn't mean anything."

"I would tell you to go. Even if she doesn't want to dance, we'll laugh a little" encouraged Law in his own way.

"Yeah just go, man!" Added Ace.

The blonde man ended his glass and walked to the Y/H/C haired young woman.

"Whatever, if he can't get one tonight he'll have to pay us a diner," said Law for himself and Ace.

Suddenly, I don't know any more if he could get her to dance.

"Excuse me?"

I turned my head to where the voice came from and ended up in front of the blond from the trio. What was he doing here?

"D'you dance?"

I was about to say no, not forgetting the trade with my bestie, but then, I saw his friends, already laughing at the bar. They were probably certain my answer would be defiantly no, so why not playing a little, even if because of that I lose my bet. For a moment, I watched his friends before turning back to him while he still was waiting for an answer.

"Wait until the next slow and I accept."

My answer seemed to surprise him, but he didn't protest and sat beside me.

"May I know your name? He asked politely.

"Aren't we suppose to present ourselves before asking the other?" I said with a grin.

"Oh, yeah... of course. I'm Sabo" he told me, smiling nervously.

"I'm Y/N."

"It's beautiful."

"Thanks..." I breathed, what wasn't the best of ideas in a nightclub.

I looked towards his friends. They seemed to wait something. That I suddenly say no? Then they're running straight to a wall.

"And if we talked while we're waiting?" Proposed the blond.

"Mhm," did I do simply.

"What do you like to do when you have some free time?"

"Well, I like a lot of things, but my top three is video games, movies and books."

"What do you play?"

"Since a couple of weeks I'm hundred percent into Tomb Raider. Do you play?"

"Yeah, a little, but I'm terrible at it."

"Better things to do?"

"School takes a lot of time."

"What do you study?"

"Law. Are you in a university?"

"I already did. Graphic designer studies aren't long."

"Cool."

"Yeah, it was awesome, but now I'm still looking for a job. That's the hardest part. Being hired when you're new," I told with a sad smile.

"You'll find one! I'm sure!"

"I hope so."

Another look towards his friends and they were still glaring at us. Were they really waiting for him to get slapped?"

"Do you think they'll keep talking for long?" Asked Law to his friend.

"Don't know. It's weird he still hasn't been rejected. Usually he gets slapped after two minutes. D'you think she's doing it on purpose to annoy us?"

"No, I don't think so... She seems to really appreciate him... Well, Ace, we'll have to leave him alone for a month now."

"Shit..."

"You don't seem used to nightclubs anyway..."

"Is it that obvious?" I asked with a nervous grin. He nodded.

"Me neither, y'know. My friends brought me here."

"Me too, my best friend. I have a deal with her."

"Which one?" Asked the blond, curious.

"If I don't dance, she'll leave me alone for a month. If I spend a good time, I'll have to pay her a drink next time we come here.

"Haha! I know how that feels!"

"D'you think he told her our bet?" Asked Ace.

"I don't think so, she'd already be gone."

"D'you think he'll tell her?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Me too, I have the same kind of deal with my friends." I had an interrogative look. "If I dance with a girl, I get rid of them for a month. If I don't, I must pay them diner."

My playing grin appeared on my face again.

"Do you want to win your bet?"

"If you dance with me, you'll lose yours."

"I wasn't talking about me."

His eyes became anxious while my smile only grew bigger. I stood up and went towards the bar.

"Benn! Can you give me the mic'?"

"Why d'you need it, girl?"

"If I make you win a little extra money, is it okay for you?"

"Do what y'want!"

"Lower the music, let me walk on the bar and talk in the mic' and it's okay for me."

"Okay! Bring me at least hundred dollars, honey!"

He shouted at the DJ to lower the sound and I stood up on the bar, walking from one end to the other, making my announcement.

"Ladies and ladies, there's in this club a charming young man looking for a partner to dance with. If you're interested, take a look to the couches in the center of the club. You'll find a blond guy with an angel face. But, ladies, this has a price. I know, it doesn’t seem fair, but you'll have him for the entire night. And you'll be able to do whatever you want with him, we don't have to know what you plan for him after a night of dancing. Whatever, you'll be able to choose the price. Some auctions, is it okay for you ladies? Come on, who starts?"

Immediately a voice shouted through the club.

"I give twenty bucks!"

"Twenty," I repeated.

Then, there was a small silence.

"Come ladies. Don't tell me it's already the end. A handsome man like him is only worth twenty dollars?"

"Fifty!" Shouted another woman, standing in the back of the club.

"I hear fifty."

"Sixty!" Said another.

"Come on, girls, you'll have him for the entire night!"

"Eight!" Came the one from the back again.

"Hundred!" Shouted a blonde next to Sabo.

"Hundred-twenty!" Pursued the brunette in the back.

"Hundred-fifty!"

"I hear hundred-fifty over here! Who's going to say two-hundred?"

"Two-hundred-fifty!" Yelled the brunette.

"Sold for two-hundred-fifty dollars to the girl in the back!" I concluded.

I gave the mic' back to Benn and walked towards Sabo.

"You win your bet."

"I don't know if I should be happy or cry because I've just been sold like a piece of furniture"

"You'll maybe never know..."

The brunette appeared at that moment. She gave me the money and almost jumped onto Sabo that I left behind with a small smile.

"Here Benn, your two-hundred-fifty bucks."

"Thanks, kid. I hope I'll see you again more often."

"You know it's no."

I went home, a victorious little smile on my face. We both had won our bets and, both of us would be left in peace for a month.

A month had passed, two even, and I was back in this nightclub. And one more time, it was because of my best friend.

"You come back to work, Y/N?"

"You already know this is never going to happen," I said to Benn with a grin.

"What d'you want?"

"Do you still serve alcohol-free mojitos?"

"And one alcohol-free mojito for you darling. I bring you that in a sec'."

I smiled and turned towards the dance floor. My obsession about looking at the others still hadn't changed and it still was just as fun as before.

My bestie was dancing with a new unknown, a guy was flirting with another one (if he only knew he already had a girlfriend), a girl that went back to her friends after a guy rejected her. Basically, the classic nightclub.

But between all these people, a trio was intriguing me. Three guys, three friends. The first one, tall, Stygian and that would make all the girls on earth fall at his feet without a problem. The second, smaller, with dark hair and with a big smile on his face. And finally, the third one, approximately the same size as the second and with blonde hair. All three seemed to have a good time. Laughing, talking but also gazing to girls. Not much, but we could see some eyes losing themselves on bodies of gorgeous young ladies at time.

The blonde one turned to me and offered me a smile. I give him one back, only way smaller, but then he came to me.

"Do you have a new bet with your friend or am I going to be sold again?"

"I don't have any bet. And you?"

"No, they finally leave me in peace... well, almost."

I smiled a second time. It was weird to be face to face with him. I drank a bit of my mojito, took his hand and dragged him on the dance floor.

Tonight, he's mine.

A/N: So, how much would you have given for a night with Sabo ? Or if it was Law or Ace instead ? Let me know in a review, they're always welcome ! Bye bye !

[exhuastedpigeon]

i have an industry-specific resume question. totally cool if you don't know or don't wanna answer but i've gotten mixed messages from peers in my field so i'm curious about your perspective - i went to a terrible 'college'. it was a glorified diploma mill that scammed me right out of high school and got me 40k in debt (not to mention the ~70k my parents put into it). i learned some industry skills (adobe suite & basic graphic design principles) but when people hear the name they sneer - 1/2

or just say 'what?' the school literally doesn't exist anymore. they went bankrupt and dissolved. i looked up an old 'professor' on linkedin and she's a receptionist now... so, what do i put on a resume? do i just not list it and hope my portfolio speaks for itself? do i put it and hope the person doesn't google the name or know what it is already? it's such an embarrassment and it wasted 3 years of my life. i'm almost 27 and in an entry level job bc i don't know how to move on from this - 2/2

Hi nonnie! Sorry it took me so long to reply, I was out of town and wanted to ask a couple coworkers what they thought about this type of situation because I haven’t experienced it yet.

First I want to say there’s absolutely nothing wrong with being in an entry level job at 27. My dad worked as a painter right out of college and struggled to find a ‘real job’ until he was in his early 30s. My best friend went to college for social work and she’s a nanny at 24. There are different paths for everyone.

That being said, I think your best bet is to do a non-traditional resume format that lists your education somewhere besides the top. This site has some good templates, but since it sounds like you have some design skills, play around with yours so you think it looks good. 

By listing your work history and skills before your education employers will read that part last and already have an opinion on you before they get to it. 

I would also encourage you to stop kicking yourself over your choice in schools. I went to a small liberal arts college in NY state that no one outside of that area has heard of, a lot of times recruiters just want to see you went to college, they don’t care where unless it was an Ivy League or where they went. 

My last piece of advice isn’t really about your resume, just about work in general.... the longer you’re in the workforce the less your school matters. There’s a good chance that the next job you apply for will hire you on your past work experience and portfolio, not on your education. 

Don’t give up hope and good luck!

[lesbianlametron]

Bokuroo Week Day 4

Prompt: Improvising

Title: Spontaneous Saturday

Rating: T

Summary:  Bokuto wakes up Kuroo one Saturday in the summer for a day trip together. They had both been busy lately with their respective jobs and Bokuto is dying for time alone with Kuroo. He packs a bag, but other than that he has no plans. Kuroo’s just along for the ride. Graphic designer!Kuroo, P.E. Teacher!Bokuto Post-college, married, domesticated fluff.

Kuroo was sleeping as he should be for it being barely seven-thirty am and he was content to keep it that way. His arm flopped over to the other side of the bed, blindly searching for his husband, but was only met with empty sheets. He groaned when he rolled over and looked at the time. It was way early and he was looking forward to a lazy Saturday morning in bed. Then again, that wasn’t Bokuto’s style. He was up at the crack of dawn, happy and energetic as ever. Bokuto, like Kuroo, also was a complete night owl and would stay up into the early morning just talking or partying. Because of this, Bokuto was super fond of afternoon naps. That fact always made Kuroo laugh and joke that Bokuto was secretly still a baby at twenty-six years old. Well, no matter if Bokuto was awake, Kuroo was still planning on sleeping until at least eleven.

             Bokuto walked into their room, his hair still damp from the shower, with a towel around his waist. “Tetsu~ time to get up.” He called out to his husband in a soft voice.

             “No. It’s seven-thirty and a Saturday and it’s summer. Fuck you.”

             Bokuto chuckled, not even a bit fazed by Kuroo’s animosity. He was used to his by now. “Good morning to you too, love. Come on, I want to do something fun today. We’ve both busy with work and I want to have a date day.”

             “We can, but just later.” Kuroo mumbled into his pillow, trying to hide his smile. It was sweet that Bokuto wanted the two of them to spend the day together. Kuroo had been working late nights and Bokuto was always gone when he woke up in morning. His company had just finished a big ad campaign that he had to do all the graphic designing for, being the team’s lead designer. Today was the first Saturday in a while that Kuroo wasn’t working on a project.

             “Awww, come on, we’re going to get breakfast. I made you coffee~.”

             “Still no.”

             “TETSU, you love breakfast!”

             “Stop shouting…”

             “Don’t make me force you to wake up.” Bokuto warned as he pulled on a pair of shorts.

             “Go ahead and try.”

             Bokuto chuckled to himself and walked over to bed. He grabbed a hold of the comforter and sheets. Before Kuroo could think of fighting back, Bokuto ripped the covers off the bed. “Rise and shine, my beautiful Tetsu.”

             “I hate you.”

             Bokuto crawled on top of him and leaned down giving him a soft, sensual kiss.

             “I hate you a little less.” Kuroo’s eyes were still closed as Bokuto peppered his face with tiny kisses that tickled his cheeks. Kuroo weakly tried to push him away.

             “I promise you’ll have fun today. Come on, please, indulge me. Tomorrow, we’ll do whatever you want.”

             Kuroo groaned and sat up. “Fine, I’m up. And if I don’t have fun today, I’m blaming you.”

             Bokuto slid off the bed and placed a mug of coffee into Kuroo’s hands. “I love you.”

             “Yeah, yeah.” Kuroo murmured before taking a long, slow sip, more to enjoy the coffee, but a little in protest against Bokuto.

             “I love you.”

             “I know, I’m up.”

             “I love you.”

             Kuroo rolled his eyes catching on that Bokuto wouldn’t stop until he said it back. “I love you too, you goof.”

             Bokuto grinned at him and Kuroo nearly felt like he needed sunglasses to shield him from the brightness. “Good, now go shower.”

             Kuroo grumbled more as he got up and wandered into the bathroom. As much as he hated waking up, he knew Bokuto was right, whatever Bokuto had planned, it would be fun. He took a couple long gulps of coffee before stepping into the warm spray. The coffee combined with the shower was starting to wake him up. He’d still need another cup at breakfast to be fully functional, but this would at least get him awake enough to get into Bokuto’s car.

             When he walked back into the bedroom he saw Bokuto packing a bag that included both athletic shows and swimsuits. “Are we going to the beach?”              

             Bokuto shrugged and put a couple towels into the bag. “Maybe. I haven’t figured that out yet.”

             “Then what are we doing?”

             “Improvising.”

             Kuroo shook his head and rummaged through his drawers for shorts and a tank top. “Is it hot out?”

             “Mmhm. It’s supposed to be today.” Bokuto turned around to face Kuroo and slipped a pair of sunglasses onto his head. “I remember you broke yours so I went out and got you a pair.”

             Bokuto had turned around so he didn’t catch the fond smile that spread across Kuroo’s face. Bokuto really did think of everything and did sweet things for the ones he cared about without even thinking twice. Kuroo dressed and walked up behind Bokuto and pressed a kiss onto Bokuto’s shoulder. “Thank you.”

             “Of course. You ready?”

             “Mmhm.”

             Bokuto slung the duffle over his should and took Kuroo’s hand, leading him out the door. “So we really have no plans?” Kuroo asked as he slid into the passenger seat.

             “Beyond breakfast, nope. I thought it’d be kinda fun just to drive and stop when we felt like it and do whatever we come across.” Bokuto shrugged again as he started driving them to their favorite breakfast place. It annoyed Kuroo a bit not to have a plan, but he trusted his boyfriend. Bokuto would occasionally get into these moods where he was feeling completely spontaneous and Kuroo would just strap himself in for the ride. Sometimes it was nice to just not have to think everything out for once. Plus, whatever happened, would probably make a killer story to tell their friends later.

             Bokuto pulled into a parking space and led Kuroo into restaurant. Kuroo was still sleepy and hanging heavily on Bokuto’s arm. There was almost nothing more endearing to Bokuto than a tired Kuroo. It was part of the reason he woke Kuroo up sometimes. He hardly felt like walking because of his lack of engery and was very clingy. They sat down together and ordered food. Kuroo was quiet as he usually was before his second cup of coffee, but it didn’t bother Bokuto in the slightest.

             “Dude, we started a volleyball unit this week.” Bokuto started, always filled with stories from his work. In the summers, when school wasn’t in session Bokuto ran a recreation program during the days to promote kids getting into sports. He loved the kids in his normal classes, but these kids actually wanted to be there. Well, there were some that their moms forced them because they worked during the day.  

             Kuroo looked up from his coffee and smiled. He was glad Bokuto was able to still be involved with volleyball. It surprised both of them, but teaching P.E. and sports gave him almost as much joy as playing used to. He knew Bokuto missed it, they both did, but stopped playing after college. Bokuto could have gone pro, but fell in love with teaching grade school P.E. Kuroo never really wanted to go pro and loved his job too. “Oh yeah? I bet you’re excited about that.”

             “It’s the best! There’s this kid there, a 5th grader, he’s like the baby version of Hinata.” Bokuto had to pause to hold back his laughter. Kuroo knew it had probably had to be something with the kid getting hit because Bokuto wanted to laugh, but knew he shouldn’t. “I swear this kid is like a ball magnet. I’m trying to teach him how to receive, but the kid always manages to get hit in the face. Even when he’s not playing. It takes all my restraint not to laugh along with the kids.”

             Kuroo chuckled a little and started eating his pancakes when they came. Bokuto French toast because they each loved both and never could choose one. He plated his second pancake for Bokuto and Bokuto did that with his as well. This was a tradition between them and Bokuto was a complete sap and it always made him smile. “I bet he’s nearly as tall as Shrimpy when he was in high school.”

             Bokuto snorted and nodded. “He is. Kageyama was sad when Hinata finally grew taller in college, I think he had a thing for their height difference. They’re close to the same height now.”

             “Oh yeah, you went in saw their game last weekend when I was working. The Toyko team is in the finals this year, right?” Bokuto had more free time than Kuroo, especially in the summers, and was also better at keeping in touch with their friends than Kuroo was. Kuroo kept in touch with Tsukishima, Kenma, and Akaashi mostly, but Bokuto was always seeing the friends outside of their direct circle.

             “Mmhm.” He murmured with his mouth full and Kuroo rolled his eyes. He was about to scold his boyfriend, but Bokuto remembered to swallow before finishing his sentence. “Hinata was great as ‘The Little Giant 2.0’, but he’s a ton better now that he’s got the height on him. Kags still has a few inches on him, but the kid can still jump like no other. I don’t know how the kid still has all the energy.”

             Kuroo chuckled a little. “I bet you could rival him there, you’re inhuman in the mornings.”

             Bokuto laughed as well, “Maybe, but shit, I’m old now.”

             “Babe, don’t say that because then I’m old too.”

             Bokuto finished eating and grinned cheekily at him. “Babe, we’ve been out of college for 4 years now.”

             “Don’t!”

             Bokuto laughed as Kuroo glared at him over his last few bites. “You’ll always be sexy to me, Tetsu, no matter how old you get.” He leaned across the tabled and motioned for Kuroo to come closer. Kuroo rolled his eyes and met Bokuto halfway for a kick peck.

             “You loser. I don’t think you’ll be saying when I’m 80 and wrinkly.”

             “Yes, I will because I’ll be the same and you’ll still love me.”

             Kuroo pursed his lips together and rubbed his chin, being over dramatic with thinking about it. “I don’t know…I’m really only with you because of your body.”

             “Uh huh. I’m sure it was my body that kept us together for eight years.”

             “Yeah in seven I’m going to divorce you for a younger hotter version.” Kuroo grinned and nodded to the bill sitting on the table between them. “Oh, and you’re paying for waking me up early.”

             “I thought by now you’d be used to getting up early and I was already planning on it.”

             “No, I’ll never become a morning person, I’ve just learned how to cope with them.”

             “Mornings are not a disease, love.” Bokuto chuckled and took his card up to register to pay and Kuroo followed after, only holding his hand this time. His second cup had woken him up a little more and he was more coherent.

             “Says you.” Bokuto shook his head and kissed Kuroo’s hand. They walked back to the car content from their breakfast. Bokuto was eager to start their journey and Kuroo still thought it was too early.

             “Okay pick a direction, and we’ll go.”

             “You’re really serious about this.” Kuroo raise an eyebrow at him.

             “I’m keeping things interesting, darling. We’re going to have adventures well into the future.”

             Kuroo played with his ring absently as the thought, “Okay, East, but can you even go East without a GPS?”

             Bokuto stuck his tongue out. “You’re mean, Tetsu.”

             “I’m keeping things interesting.” Kuroo mocked him with a smirk. “I can’t be too nice to you and make you think that I actually like you.”

             “Uh huh. Besides, my car tells me cardinal directions anyway.”

             “Oh yeah, I forgot about that.”

             Bokuto playfully shoved his shoulder and put the car in drive. “East, it is. Keep your eyes open. I know you can sleep anywhere, kitten, but I want your participation in this.”

             “Ughhhhh… but I was totally planning on napping for a little while.” Kuroo groaned, teasing him. The coffee would keep him up now. He was already up now, it wasn’t being up in the morning that really bothered him, but the act of actually waking up and starting the day. “Fiiiiiiiine and knowing you, we’ll probably be taking a nap mid-day, you old owl.” Bokuto glared at him out the corner of his eye. “That’s what you get for calling me kitten.”

             “Aw come, it had to do with the cat reference.” Bokuto grinned and turned on the radio. “Just tell when you see somewhere you want to stop.” They drove for a few miles, leaving the city behind and both were singing along with the radio. Bokuto’s voice did not match the tune and was louder. Kuroo actually could match the pitch, but he wasn’t actually confident in his singing voice. Eventually they came across a little town and Bokuto pointed out a foreign movie theater.

             “Let’s go.”

             Kuroo raised an eyebrow. “You’re aware we’re not going to understand any of it if they don’t have subtitles.”

             Bokuto shrugged. “I thought it would be funnier to make up the lines ourselves.” He pulled into a parking space and quickly got out. Kuroo shrugged and followed him. It did sound pretty entertaining.

             “As long as you buy me popcorn, I’m up for anything.”

             “You say that like it really matters. What’s mine is yours.”

             “It does, because I make more than you.”

             Bokuto glared at him. “Mean. It’s not my fault, teachers aren’t payed as much as they deserve.”

             Kuroo wrapped an arm around Bokuto’s waist and kissed his cheek. “True, you’re great at what you do and you do deserve more.” With the promised popcorn, they sat in the very last row so they wouldn’t annoy every as much with their whispering.

             “You better not fall asleep, Tetsu.”

             Kuroo squeezed his shoulder and nodded. “I promise.” The lights dimmed and the movie started without subtitles like they had thought.

             “What language do you think it’s in?” Bokuto whispered.

             Kuroo actually took the question seriously. If it was Spanish, Italian, or Portuguese, it would be hard to distinguish between them because he knew they were similar. It didn’t seem like any of those. “I’d guess German or Swedish.”  

             Bokuto chuckled a little. “You took that seriously. I should have known.”

             “Of course. That was actually a logical question.”

             “Okay, I’ll be the male lead and you could be the female.”

             Kuroo narrowed his eyes and stole the popcorn away from him. “Why do I have to be the girl?”

             “Cuz we both know you’re the girlier one. You have such a beautiful slender frame, babe.”

             “I’m leaving.”

             Bokuto kissed his cheek. “Good luck getting home.”

             “I could afford an Uber.”

             “Will you play along?”

             Kuroo sighed and scooted closer to his husband again. “All right. Your line.”

             “Giiiiirl I see you there looking all fine.” Bokuto whispered as the main character saw the lead female for the first time.

             “How dare you! I’m not some piece of ass for you salivate over.”

             Bokuto covered his mouth so he wouldn’t laugh louder than he anticipated. He was at least trying not to piss off the few other people that were watching. “You really went there.”

             “Uh of course, babe, you can’t just objectify women like that. They have rights.”

             “Well,” Bokuto continued in a whisper with the character’s line. “I am the richest most eligible bachelor in town. You’d be lucky to have me.”

             “You act like that will make up for your terrible personality.” The continued with the lines, Kuroo was the most committed, adding voices for the new characters that entered. Bokuto had to contain his laughter which each new voice Kuroo added and still keeping his voice low enough not to annoy everyone. Like most romantic dramas, it ended with the couple getting together and most of the conflict had been resolved. They understood that much at least. Kuroo placed his hand on his chest to deliver his last impactful line.

             “Just so you know, this kiss means nothing. I still hate your personality. You tried to change, but you never fully got there. This will by my goodbye to you.”

             Bokuto took Kuroo’s free hand and looked him in the eye. “Please, Sarah, I need you. You make me a better person.”

             “Sorry, I’m a lesbian.” Kuroo delivered his line and Bokuto laughed, letting himself fully laugh now that credits were rolling. They got weird looks from the couple a few rows in front of them. “Apparently that wasn’t an ending you should have laughed at.”

             Bokuto shrugged. “Oh well. I liked our version better and of course you wouldn’t make it a happy ending.”

             “Duh. That would have been boring.”

             “Your lesbian ending did catch me off guard. Especially because the guy kissed her again after that line.”

             “That’s what made it perfect.” They stood up and excited the theater. “What next?”

             “Probably lunch of some sort?”

             Kuroo shrugged. “Sounds good. We should pick something up here and drive somewhere to have a picnic.”

             “I’m down.”

             After lunch and a quick nap under an oak tree, they drove until it neared sunset. They talked, laughed, and sung along with the radio to their favorite songs. Kuroo couldn’t remember the last time he felt this relaxed. It was definitely what he needed after the month he’d had at work. Bokuto had been happy because it was summer, but Kuroo could tell that Bokuto was happier today than he had been in a while. He knew Bokuto got lonely when he worked a lot.

             “Hey, Kou.”

             “Hm?”

             “Thank you for today.”

             Bokuto reached over and took Kuroo’s hand, kissing Kuroo’s wedding ring. “Of course.”

             “No, I mean it. I really got lucky with you. I hope we do grow old and we still have days like this.” Kuroo squeezed Bokuto’s hand and smiled warmly at him. “I know I’ve been working at lot and that’s hard on you. Sometimes I still can’t believe the days we go without seeing each other still make you so sad. It makes me happy to know you love being around me that much. I promise, at least once a month, we’ll have designated Kou and Testu days.”

             “Tetsu…Hey! We made it to the beach. Did you know going East would eventually bring us to the beach?”

             Kuroo shook his head. “Honestly no.”

             “Let’s go watch the sunset.”

             “That’s such a cliché date move.”

             “But you want to?”

             “Hell yeah.” Kuroo took off his shoes as the car came to a stop. He ran off to get his feet in the sand as soon as possible. There wasn’t much Kuroo loved more than beach and of course Bokuto. Although he didn’t show it much, work stressed him out. He never wanted to put that on Bokuto. Nothing calmed like the sound of the crashing waves and the gritty sand between his toes.

             Bokuto smiled and watched his husband running ahead. Kuroo didn’t have to tell him, he knew anyway. The beach was just what he needed to fully relax. He grabbed their towels and spread them out close to the water. He sat down first and patted the space beside him. Kuroo sat down and Bokuto started rubbing his shoulders. He sighed and closed his eyes, focusing on Bokuto’s fingers as he worked out all hard spaces of tension.

“Tetsu. I’m glad we did this too. I know you needed it as much as I wanted it. You can come to me when you’re stressed. I know even when you don’t tell me. Your texts are shorter and you leave your clothes on the floor more often. You stay up later and sit on our balcony when you think I’m asleep, but I leave you alone because I don’t want disturb you.”

Kuroo smiled and looked up at the sky. “You’re right, I’m sorry. And please come bother me if you’re up. Sometimes I can’t shut off my brain.”

“I know, baby.”

“Do you want to rent out a suite somewhere just for the night? We could go crazy on the stupid overpriced snacks in the room.”

Bokuto hugged Kuroo around the middle when he finished the massage. “Definitely. I want to make at least one more stop before that though.”

“Okay.” They sat and watched the sunset, neither speaking because they didn’t need to. As much as they loved talking, the silences between them were just as welcome. They took in the colors of the sunset and watched the sun’s light bounce off the gentle waves. Both let all the tension leave their bodies. For that moment, everything was perfect.

Bokuto pressed kisses onto Kuroo’s neck, each meaning something a little different. The long ones told him, he was loved and cherished. The short ones said ‘sometimes I just like how my lips feel against your skin’. The ones with tongue and teeth said, ‘I find you sexier and prettier than anyone’. Bokuto didn’t need to put them into real words, Kuroo understood anyway. They had always been like that, more alike than different. Kenma may have known Kuroo longer and Akaashi may have had the perfect formula to bring Bokuto out of one of his moods. But no one could read their thoughts without words like they could for each other. No one else had their bond or could deal with their strange tangents. They weren’t perfect, but no couple could ever be.

With the windows, down they drove away from the beach and listened sounds of the new town they were in. Both waiting for something that would catch their attention. Bokuto heard it first. There was a bar down the street with live music. “Let’s end the day there, have a drink and listen to some music.”

“Sounds good.”

Bokuto parked the car and they walked hand-in-hand into the bar. When they entered the main room, they realized it wasn’t just live music but an open mic night. Bokuto looked at Kuroo and his eyes sparkled with an idea.

“No.” Kuroo protested, before Bokuto could even ask.

“But your voice is so pretty, Tetsu.”

“No. It’s for you only.” Kuroo walked up to the bar, finding it a perfect excuse to physically leave their conversation. He bought them both drinks and joined Bokuto at their table. He knew Bokuto wasn’t going to let it go. He had just pulled out the puppy dog eyes. “No.”

“Baaabe! For me?”

“You think you can just bat your pretty gold eyes at me and say ‘for me’ and I’ll do anything.” Kuroo glared at him, but he already felt his resolve slipping.

Bokuto didn’t waver with his pleading eyes even when he took sips of his drink. “I know you write songs occasionally. You’re really poetic when you want to be.”

“I don’t even have my guitar. Hah. That was the one thing you didn’t plan for…” Kuroo thought about it for a minute. He had been too tired this morning to see what Bokuto had really packed in the car. His guitar really could be in the car. “You didn’t!”

Bokuto grinned dangerously and Kuroo’s face paled. “I thought maybe I’d get you to play for me at one point.”

“I hate you again.”

“Stay right there.”

“Kou!” Kuroo protested and groaned as Bokuto ran out to the car. He was doomed. Bokuto came back with a smug look on his face and went to talk to the owner instead of coming directly back to the table.

“You’re on in ten, babe. After the next two.” Bokuto took his seat next to Kuroo and gave him a kiss.

“If they boo me off the stage, I’m blaming you and then divorcing you.”

“And people say I’m the over dramatic one.”

“You better get me another drink.”

Bokuto laughed and waved the waitress over for refills. “I know you’ll be great.”

Kuroo watched the next two acts. The first one wasn’t bad, a little pitchy at times, but her piano skills were fantastic. The second was amazing and Kuroo could feel his palms start to sweat. People were cheering and clapping along through the whole song. The applause was loud and Kuroo glared at Bokuto.

“I know you’ll rock it. Take a deep breath, you’re on, kitten.” Bokuto winked at him and pushed him toward the stage.

Kuroo situated himself and tried not think about tripping on the stage. “Well,” he addressed the audience. “I’m only here because my ass of husband convinced me. And because it’s the anniversary of when we originally started dating.”

Bokuto gasped and his eyes went wide in surprised. “BABE! I thought you forgot.”

“Never. Just because it isn’t our wedding anniversary doesn’t mean I’d forgot the way you asked me out at training camp. You were a blushing, stuttering mess and I was just as in love with you then as I am now eight years later, if not more so. This one is for you.”

The crowd clapped politely and a few girls had cooed at their words. Kuroo closed his eyes and started his song. It was an original and the words took Bokuto’s breath away. Kuroo knew how to write the notes within his range, but his lyrics are what really sold the song. They were romantic and bordered on being cheesy. It was their story in song from. Kuroo eventually opened his eyes, but he only focused on Bokuto. The couple of times Kuroo would switch into his falsetto, Bokuto got chills. It was as if Kuroo was only singing to him, but other people finally got hear Kuroo’s gift.

Kuroo took a bow when he finished and the applause was the loudest it had been all night. Kuroo was blushing, but he was pleasantly surprised by the reaction. “I told you, you were good.” Bokuto kissed him when he returned. Kuroo pulled his husband close, not caring that they were in public. He was still riding on the adrenaline from the performance and kissed Bokuto will all his pent up engery. It was the hottest kiss they had in a while.

“I think we have our winner!” The owner over the microphone and Bokuto and Kuroo separated in surprise. He was pointed directly at them and they both stared at each other in surprise.

“There was a contest?”

“I suppose so, go up there, champ.”

Kuroo went back on stage, blushing again. Bokuto had always been the one who drew attention, he was the ace in high school and college. People always raved about Bokuto’s abilities, that Kuroo wasn’t used to the attention being on him. He didn’t care because he would agree with them.

“Congratulations, you’ve won a full spa package at the hotel next door for you and a partner.”

Kuroo looked out to Bokuto and they grinned. Today would definitely being going in Bokuto’s journal. He hoped Kuroo didn’t know about it, but when they were gray and old he didn’t want to forget anything. He wrote down their adventures so he could keep them forever. They saw a foreign film they didn’t understand, had a picnic lunch, enjoyed a sunset, and now they’d won a free spa package by accident. All they needed was something unbelievably wild to happen, but maybe next time.

[phantasmkiss]

Calypso

QC Monthly Challenge #19

Billionaire Mason Parsons had an ego, that much was obvious. He'd commissioned an obscenely large yacht, and from what I could tell, it was mostly to impress other people. He loved his new toy so much that he commissioned a website to go with it, and that's where I came in.

I'm a graphic designer by trade, and I made a bid on the job. I couldn't say why he chose me, but he did, and I was determined to live up to expectations. Mason invited me and my daughter to see Calypso herself on a weekend-long holiday off the coast of Newcrest to get a feel for her before I began. How could I say no?

I met his family first, and wondered what I had gotten myself into. His father, Matthew Parsons, was a big-wig investor who'd started out as a "Mailroom Technician," which sounds like a fancy way to say he brought people's mail to their desks. He'd recently married a woman younger than either of his children, and the two were definitely in their honeymoon phase.

Mason's sister, Madison, had a Can I see your manager? haircut, and I recognized her husband, Ramsey Zeng. He was one of those young men who'd made millions launching companies. Chronos magazine had called him a "Tech Guru" and a "Dot-Com Pioneer." He seemed to be trying to talk to their daughter, Audrey, as Madison complained about how long it was taking to set the stairs up next to the yacht.

Finally, the man himself showed up.

I'd dressed my best and was glad of it. For all the Internet stalking research I'd done, seeing Mason Parsons in person was an experience. The ego I'd expected, but not the charm. Mason was outgoing, self-assured, and, dare I say it? Extremely handsome! He welcomed me and my daughter, Alexandria, as though we were the guests of honor, not an employee doing hands-on research and her plus-one.

We chatted for a bit, then he led the way, a brisk breeze ruffling our clothing as we mounted the steps. There we met the pilot, Mitchell Kalani, and the activities director, aptly named Summer Holiday!

We went to the bridge while the crew brought our luggage and readied rooms. I pulled back the scarf I'd worn to protect my hair from the wind and promptly forgot to be nervous in my excitement.

Mason and Mitch explained the navigation equipment to me while Alexandria asked Summer every question she could think of. How fast could Calypso go? (Eighteen knots, though she cruised at twelve.) Who'd built her? (She was based on a design by Christensen Shipyards, originally called Casino Royale.) How big was she? (Forty-six squares long by fifteen squares at her widest.)

I even got to wear the Captain's hat!

Alexandria and I were shown to our rooms by Siobhan (pronounced sheh-vahn) Fyres. Each room had a double bed, a desk and Wi-Fi enabled computer, a lot of storage, and a private bathroom. Alexandria claimed a room on the starboard side, and I was across the hall.

I found something in my room which hadn't been in my daughter's, and began to wonder about our host's true intentions.

Little time passed before we were back out on the deck. It was late afternoon by then, as we said goodbye to Twin Oracle Point and began our journey to sea.

We were called to supper promptly at 7 pm. and the spread was fabulous! Alexandria, Mason and I chose the lobster, though there was also steak, gnocchi, and several things I couldn't quite identify. I ordered a non-alcoholic Purple Rain and Alexandria had something pink that shot off sparks when she first got it!

We were joined by Sims I hadn't realized were aboard, and I got a little starstruck. Apparently Mason's friends include the Landgraabs and the Goths, though Bella Goth was missing during the meal. Geoffrey Landgraab is a really nice, down-to-earth guy, something I hadn't expected, considering his wife's rumored criminal activity.

After supper was karaoke! Some of the guests were a little juiced by then. Matthew's wife, Aura, broke the ice with Madonna's Like a Virgin, which was a little awkward for the rest of us. Mason's niece sang Somewhere Over the Rainbow before being sent off to bed, and she did an amazing job!

I wanted to sing, but didn't have the nerve until Alexandria dragged me on stage. It was tough finding a duet that wasn't romantic, and even harder finding one we both knew, but we finally settled on Good Time, by Owl City and Carly Rae Jepson. It was a lot of fun!

A few Sims wandered off to bed, Alexandria included, though I think she was more interested in gossiping to her friends online than she was in sleeping! The rest of us went out onto the upper deck for music and dancing.

I recognized Alice Spencer-Kim on the piano and waved hello. This would be a nice job for her, but I bet she couldn't wait to get home to her family!

After hours of socialization, I needed quiet, but didn't want to stray too far. I stopped at the edge of the deck to look out over the water. The night was beautiful, buildings along the shore lit up, moonlight reflecting off the water. I wasn't alone for long.

Mason joined me, and for some moments, the silence was comfortable. When he spoke at last, he said some things I won't write, lest my daughter read this!

Our earlier tour hadn't included the master suite, but it was as modern and sleek as the rest of the yacht. It had the usual bed and storage, of course, but also had two walk-in closets, a vanity, and a high-end television.

I took the time to write down notes for my web design before checking out the master bathroom as well.

The master bathroom was as large as my entire suite! It had the same amenities, a shower and a tub, but dual sinks and far more space.

Later I met with Alexandria on deck. She loves kids, and had made fast friends with Audrey. This forced her parents to spend time talking with each other, which seemed to work out. Her mother was finally beginning to relax.

I was talking with Mason when I saw sea turtles off the port stern. They swam alongside the yacht for a moment, but when Alexandria came over, she had missed them!

We talked, and everyone decided to go for a swim, or snorkeling, or simply lounging in the sun. I took Alexandria with me. I spotted the turtles again! This time Alexandria didn't miss a thing, and we watched them for some time.

It was one thing seeing aquatic life from the yacht, but quite another to swim amongst it all. We saw schools of fish below a nearby dock, sea grasses and flowers, and I thought I saw a treasure chest, though I lost track of it in the excitement. Maybe someone else will be lucky!

We returned to Calypso, where the Parsons family was having a casual lunch on the top deck. We ate and talked where the night before we had danced. I decided I had misjudged Matthew's young wife. She really did seem to love him, and he could be as charming as his son.

After lunch, most of the others wanted to lie in the sun. Alexandria and I took that time to go exploring on-board! We started with the door off the dining room, which naturally led to a kitchen.

The kitchen had a double wide refrigerator and two sinks, as well as two dishwashers! I could smell something baking and hear someone moving around in the next room, so we took off before we could get caught!

The kitchen wasn't the only crew area we wandered into. We found an office/lounge as well. It was sparsely furnished, but clean and well-stocked. We talked about taking a skeleton key with us, but didn't actually do it. Anything that was locked up, we were fine staying out of!

The last stop on our private tour was the engine room. I hadn't imagined how much machinery it would take to run a ship of this size! Alexandria and I looked, but didn't touch, and finally we went to rejoin the party.

Mason was with Geoffrey Landgraab in the gym. Summer offered to coach us if we wanted to try the equipment, so we changed into our workout clothes and jumped onto the treadmills!

As promised, it was a bracing environment to exercise! I've rarely had so much fun exercising, though I wasn't at it long before I pulled a muscle.

Alexandria took me to the infirmary, which was small, but had everything I needed. Summer and Siobhan tended to my injury, which was thankfully minor, and I was advised not to overexert myself for the rest of the holiday. I had been very active!

There was a movie playing in the recreation room, and several Sims gathered to watch it, to read, or to play chess. Audrey played a very good game against her grandfather, though he won in the end.

I was feeling inspired, so I brought out my paints and easel. Alexandria watched me for a while, as I began to paint a passing canal boat, but Audrey came to find her, and they left together.

I later found them together, reading The First Unicorn. It was one of Alexandria's favorite books from when she was younger, and she'd brought it in case she got bored. That had never happened, but she had found someone else to share her love of reading!

Supper was amazing again, and this time everyone joined us. The table seated all thirteen Sims, with room to spare!

Alexandria and I stayed up half the night talking about everything we'd seen and done. She confronted me about my feelings for Mason, but I assured her that I have no intentions of settling down any time soon! She swore to me that if he broke my heart, she'd punch his yacht.

Finally, our holiday was at an end. It was hard saying goodbye to the crew, who felt like friends now, hard saying goodbye to the life of luxury, and to Mason.

While Alexandria hugged Audrey goodbye, Mason and I stepped aside to talk. I told him that I didn't feel right beginning a relationship while I was working for him, however distantly. I thought that it would be easier to do the job than to risk my heart after so many years with only my daughter to care for.

He countered with a rose, as fresh and beautiful as the one I’d found on my pillow that first night.

We had exchanged contact information before this weekend even happened, and though I'd heard he was a non-committal playboy, he promised to contact me again. Is this the end of a holiday, or the beginning of something else?

At last, Alexandria and I stood alone on the dock, watching Calypso ready to move on.

Who is Mason Parsons, really? An eccentric billionaire? A heartless rogue? Or is there something more to him, below the polished walls he puts up all around him? Maybe someday I'll find out.

Yacht: Calypso in the Sims 4 Gallery

Parsons Family in the Sims 4 Gallery

Note: Captain’s hat is CC and not included. You can find it here, though.

(Origin ID: PhantasmKiss)

[jsalim-art]

Something to get out my chest

 I’m probably going to delete this later and I just need to get this out my chest because I have been bottling it up for a long while and if I do blurt it to said certain family members I know I would regret saying what I said. Although talking to the void is probably not a good idea but seems a better place to vent than exploding in rage by venting my frustrations in real life and I have nothing to lose just saying this here. I'd be doing vent art to express this but it seems I don't have the energy to do ambitious works (well at least I have a bit of energy to do little doodles) anyways where shall I start? I might ramble off topic here and there so bare with me. And this is gonna be long.....

I love to draw and write the characters and worlds I create in my world and the only person who knows what are in these worlds and these characters is myself and well someone has to make them. I have been drawing since I can remember holding a pencil. My mind back then and now is always filled to the brim with ideas and concepts I'm dying to put on paper. Most of these works are unfinished and the only finished work I have to offer was a shameless self-insert fanfiction but that is another story. The earliest I can remember is at 10-11 I made my own fantasy and all over the place story and mind you it sucks but it was the forerunner of all my original stories that influenced my work now. I like all artists have our beginnings somewhere and well that is where I started my road into creating stories and art for the worlds I create.

This is what makes me happy or my happy place. I'd be content to spend my days working on my stories and art. During my teen years onwards I basically did that obviously while balancing school, social life (or my lack of it), and family life. It was great, and although I had difficulty balancing that when I first got to college I still managed. Then things changed, family stuff added along with stressing over course work really did a number on me emotionally and maybe mentally, well whatever it was it was the result of me failing a semester and having to redo it twice before I can finally move on to my final semester. Despite what I have gone through I was ecstatic I finally graduated completing my Independent Illustration diploma in college that was late 2013 to early 2014 when that happened.

You’d think I’d work out something like build a better portfolio so I can network myself or take up my learning to the next level but nope I was an idiot back then and still feel like it now because of my choices. Instead, I was scared what my future holds out for me I feel like now that I finished this stage of my learning that the sky’s the limit that I can do anything my heart desires and nothing can stop that. Then I forgot I have obligations to my family, I still live with them and I have no shame in that (after all life is difficult living on your own in these times now especially) also, for now, that is the only choice I have.

So after graduation, my family finally got the okay from the government to get our Canadian citizenships which was about damn time considering we stayed in this country as immigrants for like almost a decade and other than me graduating art school, I get to finally get my citizenship. After our ceremony, my dad announced for a bullshit reason that he is taking me, my sister, my mom, and niece to Dubai because my mom has to sign some important paper (spoiler alert there is no paper signed at all and it was all a lie my father gave us to come). So what did I do instead of working on a portfolio or something? I spent all of 2014 being anxious, I was not proud of what I choose to do instead of doing the smart thing.

I basically accepted my fate this is what's going to happen. I literally left Canada on New Year’s Eve and spent the first 3 months of 2015 away from home. A huge chunk of my “vacation” was spent in Kuwait, trapped in a hotel with my mom, sister, and niece. It was a nightmare and I never want that to happen again I did get to go places but 90% I was stuck in that damned hotel (why we were in there is a personal reason I will not disclose). The only thing that is good with this trip is my week in Thailand with my family and although I got sick there I enjoyed this part of the vacation a lot more than being trapped in a hotel in Kuwait. I did manage to do some of my art at least during these 3 months but was not a lot like I hoped for.

But ever since that trip I guess it kinda changed me a bit. I don’t consider myself a positive person heck I’m mostly negative I at least try to be optimistic. Now I just accept that my life is probably not going to be what I hope it will be. And I get it life happens and the plans you make for yourself do not always go the way you want and sometimes it is a good thing cause it may be a better path to some or not to others. I should know I went from being an illustration student to a NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) to a Liberal Arts Student so yes life works in mysterious ways.

Liberal Arts was a different territory to art courses considering its essays, readings, tests, quizzes, etc it was hard I must say I spent half my time crying over my homework and lamenting if I failed or not (although that seems to have worked wonders into getting passing grades and up). But I enjoy these classes and I do want to open my horizons to learning and hey maybe find some inspiration along the way. I already finished my second semester and currently waiting with anticipation for my final grades so wish me luck I survived the semester with passing colors. I also thought I can go back to balancing my school work and my art like I always had done. Then I forgot I have family obligations/contributions I must do. Not that I do not mind but these drain up my mental energy and by the time I am not needed I just can’t really bring myself to pick up a pencil and draw. Whatever I have time left before I sleep is stare at youtube videos and reblogging stuff online because that's how mentally tired and worthless I feel.

When I finally do have the time to actually pick up a pencil and draw 70% of the time I choose to procrastinate because I believe I’ll just be called over by the family for certain responsibilities and I’ll never get the peace and quiet I need to just do what I love and am passionate about. It's always the same cycle ever since then. I just hope there will be that window of opportunity where I have all the time I needed to just draw and maybe write and that one opportunity I had was taken away from me. Well, it won’t be for forever cause there will be more opportunities for me to actually get my lazy ass to draw maybe write. It's just that I am sick and tired of having my time taken away from me and I am mad at myself for being a doormat. But I’m just scared of feeling that I am selfish for wanting that and maybe it’s time I stop that and it will be hard for me to get over. I coped with this by blaming my problems on my family saying its their fault they did this to me (it is obviously not true but it's a way I made myself feel better and denying that this is mostly my doing) I now know it's futile projecting this because in the end, I myself have to make time for myself to do the things I am passionate about. I’ve grown quite resentful and I don’t want to become this bitter person in the future who felt like her life got wasted because she made herself a doormat to please her family or scared of her future. I envy you artists out there who have all the time in the world to make creative original (as well as fan work) content without having to deal with the roadblocks in life and being in charge of your lives. I just want to say that you have to cherish the time you make for yourself to be creative you never know what will happen and before you know it *poof* you hardly have the time. Don’t ever take it for granted like I have.

Art means a lot to me and I feel like I disappointed myself and I feel like I don’t deserve to hang my illustration diploma because I fee like an imposter and felt like I wasted my years being scared of my future so much so that I got to the point where I feel I went to the point of no return. It makes me feel like maybe I should just give up on art and forget about all those worlds and characters I created like whats the use of being creative when life got you by the ankles and refused to let go. As much as I am in such a negative state of mind refuse to outright throw away everything I hold dear and give in the mediocracy of life dragging me away. I don’t want to be discouraged ever again, I want to be sure that this time this is what I want to do with my life whether I go to study graphic design, or go big with my art or even have a typical  9-5 job but still able to find the time to do art and/or write. This is my life and maybe right now the time for doing what I love is not in my future at the moment but its still going to be there for me when I come back. 

And I just want to say and I know I do not need to apologize to my followers I’m sorry if you followed me for the art and hardly or never got any content since following me. As much as I would love to post as much of my originally content as possible well I have to deal with life and responsibilities some of that said responsibilities isn’t so supposed to be mine in the first place. I thank you to those who stuck by if anything I’ll try my best to make more content when that window of opportunity opens for me and you’ll bet your ass it will be a tidal wave of stuff. 

But like I said life is strange sometimes, and I’m not about to give up just yet.

- signed a former illustration student trying to find her way

[onlineartcolleges-com]

Get College Art Classes for Cheap/Free

hey guys I'm back with another video so I'm really excited that a lot of people actually started doing the sketchbook slam challenge so if you want to participate in the sketchbook slam challenge again it will be linked in a playlist at the end of this video to find out what it is and it's what I'm doing currently on screen but basically if you are participating in it there is a hashtag which is a sketchbook slam challenge on Instagram that you can also tag your work in I would love to see it several people have actually tagged me in it and it's super cool that so many people have started doing it even in Bailey J which I know that she watches my videos so I really appreciate you drawing attention to my challenge super cool with that all being said I meant to have a video out earlier this week but it's gonna take longer than I expected so I thought I would make this video just so I could get something out for you guys and it's actually something that I've had resources for a long time so so as you can see with the title how to get college-level art classes for cheaper for free so I get a lot of people asking me should they go to art school and I want to learn but I don't know where to go and I don't know how to get it and it's expensive blah blah and it always kind of frustrates me because the resources are there you just have to look for them and then it occurred to me that maybe people just don't know how to find them so I have put together a discord that will give you a lot of resources particularly PDFs I really encourage people to look at the PDF section of the discord below but there's a bunch of different categories for you to look into but that's just one section of what I wanted to talk about there's a lot of better ways to get to learn basically and a lot of people want to go to an art school to learn or they don't really know why they need this degree or or what the degree will do so I'm going to kind of just explain school to you because a lot of people don't explain why people go to school so there's a couple category of thought when people go to school and it kind of depends on what your major isn't what you're trying to learn right say for example the reason why doctor wants to go to schools because you can't be a doctor without that degree a degree holds many different accomplishments however with art in particular a degree doesn't hold what matters is your art so I always find it kind of funny that art schools are so expensive when their degrees are basically toilet paper and it's really funny to me because I am currently in school I go to school online and I have to take all these classes that are just that aren't related to art say for example I had to take a math class and now I'm the type of person who says you can learn from anything however I think a math a basic math class is kind of stupid for artists I don't know why they didn't put basics and economics for artists because so many artists have no idea how to start their own business I had to learn how to get an LLC all on my own because guess what this school that I'm paying for just has no idea how to arrange their curriculum but anyways point being I don't think that we should limit our education and I think that these degrees are kind of pointless so and we have the information available online so I'm just gonna share it with you it's the first thing that I want you to do if you have an art school in mind that you think is really prestigious go ahead and go to you YouTube type in whatever prestigious art school like blah blah blah blah art school like say for example SVA that's the earth school that Rebecca sugar went to type that in and put in talk and what you'll find is you'll have guest speakers that have come to that school and it was recorded and put online or if you have a particular artist that you like type in the artist name and talk or interview and that's a really good way to get some insight information one of the things that I found really really imperative to my to my learning was these talks if you don't know I used to go to MCAD which was Minneapolis College of Art Design and that was not online that was I was actually there and one of the things that I learned the most from was these people who come into the school because these people were actually in the industry but they don't tell you about art schools is that a lot of people who are teaching you aren't actually working in the industry they're kind of tenured into the into the classroom so what will happen is you have somebody who who maybe like a low level maybe they had some experience outside of school but they are definitely not the people who have been working at Disney or anything they're people who could do freelance basically what I'm saying is according to like art schools I would qualify to be a teacher if I had a degree in teaching because I have experience making YouTube videos yeah that's stupid you should learn from the best of the best that's why I encourage you guys to look up trend every time you find something really cool in a movie try to figure out what job the artist is in that movie that you liked say for example you're watching a show like an animated thing and and you like a certain animation sequence we'll try to figure out which artist did that and then research the artist because odds are there's an interview with them now going along the same lines there's a bunch of artists who also agree with me that art schools are kind of ridiculous you don't need to pay 50 grand to get an education and there's a lot of people in the US who actually offer classes on their own so you can skip the of art school and go straight to the source which is what I'm always about I like going straight to the source I don't like pussyfooting around so there's a couple people in mind that I'm going to link below who offer classes and I'm going to actually kind of promote them a little bit because I think they're cool and I think that what they're doing is a good thing now I have mentioned Skillshare before but I am actually not doing a sponsored video today but that I think is a pretty good resource so I just I'm gonna throw that out there the second source is actually Steven silver now Steven silver used to be a Disney animator storyboard artist he's basically worked for a bazillion different companies he has his own YouTube channel where he puts out talks every Monday he's a really cool dude and he offers basically a chance to be a one-on-one mentorship with this guy at 60 bucks for an hour so it's basically a dollar an hour which a dollar a minute sorry which is pretty good considering this guy has more industry experience than any of your college professors I'm betting so I just think if you look up a bunch of artists that you really look up to I'm betting more often than not especially the industry ones they will have or offer mentor ships to some degree not all of them but a good portion of them I find I mean I just thought he was a good example okay so another artist to look up is will Terry will Terry is an illustrator and he has a very good YouTube channel that had offers insight with children's books illustration and again I will put all of these people in the description but I'm kind of talking just in a general sense like what he does and why it's good but basically he is a children's illustrator and he has been fairly successful and he basically teaches people the do's and don'ts and that kind of thing but he also co-wrote vs learn calm which is a it's kind of it kind of runs like a subscription service similar to Skillshare but honestly I feel like it's way better than sale share because it has more illustration based stuff Skillshare tends to have more graphic design based stuff and it runs similar to that where you pay a monthly fee and you can get certain classes yada-yada and it's pretty good now not everything that you want to learn will be able you'll be able to get for free however I think basically if you want to learn something it shouldn't be you know an arm and a leg you a couple hundred bucks I think should be a pretty good amount for a class and in general I think people if they valued education this would be a cool way to just kick start in your career without having to spend a lot of money and finally I I should just say that up you should also look up whatever whatever field of art that you want to be in say for example you want to be an animator you know look up what these animation students have to do so look up stuff like their foundations like the foundation classes and then for each class you figure out what you have to do to get to get to learn say for example if you're looking into what the requirements are for a 2d animator you would find that you need figure Studies and you'd need a semester of that so then you can kind of just self-study and learn all this stuff on your own okay so with all that being said with that being said a lot of a lot of the things that people argue with me about about is them being a self-taught artist one of the things that I think is pretty ironic about that is there's never a self-taught artist regardless if you go to school or if you go and learn on your own you're still drawing from a database of information and this information is still difficult to put together so even if you're going to complain about having to pay $60 for one one hour of an artist time keep in mind that this information is still taking up someone's time and effort so and it's still not your own information you know you didn't you didn't pull this out of your ass so I I kind of leaned to the side of you're never going to be a self-taught artist and you should just shut up about it because you're not everything that you've learned has probably been from somebody else where did you learn how to do shading did you learn all that on your own I kind of I kind of doubt that I I'm betting you even observed from tutorials to figure out how to shade but that being said I do think that self taught quote-unquote artists tend to do better with finding resources on their own as opposed to people who are more hands-on and would rather have somebody tell them what to do so for people who are not very good at learning on their own who need more instruction based learning I would suggest going to more of these cheaper lower level courses that I mentioned like SBS learn and Steven silver also all offers classes or even Skillshare or YouTube for that matter again some some art schools even offer like an online program like I have still pretty expensive but not nearly as expensive as being there in studio and you can kind of take what you want essentially in a lot of cases so yeah I hope these resources were good for you so one of the things that the sketchbook slam challenges i've contacted both companies that make these hardbound versions of the books and what i've essentially asked them is if they could try to find a distributor for international places because one thing that really annoyed me was so many people wanted to do this challenge but they couldn't find the hardcovers which i totally agree a softcover book that's this thick is kind of a pain in the ass because it's gonna be hard to draw on both sides so I haven't gotten back to them they haven't gotten back to me rather yet so if I ever get any messages back I'll let you guys know I'm hoping with a generated sales because me and Bailey J and other youtubers are doing it building awareness of this sketchbook perhaps these companies will start trying to distribute them internationally we'll see who knows but I'm hoping that'll do something but if you want to help support me you could actually buy the sketchbook yourself because I have Amazon affiliate links linked below I also have affiliate links for all the supplies I use so if you're curious as to what I'm sketching with or something it'll be linked below again you can join the discord and I'll see you guys all soon bye

https://youtu.be/dvDs4VUnEdU

[daviddoughbrik]

Imagine growing up with David and Nat. Being the best of friends. And being the last one to move to LA. So one day you suprise them by showing up to their door and its all hugs and love.

“So I don’t know how to do this at all, but I do know one thing. My best friends have been stressed. Growing up, I was the mom of the group and Natalie and David were always my best friends. If one of us were somewhere, you can bet the rest of us weren’t far behind. I always kept them out of trouble, and by that I mean David,” I laugh. “Natalie wasn’t too reckless. After high school, I moved away to Tennessee for college and haven’t seen them since I went back home for the holidays this past year. Today, that’s changing.” I set my phone down on the airport chair beside me as I wait for my Uber to arrive. I admire the palm trees outside the window and before I know it, I’m in the Uber and I see David’s opened gate before me. I quickly pull my phone out and snap some video of myself in the car and some walking up to his door.

With three strikes to the solid part of a glass door, I hear faint yelling “Someone get the door! Natalie!” There’s my bossy best friend.

“I’ll get it,” I hear a deeper voice say and then the thump, pad, thump of socks on wooden floors and someone comes into view. “Hey. Can I help you?” It’s Zane. I recognize him from the videos. He will help me with this.

“I’m here to see Natalie and David. They don’t know I’m here so tell them it’s the cops,” he winks at me and I hide off to the side.

“Dude, David. Get Natalie. There’s some cops here that are asking for you,” Zane says in a convincing voice. I hear David cursing and grabbing Natalie from wherever she was.

“What do they want?” Natalie says in a hushed tone.

“I don’t know,” he replies back and I hear their voices just feet away. I stay where I am, my phone ready to record, and wait for them to step out of the house before jumping around the corner.

“Surprise!” I yell and their faces light up. The looks on their faces were priceless as they hugged me to the ground. “Did you miss me?” I laugh.

They both are still hugging me so tight, but Natalie still manages to say “yes!”

We lay there on the dirty concrete for a few more moments before I finally tap out. Natalie gets up, but David is still hanging on. “Get up, knuckle head. You’re squishin’ me.”

David gets up and wipes his eyes before attaching himself to me again and Natalie follows. “Let’s go inside, it’s hot out here,” I finally hear him speak. They grab my things and we head inside the cool house. “So, what brings you here?” David asks.

“Well you two, of course. Because I missed my best friends. But also, I am kinda moving out here,” I say waiting for reactions. Their jaws drop. “I got a job here at UCLA. I’m going to be the new professor of graphic design,” I smile.

“Y/n!” They both gasp.

“That’s incredible. I can come torment your students,” David says grabbing his camera. “Look who’s here,” he whispers to his device.

“Okay! We are not gonna be doing that,” you laugh.