blackbird

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Upwardly mobile, 6 flights in fact.....

This past weekend the hubs and I went to help our oldest son move - AGAIN! Ground floor you ask, ahhhhh, heck no, of course not... but I take comfort in knowing we are certainly not the first parents to be called upon to assist with this roost changing phenomena going on amongst college age students. I know my friends with kids of the same age are dealing with the same issues. But while one of my many trips in the elevator (yes, thank goodness for the elevator) I found myself pondering the way my son's generation seems to adapt to change readily. And I came to the conclusion there is a direct correlation with the technical age we live in and that generation's ability, or maybe their desire to not settle until they achieve their goals.

It probably sounds like I think of that in a negative fashion but while I certainly  think there are negative connotations, overall it might be a very positive and healthy thing. Back in the day when I was in my early 20's the path was fairly clear. You graduated high school, went to college, got married, got a steady job and had a family. Pretty cut and dried, no drama, no risk, not much variance. Sometimes the pieces of the puzzle were altered but the goal was pretty much the same for everyone. Now, the puzzle doesn't even look the same. Some people might argue that we are just raising a society of selfish children only worrying about themselves. Trading in spouses, trading jobs, trading domiciles, trading — lives, in an effort to be happy is making them selfish and self-centered. I dare to ponder this differently, is it self-centered to do exactly what the fore fathers suggested when it was blatantly spelled out in the Declaration of Independence - "Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness?" Maybe it doesn't follow the norm or beaten path of our perception of the "proper" way to go about life but is that necessarily a bad thing?  Don't get me wrong, I am not advocating the further decline of marriage or family but I am just openly questioning if staying in a decaying relationship or a dead-end job is the best option to creating a happy family.

On the flip side of the coin I do wonder if this society where so many people work at home and live in neighborhoods that do not have the sense of community and safety of the Beaver Cleaver age, is causing a disconnect to relationships. For instance if you work at home and only know Mary from accounting by the talking head in Skype or the information laden emails, and have no real relationship, it becomes quite simple to move on to another job. Or, if you have never met your neighbors other than the half-hearted obligitory wave when you accidentally make eye contact as they pull into their garage, you don't have to think twice when moving to a new place.

I guess this really is nothing new under the sun, just a different paradigm in which people are struggling to not only do the right thing in the eyes of society but to create their version of a happy, healthy family unit. So, I guess I'll just take more Aleve and be happy my son is making a conscious effort to move and be happy and feel fortunate that this economy hasn't forced him into making this decision. And on a side note......why is it that a young man that manages to hold two jobs and has a college degree cannot see that if he is going to move he might need to plan a bit and gather some boxes and pack a few things ahead of time? I suppose it is because common sense 101 is not required for the degree.....


Here are some pictures from the move, he moved to the power and light district in Kansas City, it's a hotel renovated into apartments and I really like it, the whole area is reminiscent of New York City and his new roomie, Mike, a true sweetheart and good guy.

Vintage hotel renovated into apartments

Looking down the stairs from the 6th floor
Mike sizing up the daunting task before him
Boxes? evidently not a moving necessity
The beast of a sofa that had to be carried down the stairs and then up the stairs.

Wednesday, November 09, 2011

This project makes me smile

I spend my day doing creative things-some of it is fancy pants stuff and some is just mundane but the best thing is that it seems no 2 days of work are ever the same. And at the end of each project the range of emotions tends to be from relief that it is finished to excitement that it is finished and usually a mixture of both.  I would be lying if I said I don't always just hold my breath when finishing a project hoping there isn't a glaring error that I (and the 40 other sets of eyes) have missed.

Many times my portion  is just a tiny part in a much bigger  project and I always anxiously await to see how it all fits. An example of that is our new web site which Chris Lock has been working feverishly on to complete. I can't reveal it yet as he is still putting the finishing touches on it but here is our new logo that has inspired the color scheme.


I completed a project and today when it came in I loved the way it looked. It's one thing to design something and see it small on a screen (even if you do have a 17-inch monitor) and it's completely another when it is on a 10-foot backdrop! As with every project a few little things I'd change but overall - LOVE IT!