Because of Tew

Ellie and Elmo

2011-03-11T20:23:00.000-08:00

So, Eliana is now officially 1 year old. For her birthday, we went down to Roseburg, since Merrill's brother Jon got back from his mission in Puerto Rico. We didn't have much of a party, but we did make her a cake for the occasion. Can you guess what it looked like?ELMO!! We discovered that Eliana loves Elmo. So I had to make her a cake that looked like him. It was my first 2-layer, and I even colored the frosting right. It was hard to watch Eliana plow into it. She didn't even eat the cake, really... just licked her fingers a few times and then started to cry as she tried to get the cake off of her hands. It was really cute. I wish we had a video of it. Merrill tried filming Eliana with the cake, but when we got home, we found that we only had about 2 seconds of the video recorded. Such a bummer!

We want to throw Eliana a little party next month and invite some of her friends from church to come play and have cake. Hopefully I can pull off another Elmo cake and we can get some pics and video of her eating it.

Here's a video of Eliana opening the Elmo doll that Tiffany sent her a few days before her birthday. She was so happy to have it, she sat there hugging and kissing him for like 5 minutes.

Christmas 2010

2011-01-16T20:31:00.000-08:00

We went down to Merrill's mom's house for Christmas. Ellie had a lot of fun with a little dancing Santa that she had. And I thought it would be great for her to be dressed up for her first Christmas.
Merrill's new shirt and tie--thanks Monica and Shelby! (I still need to get a pic of me wearing the awesome apron you guys gave me!)
Here are some funny clips of Eliana before, during, and after Christmas:

Devil in a Blue Dress

2010-10-11T19:48:00.000-07:00

Well, she ain't a devil, but these pics of her in a blue dress are pretty darn cute. I realized I hadn't taken pictures of Eliana for a long time, so I picked out a dress I thought would look good, sat her down in the middle of the floor, and started shooting.

The Past Two Months

2010-09-18T11:02:00.000-07:00

Where to begin? The last two months have been quite interesting, to say the least. We were planning on moving to Utah so Merrill could go to Weber State and for better job opportunities as we weren't finding any here in Portland. So, we sold all of our stuff and hoped that everything would be better in Utah. Then in the beginning of August, Merrill thought he would try one last shot at applying for apartment managing positions in Portland. That week, we got interviews and were offered 3 different positions. Thus, we decided we were staying in Portland. Now we've got a job that provides a rent credit of $750 and salary of $300/month. Merrill can keep going to school, and I can stay home with Eliana. This works out so much better for us, knowing that if we had gone to Utah, there was a slim chance of finding jobs, an apartment, and a way for Merrill to pay for school (out-of-state tuition; financial aid would not have covered everything). We know Heavenly Father answered our prayers. He really is mindful of what each of his children are going through and is looking our for us.

We love our new apartment! It's a 2 bd/1 ba. We were surprised at how big the apartments are, compared to what we've been living in the last 3 years. There is a grocery store right next door, and a park just south of us (Mt. Tabor). We're surrounded by a bunch of local restaurants and shops, some of which are pretty good.

We like our new ward, too. But it's really small, almost like a branch, because there is 77% inactivity. There's a lot of work to be done. Merrill and I gave talks our second week in the ward and the Bishop has already talked to us about past callings we've had. We're just anticipating the interviews to be this Sunday or next.

I haven't been able to post pictures for awhile, so here's some of Eliana. I'll get more up as they come.

My New Favorite Outfit:

New Dinner Fave

2010-07-23T17:11:00.000-07:00

I found this recipe on the back of the pepperoni package that we buy. It's easy, simple, inexpensive, and Merrill and I LOVE it!

Hormel's Delicious Pepperoni Pull Apart Pizza

2 (7.5-ounce) tubes refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
1 cup pizza sauce
1 (3.5-ounce) package HORMEL sliced mild pepperoni
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 375 F. Cut refrigerated biscuits into fourths. Place biscuits onto lightly greased pizza sheet in a circular fashion to form a 10-inch circle. Top with pizza sauce, 1/2 of pepperoni, cheese and remaining pepperoni slices. Bake for 22-25 minutes or until biscuits are baked through and cheese is hot and bubbly. Serves 6-8.

So Sleepy

2010-07-15T19:27:00.000-07:00

After going on a walk this afternoon, Eliana was sitting on my lap, and then fell asleep. I love the affects of sunshine on a hyper-active infant!

Catching Up on the Past 2 Months

2010-07-12T21:25:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics that I've neglected to post.

Sitting with Daddy, first time on her own, propped up.

This is how she prefers to be put to bed-and she finds it comfortable.

A man with a sling-one of my favorite things!

Most recently...

When she discovered her tongue...

Her very first time rolling over (at 2 months!)

I wasn't sure what she wanted... so I tried it all at once.

Squeaks and Squawks

Playtime with Daddy

2010-06-29T20:34:00.000-07:00

Merrill and I have decided that we've had enough of life in Portland. It was nice for the first few months, but after Eliana was born, we've had several things happen that are signs that Portland is not where we are supposed to be. First of all, we've had major trouble with finances-it's just too expensive for a student to support his family here. Then there's the job situation, where if you aren't in the medical or engineering fields, you're out of luck in landing something. Not to mention that Oregon has an incredibly high unemployment rate (thus you have people pumping your gas for you throughout the state). Portland State offers little help in career preparation for Merrill, and he hasn't really gotten any closer to graduating despite all the classes he's taken here so far. And, even though we thought we could survive on our own, we realize now that having family and friends nearby is very helpful.

So, life continued getting harder, and staying in Portland seemed increasingly like a pit of despair. In contemplating how to better our situation, we decided we should have stuck to our original plan from a year ago: move to Ogden, UT so Merrill can attend Weber State and I can find work. Looking back, when we visited Weber State, Merrill and I felt really good about Merrill going there. Now we are going to step back and try this moving thing one more time: we're moving to Ogden!

Right now we are applying for jobs to start in mid-August, after Merrill finishes summer term at PSU. If we land something, we'll move to Ogden ASAP. If not, we will be moving to Roseburg, OR to stay with Merrill's mom until we can find work in Ogden or winter semester starts at Weber State. Whichever happens first.

Moving to Ogden will really help us where living in Portland failed: there are more job opportunities in my field (English and Design), better education and career opportunities for Merrill, and family and friends nearby. Please keep us in your prayers, so that we may find work in Ogden and be able to move there soon!

Eliana's Photoshoot

2010-05-22T11:38:00.000-07:00

The latest videos and pics, as promised:

Squares

Bedtime

Mobile

First Laugh

2 Months Later...

2010-05-04T20:00:00.000-07:00

Merrill and I are so excited about this weekend! Merrill's mom is coming up to watch Eliana for us so we can go to the temple and go out! We've really needed it--we haven't experienced Portland as much as we've liked yet. And it's been a long time since we've been to the temple. So, I've really got to get pumpin' in preparation for this one day event (literally :)!

Thank you to all of you who gave us baby sleep tips. We tried the pacifier and swaddling, and that works great. But we haven't had any success with getting Eliana to sleep in her bassinet. When we lay her down in it, she only sleeps for about 5 min. before wriggling out of her swaddling and telling us she is awake. The only thing that keeps her asleep for at least an hour is sleeping in our bed with us. I wish we could have the bed to ourselves, but whatever helps Eliana sleep helps us sleep, so I'm not complaining. Besides, it's easier to just roll over and nurse Eliana back to sleep, letting me sleep as she nurses.

Eliana's 2 month immunizations were today. I was dreading the crying, so I took Merrill with me so I wouldn't have to suffer alone. She was good for the whole appointment--talking to the doctor, smiling and looking at everything through the big mirror on the wall--until the shots. And even then it only took like 5 min. for her to calm down. Not as bad as I thought it was going to be. Maybe it gets worse as they get older though, when they can actually see the thing that is stuck into them and they associate it with pain. Eliana is developing quickly, already babbling and telling us what she wants and starting to reach for things. She's also very active, wriggling and kicking. The only time she is still is when she sleeps. I can't believe the little personality she has!

Concerning pictures of Eliana: I had a bunch on my camera that I wanted to post, along with some cool videos, but was I was putting them onto the computer, the program suddenly quite on me and I lost all the pictures and videos. Gone forever. I am so sad! So I am currently trying to take more pictures and videos of Eliana so that you all can really meet this crazy little girl.

2010-04-10T19:04:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to get more pictures to meet the demand of everyone who reads this blog and checks my status on Facebook, but Eliana moves so much, I can never get a good one--unless she is asleep, of course. So, here is something better for your enjoyment:

Eliana loves getting her diaper changed because it is also play time. Merrill discovered that she loves you to blow air on her face, and this is what we see each time.

This is for kicks and giggles--the poop-ing face.

So, Merrill and I have decided that we would like to get at least a little more sleep at night. How have you moms managed that? How can we get Eliana to sleep without her having to cry it out? We want to avoid that completely. I don't want Eliana to fear sleep. She's already starting to fight sleep, especially in the evenings. How do you help an infant that fights against your coaxing them to sleep? And when do you start setting up a sleep schedule for naps during the day? What's worked for you guys?

My Other Half

2010-04-04T16:05:00.000-07:00

The other night, I had the hardest time getting Eliana to sleep. She fights sleep in the evenings. I tried playing, changing the diaper, burping, bouncing, swaddling, swaying, walking--even nursing--but nothing worked. Then Merrill came home. As soon as the door opened, Eliana got quiet, looking for Papa as she heard his voice. He picked her up and laid her on the bed. He turned on some music and started singing and playing with her. Shortly after, she fell asleep. Watching Papa play with Eliana made me so happy--and thankful--that I have a partner to help me raise our children. I'm also glad to have a husband whose goal is to become financially free so that he can be home with his family during the day. That will be nice for me and for the kids--to have their papa be there for them anytime.

Waking Up...

2010-03-25T12:38:00.000-07:00

It's in the Photograph

2010-03-25T12:22:00.000-07:00

Here is the newest addition to our family: Eliana Jean Tew.

This one's for Tiffany. Thanks for the cute onesie--it fits her kissy face!

And a big thank you to Monica, Shelby, and the boys for coming up to help us!

Week 40 Part 2

2010-02-26T19:44:00.000-08:00

The ultrasound went well (other than squishing the baby into my guts and my ribs, making me feel nauseous). Eliana will probably be a petite baby, if she comes anytime soon. Apparently, she has long legs, which she must have gotten from Merrill. Also, because my blood pressure was a tad high, they did a blood test. And it was negative for pre-eclampsia. So far so good. the only thing that would make everything much better would be if Eliana were to have already made her debut. I can't stand this waiting! I want the worst (and most painful) part to be over and have a little baby girl to hold.

Week 40

2010-02-24T12:39:00.000-08:00

So, Eliana's almost here! Hopefully! I just got back from seeing the doctor today: I'm 1.5 cm and 70% effaced. Finally some progress! And contractions are still not painful-just my belly tightening every once in a while. I go in for an ultrasound tomorrow to check Eliana's growth. My blood pressure was a teensy bit high at this appointment, so they want to make sure things are okay. I sure hope they are! Keep us in your prayers!

Week 39

2010-02-18T15:31:00.000-08:00

I had my appointment yesterday with Dr. Johnson. Nothing has really changed-except for my weight. He has no worries that the baby is going to be too big, because I still measure kind of small. Although I've had a few painless contractions here and there, nothing has happened to me for me to be even close to delivery. I'm getting really anxious for Eliana to come already. There's really nothing I can do except wait it out, but who ever loved the waiting game? At the rate Ellie's taking, she'll probably be a March baby. And if she is late, at least I don't have to worry about having too big of a belly ;)

Cool Site

2010-02-13T10:45:00.000-08:00

So, our friends Stacie and Jon Fitzgerald had their baby girl last Saturday: Kensington Grace. Everything is going well with them; they are just trying to catch up on sleep. Jon showed me this website, and I think it is pretty funny. Have you ever heard a lullaby rendition of Metallica? Check it out: Rockabye Baby.

Week 37

2010-02-02T17:51:00.001-08:00

Here's the belly at week 37. Can you believe it? Slowly stretching out...

I found a doctor (finally!!). Not the one everyone recommended, but a doctor nonetheless. Dr. Johnson. He was one of 2 that would take me so late. I see him on Friday for the first time. Hope he's a good doctor. And hopefully everything is still good with Eliana. I can't wait to see her! But I think I can wait for everything that comes with being a new parent!

By the way, for those who have had children, what did contractions feel like for you? I don't think I've had any yet, not even the Braxton Hicks ones... I just feel Eliana squirming around all the time.

The Rainy City

2010-01-29T17:37:00.001-08:00

This is where we live. Just a mile from Portland State University campus, and right outside of downtown Portland. City life. Lights are awesome at night. This is the view from our apartment:

In Need of Suggestions

2010-01-21T13:03:00.000-08:00

Okay, I just realized that when Eliana comes, I will have to change the title of this blog. "Just the tew of us" will not be true anymore. Any suggestions?

Portland

2010-01-20T11:11:00.000-08:00

Here's an update:

The location of our apartment is perfect. We are right off the freeway system, and only about a mile from the PSU campus downtown. Our apartment is a one-bedroom and has 1.5 bathrooms! Another plus is that we got an on-site manager position, which takes $100 off of rent each month! And all we have to do is handle keys when people get locked out after office hours and vacuum the hallways. Pretty sweet. We were praying to find a place to afford that would be big enough for us and a new baby, and Heavenly Father totally answered our prayers.

Our ward at Church is amazing! When we finally went to the right ward (we caught the wrong ward the first week) we just felt like we belonged. As I was sitting in sacrament, I felt like I knew all the people there, even though we hadn't met anyone. After the meeting, Merrill and I were going to rush up to meet the bishop, but instead he and his counselors rushed down to meet us before we even had a chance to stand up! That's never happened to us before, in all of the wards we've been in. And we couldn't have been in a better ward at this time when we are expecting; half of the ward is made up of young families--student couples with 1-3 kids. It is a family ward, though--complete with primary, young men and women, middle-aged couples, elderly couples, and missionaries. And the students in the ward are mostly medical and dental students. :D

Still trying to find a doctor. The doctor people recommended at church (Dr. Bair) isn't taking new patients. So I'll be looking for anyone who can take me so late in my pregnancy. But the last time I went to the doctor (about a week ago), he said Eliana is still average size, even though I'm kinda small. So, everything is still looking good, no problems yet. Thank goodness.

New Address

2010-01-05T10:17:00.001-08:00

We finally moved into our new apartment! We have no furniture except for a bed and a dish chair. But at least we have a place to sleep :P

Here's the address:

010 SW Porter St. #101
Portland, OR
97201

Week 30

2009-12-17T12:43:00.000-08:00

I've made it into the last 3 months--and I'm beginning to feel it! I never realized how hard it is to go from sitting down to standing up with such a big belly (being pregnant motivates me to never want to be fat). And I'm only going to get bigger! Yikes! Little Eliana is moving a LOT. I'm lucky she doesn't have kicks and punches--she just squirms most of the time, almost like she is stretching. Maybe she'll be a dancer...

Merrill and I are trying to find an apartment in Portland. We were hoping to live on-campus, but we only made the waiting list. So, we have to search a big city that neither of us are familiar with. Hopefully we can find something affordable and relatively close to campus before January when Merrill starts school.

I can't wait for Tuesday to come around! I'll finally get to see friends and family, some who I haven't seen in years. And what better time to catch up and be together than during the holidays?

The Neighborhood Zoo

2009-11-25T14:18:00.000-08:00

Merrill and I are currently house-sitting for a family in the ward for a week while they are visiting family in Arizona for Thanksgiving. And it has been so fun! These people have SO many pets! 1 fish, 2 cats, and 4 dogs. 3 parrots and 2 crazy cockatiels in the living room. They have 8 canaries, 2 parakeets, 2 parrots, and a rat in the kids room. Then there is the garage, full of mice, more rats, more parakeets, and more cockatiels they are breeding. In the backyard they have tons of rabbits and some guinea pigs, and some more parakeets. Luckily we don't have to worry about the backyard animals-they got another person to take care of them. The birds in the living room keep us busy enough. One of the parrots doesn't have clipped wings, and it flies in circles all over the room. Another parrot sounds the alarm when the flying parrot tries to make the third parrot convinces her to escape their perch and run all over the house. One of the cockatiels (Einstein) walks around the room trying over and over again to climb up our legs and perch on our shoulders. The other cockatiel always follows a short time later. We don't like them perching on our shoulders too long-if they get comfortable, they tend to poop on us. But depsite the daily feeding schedule and trying to get all of the different types of food right for each of the different animals, we have had a lot of fun.

3...2...1...BLASTOFF!

2009-10-22T15:31:00.000-07:00

I know most of you will shop online this year--why not do it with Blastoff?! Merrill and I joined this amazing network that offers discounts and an opportunity to get paid for shopping online! Go to this site and join our network: www.ppl.blastoffnetwork.com/animo!

Rain is fallin' on my head...

2009-09-30T12:27:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm here in Oregon with Merrill, staying at his mom's place for the next 3 months. During this time, we hope to make lots of new friends in the ward and hook up with some of Merrill's old buddies who are still hanging around. Merrill decided to apply to Oregon State yesterday, so we have another option of what to do in January. Staying in Oregon might be a better plan than moving all the way back to Utah and finding a new doctor just before the baby is born. We'll see--we don't know what the Lord has in store for us yet, and we'll find out as soon as we hear back from OSU in the next month.

Baby Bump

2009-09-23T13:48:00.000-07:00

Here is a treat for all of you: the baby bump at week 18.

2009-09-15T19:56:00.000-07:00

After a long week of traveling, I'm here in Bak-o for 2 weeks. And I'm going to Britney's wedding. For sure. Merrill headed up to Oregon today so he can get some work done. Wish him luck as he starts building his business! Check it out at www.getthevizion.com. Let us know if you can think of anyone who might be interested in the services or the opportunity.

Boys and Their Toys

2009-09-02T14:23:00.000-07:00

We went to the local music store today because we were bored and Merrill found a nice deal on a guitar that he had to have. He loves it. I couldn't say no.

Week 15

2009-09-01T18:48:00.001-07:00

Merrill and I went to the doctor for the first time today. We got to hear the baby's heartbeat and see it. It's soooooo teeny right now! Can't tell what it is yet. We'll find out when we're in Oregon in a few weeks. That's right folks: we're finally leaving Idaho. Hopegully we can find some jobs while we're there. Then, in January we'll be in Ogden in time for Merrill to start school. I know we just moved, but the opportunity arose and we are headed to Ogden--with a couple of Cali stops along the way...

Wow.

2009-09-01T12:07:00.001-07:00

Check out this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rutMP1zYps.

Life as I know it

2009-08-19T17:58:00.000-07:00

We've finally gotten use to the new apartment. Merrill has become the expert bug exterminator and my hero. We've had some problems with the toilet flooding, but we've prevented it from happening too often. I just wish we could open the windows and get some fresh air, but they are all sealed (I guess to prevent water damage in the winter).

The family reunion was pretty cool. I got to meet most of Merrill's cousins on his mom's side. The first day we were there, we went to the small town of Idaho City, which happens to be a mining town. Most of the town is made up of old buildings from the 1800s, which are still in use. The whole family went to the City Hall to do some family history research. It was fun to look through huge 200-year-old leather-bound books and deciphering the handwriting to find names. The next day Merrill's uncle told the family that everyone was going to participate in a "service project" which involved everyone climbing the steep mountain side and throwing/dragging down trees and branches to clear the site of a former forest fire. Merrill's mom told me not to go so I wouldn't risk falling down the mountain. Merrill decided that that was the worst day of the whole reunion. The next day was really boring and there were no plans, so Merrill and I decided to leave so that he could do some work on his small business.

Now, we are just waiting for Rexburg to come back to life when school starts. And Merrill making fun of me and my expanding belly.

It's been a long time...

2009-08-08T13:34:00.000-07:00

Hey gang! It's been awhile since I last updated everyone about the goings-on here in Idaho, and I feel obligated to bring you all back up to speed.

1. I graduated last month with my BA in English and a minor in Graphic Design. If you need anything written or created, let me know and I would love to do it for you (documents, pamphlets, brochures, logo, stationery, invitations, cards, announcements--anything).

2. Merrill and I found out that I'm pregnant last month--after about a week of morning sickness. Any tips about exercises, food, and books are greatly appreciated. We'll let everyone know what it is going to be as soon as we find out. Due date: February 17, 2010.

3. We just moved into a small basement apartment. And I mean SMALL. It's got the most lovely wallpaper and curtains, and the paneling in the bedroom makes it feel like I'm at a cabin. I've posted pictures below. The "best" part is all of the bugs and spiders we've encountered. We sprayed and have found less critters, but the earwigs are never ending. There are always about three waiting to surprise me when I do the dishes. I bet the mangers upstairs wonder about all of my random yelps coming from downstairs.

4. We just found out that we are attending a family reunion for Merrill's mom's side of the family to be held in Idaho City, Idaho. If you don't know where that is, we don't either. Anyways, we leave on Monday for a 6 hour excursion through the middle of Idaho to stay for a few days with a ton of extended family. I will finally be able to say that I know and have met everyone that Merrill is related to. He can't say the same thing about my family yet, though. But he will when we settle in California after he graduates.

I just thought I would catch everyone else up and have a chance to hear it from me (Monica, you do a great job of informing!). I hope to see most of you next month when I come down for Britney's wedding, which I would not miss for the world!

The living room (AKA Merrill's office)
The kitchen (bug haven)
The bedroom
The bathroomBedroom curtains
Living room and kitchen curtainsWallpaper (perfect camo for spiders)

10 Things I Just Learned

2009-06-18T11:34:00.000-07:00

I was doing a reading assignment for Graphic Design and I thought the things in it were realy interesting. It's Milton Glaser, who is a famous graphic designer. He's known for creating the "I heart N Y" logo. Here's the article:

Ten Things I Have Learned
Part of AIGA Talk in London
November 22, 2001

1
YOU CAN ONLY WORK FOR PEOPLE THAT YOU LIKE.
This is a curious rule and it took me a long time to learn because in fact at the beginning of my practice I felt the opposite. Professionalism required that you didn’t particularly like the people that you worked for or at least maintained an arms length relationship to them, which meant that I never had lunch with a client or saw them socially. Then some years ago I realised that the opposite was true. I discovered that all the work I had done that was meaningful and significant came out of an affectionate relationship with a client. And I am not talking about professionalism; I am talking about affection. I am talking about a client and you sharing some common ground. That in fact your view of life is someway congruent with the client, otherwise it is a bitter and hopeless struggle.

2
IF YOU HAVE A CHOICE NEVER HAVE A JOB.
One night I was sitting in my car outside Columbia University where my wife Shirley was studying Anthropology. While I was waiting I was listening to the radio and heard an interviewer ask ‘Now that you have reached 75 have you any advice for our audience about how to prepare for your old age?’ An irritated voice said ‘Why is everyone asking me about old age these days?’ I recognised the voice as John Cage. I am sure that many of you know who he was – the composer and philosopher who influenced people like Jasper Johns and Merce Cunningham as well as the music world in general. I knew him slightly and admired his contribution to our times. ‘You know, I do know how to prepare for old age’ he said. ‘Never have a job, because if you have a job someday someone will take it away from you and then you will be unprepared for your old age. For me, it has always been the same every since the age of 12. I wake up in the morning and I try to figure out how am I going to put bread on the table today? It is the same at 75, I wake up every morning and I think how am I going to put bread on the table today? I am exceedingly well prepared for my old age’ he said.

3
SOME PEOPLE ARE TOXIC AVOID THEM.
This is a subtext of number one. There was in the sixties a man named Fritz Perls who was a gestalt therapist. Gestalt therapy derives from art history, it proposes you must understand the ‘whole’ before you can understand the details. What you have to look at is the entire culture, the entire family and community and so on. Perls proposed that in all relationships people could be either toxic or nourishing towards one another. It is not necessarily true that the same person will be toxic or nourishing in every relationship, but the combination of any two people in a relationship produces toxic or nourishing consequences. And the important thing that I can tell you is that there is a test to determine whether someone is toxic or nourishing in your relationship with them. Here is the test: You have spent some time with this person, either you have a drink or go for dinner or you go to a ball game. It doesn’t matter very much but at the end of that time you observe whether you are more energised or less energised. Whether you are tired or whether you are exhilarated. If you are more tired then you have been poisoned. If you have more energy you have been nourished. The test is almost infallible and I suggest that you use it for the rest of your life.

4
PROFESSIONALISM IS NOT ENOUGH or THE GOOD IS THE ENEMY OF THE GREAT.
Early in my career I wanted to be professional, that was my complete aspiration in my early life because professionals seemed to know everything - not to mention they got paid for it. Later I discovered after working for a while that professionalism itself was a limitation. After all, what professionalism means in most cases is diminishing risks. So if you want to get your car fixed you go to a mechanic who knows how to deal with transmission problems in the same way each time. I suppose if you needed brain surgery you wouldn’t want the doctor to fool around and invent a new way of connecting your nerve endings. Please do it in the way that has worked in the past.
Unfortunately in our field, in the so-called creative – I hate that word because it is misused so often. I also hate the fact that it is used as a noun. Can you imagine calling someone a creative? Anyhow, when you are doing something in a recurring way to diminish risk or doing it in the same way as you have done it before, it is clear why professionalism is not enough. After all, what is required in our field, more than anything else, is the continuous transgression. Professionalism does not allow for that because transgression has to encompass the possibility of failure and if you are professional your instinct is not to fail, it is to repeat success. So professionalism as a lifetime aspiration is a limited goal.

5
LESS IS NOT NECESSARILY MORE.
Being a child of modernism I have heard this mantra all my life. Less is more. One morning upon awakening I realised that it was total nonsense, it is an absurd proposition and also fairly meaningless. But it sounds great because it contains within it a paradox that is resistant to understanding. But it simply does not obtain when you think about the visual of the history of the world. If you look at a Persian rug, you cannot say that less is more because you realise that every part of that rug, every change of colour, every shift in form is absolutely essential for its aesthetic success. You cannot prove to me that a solid blue rug is in any way superior. That also goes for the work of Gaudi, Persian miniatures, art nouveau and everything else. However, I have an alternative to the proposition that I believe is more appropriate. ‘Just enough is more.’

6
STYLE IS NOT TO BE TRUSTED.
I think this idea first occurred to me when I was looking at a marvellous etching of a bull by Picasso. It was an illustration for a story by Balzac called The Hidden Masterpiece. I am sure that you all know it. It is a bull that is expressed in 12 different styles going from very naturalistic version of a bull to an absolutely reductive single line abstraction and everything else along the way. What is clear just from looking at this single print is that style is irrelevant. In every one of these cases, from extreme abstraction to acute naturalism they are extraordinary regardless of the style. It’s absurd to be loyal to a style. It does not deserve your loyalty. I must say that for old design professionals it is a problem because the field is driven by economic consideration more than anything else. Style change is usually linked to economic factors, as all of you know who have read Marx. Also fatigue occurs when people see too much of the same thing too often. So every ten years or so there is a stylistic shift and things are made to look different. Typefaces go in and out of style and the visual system shifts a little bit. If you are around for a long time as a designer, you have an essential problem of what to do. I mean, after all, you have developed a vocabulary, a form that is your own. It is one of the ways that you distinguish yourself from your peers, and establish your identity in the field. How you maintain your own belief system and preferences becomes a real balancing act. The question of whether you pursue change or whether you maintain your own distinct form becomes difficult. We have all seen the work of illustrious practitioners that suddenly look old-fashioned or, more precisely, belonging to another moment in time. And there are sad stories such as the one about Cassandre, arguably the greatest graphic designer of the twentieth century, who couldn’t make a living at the end of his life and committed suicide.
But the point is that anybody who is in this for the long haul has to decide how to respond to change in the zeitgeist. What is it that people now expect that they formerly didn’t want? And how to respond to that desire in a way that doesn’t change your sense of integrity and purpose.

7
HOW YOU LIVE CHANGES YOUR BRAIN.
The brain is the most responsive organ of the body. Actually it is the organ that is most susceptible to change and regeneration of all the organs in the body. I have a friend named Gerald Edelman who was a great scholar of brain studies and he says that the analogy of the brain to a computer is pathetic. The brain is actually more like an overgrown garden that is constantly growing and throwing off seeds, regenerating and so on. And he believes that the brain is susceptible, in a way that we are not fully conscious of, to almost every experience of our life and every encounter we have. I was fascinated by a story in a newspaper a few years ago about the search for perfect pitch. A group of scientists decided that they were going to find out why certain people have perfect pitch. You know certain people hear a note precisely and are able to replicate it at exactly the right pitch. Some people have relevant pitch; perfect pitch is rare even among musicians. The scientists discovered – I don’t know how - that among people with perfect pitch the brain was different. Certain lobes of the brain had undergone some change or deformation that was always present with those who had perfect pitch. This was interesting enough in itself. But then they discovered something even more fascinating. If you took a bunch of kids and taught them to play the violin at the age of 4 or 5 after a couple of years some of them developed perfect pitch, and in all of those cases their brain structure had changed. Well what could that mean for the rest of us? We tend to believe that the mind affects the body and the body affects the mind, although we do not generally believe that everything we do affects the brain. I am convinced that if someone was to yell at me from across the street my brain could be affected and my life might changed. That is why your mother always said, ‘Don’t hang out with those bad kids.’ Mama was right. Thought changes our life and our behaviour. I also believe that drawing works in the same way. I am a great advocate of drawing, not in order to become an illustrator, but because I believe drawing changes the brain in the same way as the search to create the right note changes the brain of a violinist. Drawing also makes you attentive. It makes you pay attention to what you are looking at, which is not so easy.

8
DOUBT IS BETTER THAN CERTAINTY.
Everyone always talks about confidence in believing what you do. I remember once going to a class in yoga where the teacher said that, spirituality speaking, if you believed that you had achieved enlightenment you have merely arrived at your limitation. I think that is also true in a practical sense. Deeply held beliefs of any kind prevent you from being open to experience, which is why I find all firmly held ideological positions questionable. It makes me nervous when someone believes too deeply or too much. I think that being sceptical and questioning all deeply held beliefs is essential. Of course we must know the difference between scepticism and cynicism because cynicism is as much a restriction of one’s openness to the world as passionate belief is. They are sort of twins. And then in a very real way, solving any problem is more important than being right. There is a significant sense of self-righteousness in both the art and design world. Perhaps it begins at school. Art school often begins with the Ayn Rand model of the single personality resisting the ideas of the surrounding culture. The theory of the avant garde is that as an individual you can transform the world, which is true up to a point. One of the signs of a damaged ego is absolute certainty.
Schools encourage the idea of not compromising and defending your work at all costs. Well, the issue at work is usually all about the nature of compromise. You just have to know what to compromise. Blind pursuit of your own ends which excludes the possibility that others may be right does not allow for the fact that in design we are always dealing with a triad – the client, the audience and you.
Ideally, making everyone win through acts of accommodation is desirable. But self-righteousness is often the enemy. Self-righteousness and narcissism generally come out of some sort of childhood trauma, which we do not have to go into. It is a consistently difficult thing in human affairs. Some years ago I read a most remarkable thing about love, that also applies to the nature of co-existing with others. It was a quotation from Iris Murdoch in her obituary. It read ‘ Love is the extremely difficult realisation that something other than oneself is real.’ Isn’t that fantastic! The best insight on the subject of love that one can imagine.

9
ON AGING.
Last year someone gave me a charming book by Roger Rosenblatt called ‘Ageing Gracefully’ I got it on my birthday. I did not appreciate the title at the time but it contains a series of rules for ageing gracefully. The first rule is the best. Rule number one is that ‘it doesn’t matter.’ ‘It doesn’t matter that what you think. Follow this rule and it will add decades to your life. It does not matter if you are late or early, if you are here or there, if you said it or didn’t say it, if you are clever or if you were stupid. If you were having a bad hair day or a no hair day or if your boss looks at you cockeyed or your boyfriend or girlfriend looks at you cockeyed, if you are cockeyed. If you don’t get that promotion or prize or house or if you do – it doesn’t matter.’ Wisdom at last. Then I heard a marvellous joke that seemed related to rule number 10. A butcher was opening his market one morning and as he did a rabbit popped his head through the door. The butcher was surprised when the rabbit inquired ‘Got any cabbage?’ The butcher said ‘This is a meat market – we sell meat, not vegetables.’ The rabbit hopped off. The next day the butcher is opening the shop and sure enough the rabbit pops his head round and says ‘You got any cabbage?’ The butcher now irritated says ‘Listen you little rodent I told you yesterday we sell meat, we do not sell vegetables and the next time you come here I am going to grab you by the throat and nail those floppy ears to the floor.’ The rabbit disappeared hastily and nothing happened for a week. Then one morning the rabbit popped his head around the corner and said ‘Got any nails?’ The butcher said ‘No.’ The rabbit said ‘Ok. Got any cabbage?’

10
TELL THE TRUTH.
The rabbit joke is relevant because it occurred to me that looking for a cabbage in a butcher’s shop might be like looking for ethics in the design field. It may not be the most obvious place to find either. It’s interesting to observe that in the new AIGA’s code of ethics there is a significant amount of useful information about appropriate behaviour towards clients and other designers, but not a word about a designer’s relationship to the public. We expect a butcher to sell us eatable meat and that he doesn’t misrepresent his wares. I remember reading that during the Stalin years in Russia that everything labelled veal was actually chicken. I can’t imagine what everything labelled chicken was. We can accept certain kinds of misrepresentation, such as fudging about the amount of fat in his hamburger but once a butcher knowingly sells us spoiled meat we go elsewhere. As a designer, do we have less responsibility to our public than a butcher? Everyone interested in licensing our field might note that the reason licensing has been invented is to protect the public not designers or clients. ‘Do no harm’ is an admonition to doctors concerning their relationship to their patients, not to their fellow practitioners or the drug companies. If we were licensed, telling the truth might become more central to what we do.

What's Happenin' Lately?

2009-06-04T20:22:00.001-07:00

So, Merrill and I are still in school, with two months to go until we leave Idaho for good. I graduate with my BA in English on July 23rd. Then it's off to Utah! I can't wait for the fam to come up!

Merrill and I have gotten into a small business that is very promising. It's called Pre-Paid Legal. If you're interested in any legal services, check out this site. If you're interested in a business opportunity, check out this site. Let me know what you guys think.

P.S. The answers to the compound word symbols are "heartbreak," "headgear," "catfish," "headlight," and "sea serpent" (I know sea serpent is 2 separate words, but Brother Carpenter thought it would be fun).

Just for fun...

2009-05-25T11:47:00.000-07:00

Here are some of my latest projects:

This is a found alphabet. I went to the park to find the letters of the alphabet. It's a lot of fun, I recommend trying it sometime.

The following are symbols representing compound words, such as "bulldog" and "butterfly." See if you can guess what each one represents.

This is a package redesign project. I decided to change the Junior Mints package to appeal to teens and movie-goers. I think the green looks more minty fresh, and the silky texture feels creamy and chocolate-y.

I did this in typography. We had to create a type with or without a technique and find a word that looked that way. Mine could have worked without the technique (all the fuzz around it).

New Blog

2009-05-24T17:37:00.000-07:00

This is my new blog. I needed to make a different blog because I got a new email: tew.graphics@gmail.com. I'll post more of my work sometime.