Saturday, April 30, 2011

365, Smiley Liesl Bug

Carter and Ingrid had swim class this morning, so I went over and hung out with Liesl. Within 5 minutes of Carter and Ing leaving, Liesl completely wiped out her clothes with a bad diaper. I set Liesl down on the changing table and tried to gather myself (remember- I'm not a parent yet!) to take on this predicament. Liesl suddenly got all smiley and started laughing, thus making it completely impossible to be mad about the diaper situation. Smart kid with impeccable timing!


Friday, April 29, 2011

Thursday, April 28, 2011

365, Group Assignment

I love my job. It was a pretty intense day, but overall it was a good intense. Certainly a very different type of intensity than at the Fruit Box.  I'll admit to giving in and treating myself to a Gelati (2 flavors of italian ice sandwiched between frozen custard) in a mild attempt to eat some stress, but at the end of the day, I'm happy at work and am working my design muscles, so I'm ok with it.

The main headache from today was basically a group assignment that made our brains hurt. The end result will be hugely helpful, especially for me, but getting there is hard. We are hoping to take a look at the answer guide tomorrow and straighten it out. WAIT, there is no "answer guide" / teacher's edition in the real world?!?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME???

Most of the time I don't mind making my own answer guide, but every now and then it would be nice to be able to double check our work / paths / lives / probably everything.



Wednesday, April 27, 2011

365, 31 cent Scoop Night

The usual Baskin Robbins order: rainbow sherbet with rainbow sprinkles in a rainbow sprinkle cone. The six year old me is ecstatic every time!

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

365, Convention Center

I have a magnetic pull to anything and everything relating to typography, so I HAD to take a picture of this at the Convention Center today. I have no idea what it says, but it is a cylindrical structure in the lobby of the Convention Center (I'm sure it has some significance). What was I doing at the Convention Center today? Well, the Comm Girls and I took a field trip to scout out the setup / trade show aspect of a conference that was taking place, as we may need to market / design for a similar showcase down the road.

Grown-up field trips are WAY better than elementary school ones!



Monday, April 25, 2011

365, Italian Ice

I "found" (i.e. coworker told me about) a yummy italian ice place across the street from my office. In addition to it being utterly delicious, it was cheap too- only $2.60! I got half peach and half kiwi-strawberry, but I will certainly be returning to try the swedish fish flavor and probably cotton candy too.

Our AC was either broken today or feeling extremely lazy and sluggish, so this was a mandatory investment.


Sunday, April 24, 2011

How Did I NOT Post This?!

I can't believe I forgot to post this... I clearly need to take blogging more seriously!

Last week I had an absolutely fantastic hour-long facetime with my other half and it was SO good to catch up. Believe it or not, we had barely spoken all week (compared to the usual 23 hours per day that we are in constant communication), and it was much needed. The best part was that we were matching shirts without planning it or talking or anything!



365, Happy Easter!

Friday, April 22, 2011

365, Metro

Successful week of public transportation. Is this meant to resemble a Chinese fan, and how did this JUST occur to me?

Good Design Article

Came across this article of 50 things every graphic design student should know. Agree with most, disagree with others, but still a good read for designers.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

365, Complicated

All I have been thinking about since I woke up is going back to bed. Previous statement has absolutely nothing to do with the photo- will explain later.


Wednesday, April 20, 2011

365, ChiTown

Went to Starbucks this morning with some co-workers... turns out it is half a block away and across the street. Who knew?!

Another successful day of riding the bus, and I even got off at the right stop! Now as long as I leave the office at the same time and no metro delays, I should be good.


Tuesday, April 19, 2011

365, Clubhouse Flower

Although it rained a bit this morning, the weather was beautiful for my walk home from the bus stop. Found this single flower at the steps to the Clubhouse.

Bus ride was more successful today at my new stop. For the return commute I knew what bus terminal I need to be in, so that helped as well. Only minor hiccup was that I got off 1 or 2 stops too early because I wasn't sure if they would actually stop at my stop, and I didn't want to miss it. So I walked an extra few blocks, but it wasn't a big deal since the weather was nice. Now I've got a good stop, but I have to work on getting the timing right in the morning. Baby steps.


Monday, April 18, 2011

365, The Bus

I successfully took the bus today between my house and the metro! After the morning had gone so easily (I was the first person on the bus, not much to mess up), I expected the same of the evening. Not quite... I never thought about checking to see which bus terminal I needed at the Pentagon, so I spent some time freaking out about where to go. Ultimately I found it, but I'm pretty sure that the bus stopped a LOT more times than it showed on the schedule. The bus ride both ways was about 30 min, but I feel like it should be less since I am relatively close. Tomorrow I am going to try a different stop and bus route and see how it goes. The wmata website shows this particular bus ride as only taking 10-15 minutes, which gives me a few extra minutes of sleep.


Sunday, April 17, 2011

365, Happy Birthday Mom!

Ando and Matt invited us over for some cake to celebrate the birthday girl tonight, and it was delicious! Of course, we also got to catch up with the pugs, which is never a bad thing. Ando and Matt- thanks so much!

and HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!
xoxo


Saturday, April 16, 2011

365, Last LAST Day

Today was my last LAST day or a 9 hour guest appearance, depending on how you want to look at it. It was really interesting to be back and see everything through a whole new perspective. Sure, I was only gone 2 weeks, but wow, I guess I have changed more than I realized in those weeks. During the peak of the day, I felt like a deer in headlights. The best way I can describe it is with an athletic analogy... imagine I am a super amazing, olympic-caliber athlete at the peak of my training, and then I decide to take a month off. During that month, I don't exercise at all (but it is never far from my mind). At the end of the month, I put on my shoes and go out to do the same workout I did a month ago. Obviously, this is not successful. How on earth did I do that for so long and think nothing of it?! My stress level was the highest it has been in the lat 2 weeks, and I was only there for a day! There is a huge difference in my current quality of life, and I am more aware and thankful of it than ever before. Don't get me wrong- I was glad to be there today and I had an amazing lunch with a good friend (thats you, J. Mo) and had some good laughs, but WOW. Perspective changes everything. I am also VERY aware that I couldn't be where I am today, doing what I am doing, without all of that time with the company. The experience has been life-changing, and I don't regret a moment of it.

Friday, April 15, 2011

We Have Lights?!

My friend Edward was out and about in Chinatown tonight and sent me this picture... I had no idea we had lights and I love how they look! Thanks Edward!

365, Vapiano

The office got pizza for lunch today from Vapiano, which is 2 floors below us. It was good, and Megan and I were impressed with the presentation!

Thursday, April 14, 2011

365, Kickball

I guess thinking that I would get a workout playing kickball was pretty naive of me. Oh well, it gets me off my butt!

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

365, It Says My Name!

This might not be a big deal for the rest of the world, but for someone who is obsessed with having her name on things, this is awesome! I think my obsession stems from the fact that I could never find my name on a keychain, snow globe, etc as a kid. I once found an awesome keychain at Disney World, but since they obviously didn't have "Cecily", I had to settle for "#1 Sister" for myself... NOW do you understand my love of anything with my name?! KG knows the way to my heart!

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Monday, April 11, 2011

365, Chick-Fil-A!

Salisbury has two within half a mile! Not fair! (they also have Wawas galore, which is also not fair but doesn't get its own post).

Sunday, April 10, 2011

365, Some Waffles With Your Whip?

I am in Salisbury for the next few days for some training, so I treated myself to iHop for dinner (very classy, I know). My waiter was great and ACTUALLY understood what I meant when I said I needed a lot of whip cream!


Saturday, April 9, 2011

365, Ing

Lewes, Day 5

Final day in this little town. I did more designing and was able to tie up a lot of loose ends so that I can officially mark the projects as complete (in my unofficial task book). Super gloomy and rainy day. I checked out of the hotel in the morning and was not overly surprised to find their check out process as archaic as their check in process-- I handed them my key and that was all.

The check-in process went something like this- I walk up to the desk and say I am here to check in. There is no computer on the desk, so I assumed it was below/inside the desk with a glass panel over top... Not quite. I gave them my name and they went to a FILE CABINET to pull out a piece of paper with my name on, and handed me the key that was taped to the paper. I don't think I have been to a hotel that used actual keys since... at least the late 90's!

Despite thinking the hotel was stuck in the stone ages, the location was absolutely amazing. The office was directly across the street from the hotel. I think it took 10, maybe 15 steps to walk to the office everyday, so I can't complain too much.


Hotel entrance and office door-- REALLY close!



2 blocks from the hotel

Lewes, Day 4

THURSDAY

I did design work all day, which was great, but was reminded how designing for a team works... A couple of projects are awaiting a few details or instructions from various people before I can mark them as completed and clear it off my plate.

As I was packing my stuff up, I realized that I was on a legit business trip. Sure, I knew I was traveling for work, but it clearly took me a few days to realized that it was a "business trip"... I feel so grown-up!


My desk for the week



Shirley Temple, I think so!

Lewes, Day 3

WEDNESDAY

Got to do some actual design work, which was pretty cool. I sat down  in my chair at 9 am and didn't get up until 2 pm... Hello hyper-focus! It is a good sign that I was enjoying my work so much that I lost track of time for 5 hours.

I had dinner at this tiny place called Half Full, where they only serve pizza, wine, and beer. I went up to the register and asked if they had water, half expecting the answer to be no. Turns out they did have water... and the pizza was pretty good too.

This was the first day that I wasn't completely exhausted after work, so I walked around the town a bit. NOTHING opens before 10 am and closes by 5 pm at the latest, so I guess if you work you don't get to shop. I saw a sign for a blacksmith and was once again reminded that Lewes is a historical town. Also saw this crazy house / establishment, which totally reminded me of Abby.

Lewes, Day 2

TUESDAY, DAY 2

Got up and went to work with my laptop in hand and had a far more successful day. Spent most of the day brainstorming and doing some research, so I didn't do too much design work. Nothing else noteworthy that I can remember from the office.

I went to a mexican place for dinner and it was PACKED- quite the opposite from the night before! The highlight of this meal was probably watching the rowdy group of senior citizens enjoying food, friends, and beer. By the end of the meal I found myself debating if they were actually rowdy or just hearing impaired...



Margaritas only available in large or bigger.

Lewes, Day 1

I better post about this trip before I leave for trip number 2 tomorrow and start to get everything confused. This trip was to Lewes, DE, where KG has 1 of its 3 offices (and the other two designers are at the Lewes office).

MONDAY, DAY 1

Got up and left early in the morning to make it to Lewes around 10 am. The drive was super easy and I made it in about 2.5 hours. Since it was still early in the day I couldn't check into the hotel yet, so I headed to the office. As this was only my second day with the company, I didn't have a mountain of work awaiting me, which turned out to be a VERY good thing. As I had expected, there was a PC laptop waiting for me to use, and I tried to place nice. I thought I was pretty good at switching between the two platforms from my days of data transfers, but I was very wrong. The keyboard was smaller and had all sorts of extra buttons, and I kept mistakenly hitting 1 button that would delete the entire paragraph I had just written. It was a long day and I felt like I was just learning how to use a computer for the first time. Note to self- bring Mac laptop tomorrow.

After work I checked in at the hotel, dropped my stuff off, and ventured out to find some food. I quickly learned that only certain restaurants are open on certain days, and no store is open after 4 or 5 pm. I ended up going to the restaurant that is connected to the hotel (but only open on certain days) and ordered some crab cakes with a side of fries. I was the ONLY person in the restaurant, so I got great service.



Crabcakes with a side of fries, or fries with a side of crabcakes?!

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

365, Half Full

I had dinner at Half Full tonight, a place that only serves pizza, wine and beer. Interesting concept.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

365, Lewes is Quaint

Hotel internet is beyond slow... so slow that the computer actually thinks it has lost the connection. Fast internet at work, but I'm busy working! Once I'm back I will post details. (I have been trying to upload this post for over an hour... ugh!)


Sunday, April 3, 2011

365, Never a Dull Moment



Too tired to explain the full story, so here is the short version-- I had a soccer game this morning and came down weird on my foot. This afternoon it was still hurting and it was starting to swell, and I NEVER swell. Dr. Abby and I tried to find an urgent care place to take a look at it, but we mistakenly ended up in an ER. ER doc said nothing is broken and it is just a contusion, but Abby and I are not fully convinced. I'm pretty sure there is a crack or stress fracture or SOMETHING on the outside of my foot. To further complicate things, I leave early tomorrow morning and will be in Delaware for the week for work. Never a dull moment.

Yes Please

I'd like to live here and drive the mini cooper a few posts down...


Saturday, April 2, 2011

365, Low on Oxygen

Not tired, just a little low on oxygen...


Belated Thanks to Abby

Abby got me this balloon when I accepted my new job... It was about 2 weeks ago and I forgot to post it- Thanks Ab!


Friday, April 1, 2011

Sweet Ride

365, First Day!

Today was my first day at The Knowland Group, and it was a great success! Last night I found out that the captain of my outdoor soccer team works there, so I felt pretty good knowing there would be a familiar face. They literally JUST moved into the office this week, so they are still waiting on desks, cubicles, etc, but it was still cool to be in the space (everyone was sitting at temporary tables). It was strange to be in a setting where I wasn't interrupted every 3 seconds, I got to sit down all day, and I never had to wait in line for the bathroom! There will be some adjustments, but they are all good things and I am looking forward to diving in and learning about a new industry! Next week I will be in Lewes, DE, all week working with the other 2 designers there, then I spend a few days in Salisbury the following week, so I won't actually be back in my office for about 1.5 weeks.

To sum it up, the first day of my grown-up job was a success!