I love great design. To me, excellent product design uses the cleanest, most uncomplicated method to get the job done. In essence, great design is minimalist. But… and this is an important but… it's also got to feel/look elegant.
For example, I was an early supporter of Cuppow, a Mason jar lid insert that converted the jar into a portable coffee mug. It was made by a small company in Massachusetts, and even their packaging was a work of design art. (I can’t seem to find their website anymore, but you can buy their products on the reCap Mason Jars website.)
I also love the Aeropress. I reached out years ago to ask my Facebook friends the simplest, least technical way to make a shot of espresso, and that was their best response. It's portable, clever, and satisfying to use.
Which brings me to today. Within the last year, I saw an online ad for the Ugmonk to-do list organizer. Their name for it is “Analog,” which naturally intrigued me. To me, design, innovation, and technology don't have to be associated with charging cables and screens. Often, they mean finding the most straightforward, elegant, and useful way to do something.
The product is a finely crafted wooden rack that holds one upright “to do" card and stores multiple flat cards. That's it.
At the time I first saw it, I decided not to buy the item but filed it away in the back of my mind. Then, last week, I stumbled upon it again and decided to pull the trigger. I love supporting small, creative businesses, and their About page made me love them even more.
Once upon a time, a fisherman taught a banker a lesson that would change his life.
The banker was vacationing in a small coastal village when a fisherman docked beside him with several beautiful large fin tuna in his small boat. The banker complimented the fisherman on his catch and asked how long it took.
“Just a little while”, replied the fisherman.
The banker then asked why the fisherman didn’t stay out longer and catch more fish.
As the fisherman unloaded the tuna, one by one, he replied, “Because I have enough to support my family. Plus, I enjoy sleeping late, playing with my children, taking an afternoon nap with my wife and strolling into the village in the evenings to sip wine and play guitar with my friends.”
The banker, who was extremely well-educated with an ivy league education, scoffed and gave the fisherman a lesson in business…
“Spend more time fishing. With the proceeds, buy a bigger boat, and with those proceeds, buy several boats. Eventually, you will have a fleet of fishing boats and you could move to a big city like LA or NYC to run your growing business.”
“But then what?” asked the fisherman.
The banker chuckled condescendingly and said, “Then, you could eventually announce an IPO, sell your company stock and become a millionaire.”
“But then what?” asked the fisherman, again.
The banker responded, “Then you can retire. Move to a small coastal village and enjoy sleeping late, playing with your children, taking an afternoon nap with your wife and strolling into the village in the evenings to sip wine and play guitar with your friends.”
The fisherman smiled at the banker, winked, threw the stringed tuna over his shoulder and then carried his catch into town.
This is so much how I feel about my simple, beautiful life.
One of the best parts about this product is that the cards are 3x5, and I can custom-print my own for less than their refills after I run out. I'm terribly excited to get this in the mail.
📑 Project Updates
My Book
I did not win NaNoWriMo this year, but I did get my book to 25,000 words.
My goal is to finish the first draft by my 51st birthday in February.
I’m excited about how it’s coming along, and with any luck, I’ll be publishing it next year!
ProFunction Web
I got my new name badge for networking. I love it so much! Now, I'm just waiting for my new business cards.
I’ll announce the business name change online and to my existing clients after the new year. I was going to keep both businesses going, but that would prove very confusing in the email department because I’d have to remember whether the client I was emailing was under Solid Red Studios or ProFunction Web, and I would likely screw that up a lot!
I don’t care if my clients email me at the old address, but I want to be able to email them all from the new one, which is team@profunctionweb.com (in case you’d like to become my client!).
Cross Stitch
I’m really proud of myself for working on this. It’s turning out to be very meditative.
I’m not sure if I’ll have it done in time to mail it to my sister for Christmas, but it should be pretty close.
Photos next week because I haven't gotten past the text yet.
Christmas Cards
I’m also making great progress on my holiday cards. Almost everyone is getting a sticker except clients. I’m sending “Hugs Can Heal” stickers to most people but to a few I sent some of the 40 or so new stickers I bought recently from Big Moods.
💗 Spreading Joy
Saw It on a T-Shirt
I saw this incredible message on a shirt for sale online:
I pledge allegiance
to the loving souls of this Earth,
and to our shared humanity,
for which we stand, one tribe, indivisible,
with liberty and peace for all.
If you’re interested in it, click here.
Farmers Market Hugs
It felt like a good day yesterday to ride my bike down to the farmers market with my Free Hugs sign and dressed in my hugging “costume”.
(The dalmatians were part of a promotion for a dog kennel.)
With all that's happening in the world, many people expressed their gratitude for my presence, even ones who didn't hug me.
One man cried as he hugged me and said he'd had a really hard week. I hugged him extra long and extra hard.
Remember that no kindness is too small to give to the strangers you interact with on a daily basis.
🌬 Capitalism Blows
Don’t Let the Holidays Drain You
The holidays can be draining, both emotionally and financially. Don't give in to the pressure to spend too much money. You can create an abundant and heartfelt celebration through food and traditions without focusing on the gifts.
“Industries and corporations capitalize on our fear of scarcity. An example: Holiday sales have expirations to their discounted prices, which sends a message that sale items are limited. Sales are widely known as incentives, but critiqued more deliberately, they function more like hidden threats: If you do not buy this product immediately, it will run out. Somebody else is going to take it from you first, and you will miss out on reaping the benefits of this product.” Yes Magazine
Take a deep breath and realize that whatever you do will be enough.
🌻 One Positive Thing
I have learned a lot of things from this brutal, horrible, sinister siege on Gaza. I have learned that the thoughtful, informed leaders I’ve always listened to and trusted can be trusted to see this issue clearly. I’ve learned that my social justice warriors can see when justice is not being done and when people are being oppressed (especially brown people). I’ve learned that it never gets easier to see a dead toddler or a toddler with shrapnel wounds. I’ve learned that when you believe something too dogmatically, you will post random Instagram posts where people say that a dead baby being held by its father in a video is a doll. I have learned that when you are very emotional about your beliefs, you will justify the mass extermination of tens of thousands of people (half of whom are children) by saying, “But look what they did.”
But mostly, I’ve learned that I am at peace with the repercussions this situation will have on the U.S., especially after our veto of an almost unanimous UN Security Counsel vote demanding a ceasefire. Trump or some other psycho Republican will likely become president unless we can go big for Cornel West. There will most certainly be at least one terrorist attack on the U.S. And our country will dissolve into even more chaos and less democracy than ever before. We are already receiving our karmic comeuppance for all the innocent people we have killed with our bombs and guns in the past.
⏰️ Currently
🍫 I'm thoroughly enjoying every day of my advent experience, where I learn about the origins and ingredients of each treat.
🏡 As the closing for my land in Troy, NY, gets closer, I am contemplating what good I can do with what I build there. It will likely be the last home I own. How can I use it to make the world a better place?
🧘♀️ Waiting for the world to regain its conscience in so many areas, but most urgently the crisis in Gaza.