Wintersunandwinterskyandwinter

It’s been a very long time since I’ve been here.
I am going to commit to at first, to posting at least 4 times a week here.

As far as the seasonal subject that may or may not change–I think my next few months will be about winter. Not a snowy winter, because in the part of the West I live in, snow is rare indeed. But the comforts, the shelter, the seasonal meaning of winter.

I know this is a far cry from exploring graphics and business, but I did want a seasonally fluctuating blog.

I will attempt to show up the next few days, 4 in a row, to get going on this!
I will also find a good seasonal header up!

I’ve changed to a layout that is easier on my eyes.

I find smaller fonts hard to read, so here it is!

Ideal offices of course, include management, workers, people going to and fro.

Since this is labor day, and I am rank and file as opposed to management, I have a few observations about ideal office managers.

Ideal Management tip # 1
If you’re management personnel, please remember a simple truth. If you encourage hierarchal behavior, discourage people going outside their boundaries as set up by  you, nope, nobody is going to sit down with initiative and start something to help you!

If you find yourself with work that sometimes you wake up and think…gee, 35% of this could be done by other people—and haven’t ever taken up people’s offers to help you, haven’t awakened to others’ obvious talents, and have played blatant favoritism in assigning maybe 10% of that 35% of activity to some sort of a friend of a friend…

You’re going to get into tight spots, like 3 days out of ten,where you’d be able to handle everything fine if there were 2-3 trusted rank and file to take care of 10% of your non-managerial work for you, that’s 10% each person. Instead of overworking your favorite, and being blind to other’s talents and or willingness around you.

Prediction for that non-ideal  manager. Turnover will be sharp at times. You’ll get some of your brightest to jump ship a little before usual. You’ll be cranky and tired and have 35% bigger piles and headaches.

If you do choose 3 people instead of 1 , and hoist off that 35% on those folks, you will gain probably — what, about 12 hours a week. Maybe go out to a skipped lunch. Maybe finish a project lingering under a more flexible deadline. Maybe not blow up at your office.

Oh, and double messages? So not of the good.

If you have flexible policies on a certain protocol, but don’t trust 80% of your staff’s ability to make a few decisions on their own in order to implement those flexible policies…you might want to double think your approach.

People cannot read your minds. Do not assume your worldview is the end all be all.

I suppose what I am saying, is “my way or the highway” doesn’t work for Presidents, moms, or managers. at least 35 % of the time!!

If you want flexible people, flexibility should be one of the top ten words to describe your own style.

But this is just from a lowly rank and file worker on Labor Day.

Well, this is my header of the week.

I may adjust it next week to be less bright.

One of my favorite movies is The Lion In Winter , and the gargoyle reminds me of the opening credits.

I like coppery blues, and greens, and yet wanted a golden glow as well. I also wanted to have some typographical flourishes, and like an odd juxtapostion of an old fashioned medievalesque image with a very modern sans serif font.

I also like that the header is split into four. This format will make me think about what else to add, in the way of text, and linkage.

I’d also like to learn how to adjust text size, so may actually change my layout next week. I am having a hard time reading the text as is, and would prefer it larger. I would love to have that as an easy fix, a “wizard” category so to speak.

However, of course, I can adjust my font size in my computer.

I never wanted to portray a foreign culture from the United States cultural perspective. I want to communicate what life is like in Buenos Aires rather than advertise it, editing reality to satisfy the audience. I believe that all people are the same. Globally each neighborhood has a different history, different scenery and culture, but in the end we are all just people living life: working, sleeping, and eating with our friends and family. I want to facilitate communication on equal grounds, where neither culture is privileged but both can relate to each other, so the evidence of humanity can be heard.

Mi Buenos Aires Querido

This is where graphics design and office life does intersect.
The most important thing… is your work - whether you’re a designer, or an office worker, or CEO, or whatever else you may be, showing evidence of humanity?
Is it furthering comfort, communications, relationships, useful products, progressing humanity forward, really helping people make a better life for themselves? For instance, if you’re an American like me, is what I am doing furthering other Americans, and beyond, in their pursuit of happiness, enjoyment of freedom, and provision for their welfare?

I suppose someone cannot cover all front at all times, however certainly some people do so…witness my favorite taco shop.
It’s sometimes less expensive to eat there than buying groceries! It’s an enjoyable, clean environment. The service is fast, the portions generous, and I always leave feeling full and well fed, but rarely stuffed to the gills. I suppose their super quesadilla isn’t too good for my welfare– it’s rich, and has a lot of guacamole and sour cream, I couldn’t finish it at all. But their soft tacos aren’t too salty at all, and no lard is used anywhere. So, I am happy, free to walk around because for the most part I am not weighed down by a heavy meal, and well fed for a very good price.

I do not know how much they pay their cooks and counter people. I don’t want to pry. But one counter person is always singing, and helps me practice my Spanish. They are very kindly people, and yet run a tight, efficient ship! You should see how quiet and nonchaotic it is during lunch and dinner, and they can be extremely busy during 1145a-130p, and 545p-7ishp.

I am not saying one has to be a perfect office, or somehow make design that will change the world, but one should strive to be above the usual lower common denominator, and provide their workers with as ideal an office as possible, and design that somehow communicates clearly, cleanly, and reaches towards art in doing so.

I need to apologize for not showing up here.

This is a focused blog, on offices, office environments, business communications, and graphic designs, web design, art, graphics, and the various ephemera around the two areas of interest.

I hope the also make it a learning blog, with links and sharing beautiful graphics or websites where I really like the design.

I’ll show up Sat-Sun-Monday, and most likely, Wednesday. I work, and I also have some repetitive strain injuries to listen to and take care of when I need to, so sometimes my blogging here will fluctuate.

One thing about RSI, it really allows you to get up and get moving- because it’s only going to get worse if you don’t make every effort to repair, or at best, stabilize the damages already done. I am a walker. A real live, don’t drive a car pedestrian. I try to get out of the office at least once a day, and walk around the building. It includes a view of a creek–well, covered with weeds, berry bushes, trees, and a very good chance to see a heron or crane, or maybe even a vulture. This walk also includes a slight graded driveway of about 150 feet. It only takes me 4-5 minutes when I am not “strolling”, and sometimes I get 3 visits to the back parking area etc. in a day. I walk to and from work, so this adds up to 30-50 minutes of walking a day. This helps my plans for weight loss, fitness, and strength. It also really helps to get out of the office. The strength is important for RSI because walking does incres your trunk strength, and this is very good to fight various forms of RSI.

So that’s another ideal for an office. Office ideal 2- a safe, pleasant environment to walk around in, to refresh yourself during the day.

I have an ideal office environment. In my head. It’s out there, most likely, somewhere. Right now, some office contains more than half ofwhat I think is ideal. The catch would only be the other half. In this hypothetical near ideal office, I am sure the half I wouldn’t like would possibly include where the office is located- a highrise perhaps, on the 55th floor. Or in an office in the middle of well…nowhere. A very small town. Or in a business where life is.very.dry.

So what does it matter, this ideal office? Is it doable? Findable? There?

I’d like to think so. One of the reasons why I am exploring graphics and business communications is that I’ve never worked anywhere I loved to go to work. That is a pretty severe thing. If I was under say, 35 ( I am not going to give my exact age here,I am not in the mood) then it would be almost forgivable. I would have plenty of working time to look forward to finding an ideal, or nearly ideal career, job, space to work in. But I don’t feel like I do.

I feel like moving forward however, so let’s not dwell on my boomer-aged looking backward at how I may or may not have better used my time from my late teens onward.

I’d rather dwell on my ideal office. What I’d like. Yes, maybe even what I dislike, don’t want, and have found extremely undesirable.

It will be an occasional series. Sometimes I’ll write about the ideal office, I won’t have a set time that I will or won’t.

Unlike the fact that I have to get work in about 50 minutes, this will be up to me.

Why should anyone care about their ideal office?

Hello.

32-60 hours a week spent there. Some people see more of their office than their home.

It’s a big part of someone’s life from, approximately age 20 through most likely, age 65 or so.

You sit in the chairs there. You use the equipment there. You are surrounded.

So that’s ideal office wish number one.

Good chairs. If at all possible, really.good.chairs.

<a href=”http://www.webdesignerwall.com/”>Web Designer Wall</a>

This is site full of information, but also links to what the web site author has found around the net. It’s got tutorials, trends,  and it’s a real pleasant looking site.  It has the flourish collage style, but lighter, and slightly deconstructed. It’s a good one to keep an eye on and I recommend it.

the daily slurp

This is an excellent site for inspiration. It shows approximately 2-25 “beautiful” sites from around the web. Business, music, arts, commercial, blogs…you name it, they’ll show it. Some are absolutely amazing! if you follow it long enough, you begin to really see the trends in design. Sometimes what seems to be a new thing, has been going on for months , and is actually dying out! Seems like just before a trend goes on the back burner, 50% of all sites use that style or style element. Sort of like, “quick, use this before it gets too old, although in a year it’s going to come back again in a slightly altered form…”

I check it almost everyday- it’s one of my web habits. You never know when you’ll see that one website that is a breakthrough into something really cool looking. Finding a site like that is refreshing.

Water Futures

This is a beautiful example of a mix of science, politics, current events, forecasting, some history, and information-wrapped up in a clear graphics package.

There is a drought going on in parts of California, and here in my county, we are being advised or mandated ( depending on the week…) to cut our water usage by 15 %. I am always thinking about ways to cut the faucet off, to use less water around my small apartment.

This graphics display certainly clearly presents some reasons why I should just make this a lifestyle instead of a stop-gap measure.