Happy Thanksbuying

Every holiday season I feel like I'm being manipulated into buying things I don't really need. I can't think of any other time of the year when I would spend money on stuff that other people don't need either. I guess the trick is to think of it as a gift and not try to get something that someone needs. But that's my problem. I hate to waste money. It's easy to throw your budget out the window when almost everything is on sale. I find little joy in our modern holiday season. Maybe it's because I have less money this year and have to consider my purchases very carefully. I don't have a lot of people on my shopping list, but I still have to spend time thinking about it. Each year it seems to get worse. Yeah, I was laid off last year. But I found another job and I still have my house and a wonderful girlfriend. Don't worry about getting me anything for Christmas, just be nice, I've got everything else I need.

Tired of school

I'm thinking about dropping out of the web design class at CVTC. The assignments are lame, there is no interaction what-so-ever, and the teacher doesn't have enough time to provide any useful feedback. I would not recommend taking an on-line course from this school. I have totally lost my motivation to continue after the last set of assignments was posted a week late. I will however complete the free web site that I started for my client. The holiday's are nearly upon us and I haven't had a day off in almost ten months. I like my job, but I have created an impossible situation for myself. The weekends are barley enough time to decompress from the pace I need to maintain during the work week. Planning and scheduling AV equipment for 15+ seminars a week is very demanding. I have an idea for a database solution that could help me, but I need to give up something so that I have time to get started on it.

Web Design Inspiration

It isn't easy coming up with fresh new graphic designs for web sites. Sometimes I feel like an author staring at a blank page with a serious case of writers block. Maybe I just lack inspiration. I have all the training and software needed to produce good designs, but still I find it a challenge. For those out there who can easily create great looking designs that people like, I envy your talent. I'm sure that people who can sit down and whip out a cool graphic or rock solid code in minutes are few. It would be interesting to know how much time goes into some of the graphic designs we see on the web. My business model doesn't allow a lot of time for creating eye-popping design work. Good graphic designers make big bucks, and they deserve it. Someday I hope to partner with a graphic designer who works fast and produces great looking results. But for now, I'm just going to keep looking for design inspiration wherever I can find it.