Never be afraid to admit wrong

It's pretty late and I should get to bed, but I keep looking over my writing and spotting typos and grammatical errors. I'm sure there's even a couple in here, but they'll have to be save for a later time.

"Write while your on fire. Edit when you have cooled off." - Tru'Zen (I'm sure I'm stealing this from someone else)

I speek good engrish

First of all, no, I am not making a stereotypical joke but rather acknowledging that it's out there and applying it to my circumstance.

------ Real post ------

I am full America. 100%, born in SoCal, lived in Michigan, studied in TN and GA. Granted my mom is Filipino, but all that was ever spoken at home was English, except when she was on the phone to her relatives. So what's wrong with my English? I am sure I am one of many people who often times write "their" when what they really mean is "they're". And it happens with other similar sounding words. It's no fault of the education system, it's just that my brain wants to communicate faster than the rest of me. My girlfriend made me aware of this fact when she pointed out that sometimes I stutter. I'm not self conscience about it, but rather more self aware now. It's a little frustrating when you have a lot to say with hardly the capacity to say it all with the meaning and emotion that you want to convey.

I will not become an advertising god

I recognize that there is a vast amount of talent all around me and I can see people going far here at the Circus and farther in their careers, but honestly, I'm not going to be one of them. Not that I don't want to work hard and get far in the business, but I doubt that I will become a career god. I will not be a Bernbach, Burnett, Ogilvy, Saatchi, or Chiat and that's not negative thinking folks. It's just not what I want out of this life. So many people think that their careers are their lives, but that's not how I want to live mine. I want to be a good husband first, a loving father second and an upstanding citizen third. It's may seem like idealistic 1950's crap and maybe that's why often times I feel like I've been born in the wrong century. We've gone from a society of men who carry pictures of their kids to ones that check their stock every 5 minutes. I'm making the choice to be the former.

"“Money is a terrible master but an excellent servant” - PT Barnum

"Become a shameless self promoter"

Two of the greatest men in the entertainment business knew this: PT Barnum and Harry Houdini. The quote also goes well in hand with "The greatest power on earth is that of gossip."

Applying these two quotes to my life, I'm doing a social experiment, using myself as the guinea pig. Though a combination of actions and stories (all real, but all decidedly chosen), I am seeing if I can create a mostly positive, almost mystical, reputation. The reason for this documentation is to show that a reputation can be custom built.

Ground work
1. Work hard
2. Rarely party
3. Keep mostly quiet
4. Being helpful both in general and with technical work

Intermediate
1. Personal stories
a. Suspension from school for a weapon
b. Almost getting sent to juvie for computer hacking
c. Personal injuries ranging from the chivalrous to the inquisitive
2. Eventually creating a unique style of dress (probably won't happen before I leave the circus, but the groundwork will hopefully be put in)

Advanced
1. Falling asleep in the trunk space of a suburban driven by a New York Marine in full "let's go" fashion
2. Reading alot (particularly reading the graphic novel Watchmen in two days)

Note the ground work wouldn't change as that is who I really am, but those are listed there to show what sets me apart initially. The rest of my actions are handpicked with the social experiment in mind.

Speak when spoken to

I am not sure if this is noticeable to my fellow creatives, but rarely do I offer critiques in front of the class. Reasons for this are: 1. It takes me a while to convey my precise thoughts and 2. By the time I have formulated what I've wanted to say, it's most likely been pieced together by the class and the presenter. Granted, there have been times where I have not agreed with what has been said in class, by either the class or the professor, but I do recognize that this is a subjective field and that I am still rather inexperienced at knowing what a good ad is.

I believe that it was at the end of my 3rd quarter here at the Circus that Bob Morrison told me that I had a combative spirit and that I should give way to at least hear what has to be said and then take it for what it's worth. I wonder if I haven't taken it too far and become a door mat of ideas, taking sh*t, but not really giving any of it out.

If anyone wants my honest opinion, I'll be around.

"A slap in the face is better in the long run than a pat on the back" - Whatever You Think, Think Opposite

Baddies 2007-Present

Ah, the Baddies. For those of you unfamiliar with the concept, it's the after party to the Creative Circus' student show held at Famous Pub. It's not officially associated with the school, so don't and call the accreditation committee. It's just a student tradition.

But for all the glory of the ads, basked in beer and comradery, I doubt I will ever experience it. Part by choice, the rest in fear. Though I haven't been diagnosed, I am 99% sure that I am an agoraphobic. Not so severe that I can't leave my house, but enough to the point where I hardly go to new places. And it's not new places alone, but places with alot of people in a small space. I guess it's a combination of agoraphobic and claustrophobia. And for someone who doesn't drink and doesn't party, the Baddies isn't a place for me unless I'm going to be a designated driver (for your information, I can't drive stick, so those people are out of luck) and/or a wallflower.

Come find me if you want someone to talk to, who'll actually listen, or if you want to have a friendly discussion or debate.

"Listening is becoming quite a lost art form"

I bow before good food ads (Good applying to the ads)

I really have to applaud people who can sell food products. And not just any food products, but more in the junk food vain. This appreciation comes from working on Nutella this quarter.

Angelle and myself love the product and have experienced the nuances of velvety chocolate-hazelnut spread. But trying to sell the product to the "caveman" was an absolute pain. "Boil it down, boil it. Simplify." That has been the message of the quarter and especially for Cohen. I appreciate this because I know that my college essay bullsh*ting doesn't speaking to the masses, but it an absolute pain for food. The basic benefit of food is that is tastes good and fills your stomach.

I will say that my favorite food ads have been 5 gum and Skittles. 5 because of their ability to convey the sensation of the gum in a fun and imaginative way. Skittles because of the absolute absurdity of the ads. My favorite being the "Touch of Skittles", where the guy can't touch anything without it turning into Skittles.

On the flip side, the ones I hate are Burger King's "King" mascot and Starburst's "Berries and cream lad". I know I'm going to get flack for this, but everyone is entitled to an opinion in a subjective industry.

The BK King scares the sh*t out of me. Why? Because the face can't show any other emotion than a plastic smile. Comparing BK to their competitor, McDonalds, at least Ronald can show emotion. BK seems like a me-too mascot that isn't really needed, unless he's gear towards the kids, in which case I'm not the target audience and therefore "I don't get it".

Maybe the same holds true for the "Berries and Cream lad", but I just can help but wonder why you would make someone make dress up like that and make them sing an idiotic song. Going through the song/verse once was fine, but repeating it with more gusto just made it more grating and sad to me.