Like your name in lights, only different

This morning was story time at the library for G-tot and I. We went through our weekly ritual of dropping of last week's books in the return bin and then headed toward the back of the library to the children's section. We barely made it twenty feet from the front desk when something caught my eye.

It was sitting on the bottom shelf of a movable cart that showcases new books. If I didn't feel like such a turd I would have pulled out my phone and taken of a picture of it. That's how excited I was. "G-tot, G-tot look!" I exclaimed. "This is the book that Mommy worked on! See! There's Mommy right there!"

G-tot could have cared less but I was so geeked to see the book I worked on showcasing the visual history of the college where I work sitting on the shelf of the public library. The spreads I worked so hard on designing, my name (and several photographs of me & JQ—that somebody else put in) in print, PUBLISHED, and sitting on the 'New Books' shelf for the public to peruse.

It was a pretty exciting moment for me.

Of course, I already have a copy of my own so I took a few shots with iPhoto so you could see the book. And…a few months ago the book won a Crystal Award for "excellence in communications in NW Ohio and SE Michigan". It's nice to be a part of something award winning that actually has your name on it. So much of design requires the designer to be invisible.

Ignore the scary looking woman in on the left and just look at the cover.

A portion of one of my spreads.

My name in print—the only woman that worked on the book

I'm not wearing any pants

A couple of weeks ago, Lindsay over at Rock and Roll Mama was giving away a copy of Stephanie Kuehnert's I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone. Readers had to leave a comment on this post stating the name of your all time favorite band. On Friday, August 15th she would use the random number generator to pick a winner. That's it. Easy-peasy. I left my comment—The Beatles (with Pink Floyd coming in a close second) and mentioned that I should win since the drawing would be held on my birthday.

Well, apparently the little gnomes that run the random number generator felt the same way because my number was picked! This morning when I checked the mail there was a package from the USPS leaning up against the house. My book had arrived!

As soon as I had the package in my hand I knew I had to blog about winning. And aren't all posts better when accompanied by a photo? Why, yes they are, so here is a shot of G-tot, me, and my prize taken with Photo Booth moments after checking the mail. It may not be the most flattering shot of me but I don't care. This is reality at its finest people.

I hadn't showered yet, my hair is all funky, I've got a stupid look on my face, and I'm wearing the oldest shirt I own (that I still wear). It just happens to be the perfect shirt for this post.

It's my Pink Floyd concert shirt from their 1994 tour. It's full of tiny holes and is so ragged looking that I only wear it to bed—but it is one of the most comfortable shirts I own. Plus, it has sentimental value. Over the years I've owned dozens of shirts from concerts I've attended. And over the years those shirts have disappeared. Gone is my Motley Crue shirt from the Dr. Feelgood tour. Gone are my Anthrax shirt from the Headbanger's Ball tour. Gone are the Bulletboys, Metallica, Poison, Skid Row, Pantera, Tesla, and Faster Pussycat t-shirts—along with so many others.

I have just three concert shirts left—a Ted Nugent shirt from my very first concert (I was just nine years old with my Dad at Cobo Hall in Detroit), a Tom Petty shirt from a concert JQ & I went to in 2002, and my beloved Pink Floyd shirt. Which I wear all the time. I fear the day when I pull it out of the dryer and it's in shreds.

So, up there in that picture I'm wearing my Floyd shirt 14 years after I bought it. Oh…and I'm not wearing any pants.

I don't hang on to the shirt merely because of it's comfort factor. I hang on to it because of the memories entwined in its fibers. Memories that are full of music. Music has this amazing ability to touch our lives in so many ways. So many important moments in my life have a soundtrack connected to them. It sounds like that's also true for Emily in I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone. According to Lindsay, "Stephanie Kuehnert delivers a raw, pitch perfect story of a daughter longing to connect to her mother through music." I can't wait to start reading. Thanks, Lindsay!

Happy Birthday to me!

how exactly are the pigs milking the cows?

I don't drink glasses of milk very often, but when I do I always think to myself, "Man, this is so good. I need to drink this more." That's the same feeling I've had these last few weeks with regards to reading. I can't get enough of it and I don't know why I haven't chosen to read more often this past year or so.

Over the past 14 days I read the last two books of the Harry Potter series. They were both re-reads for me but I couldn't put them down. They are just that good. Yesterday I started George Orwell's Animal Farm. It's a minuscule book in stature compared to 1,411 pages I just finished about the boy wizard. The tattered copy I picked up at the library has a mere 139 pages—and the story doesn't actually start until page 25. At the rate we've been devouring these books, I'll have to go back to the library on Thursday if I want something to read this weekend.

book #1

Remember the goals I set for 2008? Looks like my first read of the new year is going to be Aldous Huxley's, A Brave New World.

Why this particular book?
It's part of our personal library.
I've never read it.
JQ just read it last year and is looking forward to discussing it with me.
I dig the idea that the story is still relevant today.

If you've read it I'd love to hear what you thought of it. I haven't started yet so, No Spoilers Please!