This post was originally posted on December 31, 2019 on Sketchbook B. It’s reposted here as part of a project to move some of my favorite writing to my new site.
Defining who I want to be…
Like last year, I’m going to set some loose themes for this year. They aren’t goals or resolutions, but they do give me a nice guidepost for what I want to accomplish during the upcoming year. For 2020, I only have four themes.
One note about my themes this year: I’m thinking about them more as statements of identity. During this past year, I readAtomic Habits by James Clear and one anecdote in particular has stuck with me. When people are trying to quit smoking, people who say “I’m not a smoker” are more successful than people who say “I’m trying to quit.” Defining who you are can help shape your habits and actions. So I’m framing my themes as statements of who I am instead of what I want to do.
I’m a graduate student. I only have a handful of classes left and my thesis. Most of my time and energy will be focused on completing my Master’s degree and presenting at conferences. I’ll be doing a significant amount of reading and writing for classes and research this year. If all goes according to plan, I’ll graduate in December of 2020.
I’m a healthy person. I need to start taking better care of myself. Yes, that means eating better and working out regularly, but being healthy does just mean physical health. I’ve read a lot in the past year about meditation and mindfulness and I feel like I’d benefit from carving time out of my schedule to focus on mental health as well.
I’m a typeface designer. I love designing typefaces. Honestly, it’s my favorite thing to design and I don’t do it frequently enough. (This year, despite it being one of my themes, I only finished a single typeface.) I’ve got plans for a variable typeface and my plan is to finish it in 2020.
I’m a reader. It wasn’t one of my themes for 2019, but I decided in the spring that I’d like to read more books. I used Goodreads to track my reading, rediscovered my local library and finished 24 books over the course of the year (not including all those journal articles and books I read for class). I’d like to keep it going…
And that’s it. I have other projects and topics I’ll work on, but these are the four big themes. Last year, I wrote a follow up at the midpoint of 2019. For this year, I’m going to try and write about my progress at least once a month.
Bob Wertz writes about design, technology and pop culture at Sketchbook B. Bob is a Columbia, South Carolina-based designer, researcher, college instructor, husband and dad. He’s particularly obsessed with typography, the creative process and the tools we use to create.
This post was originally posted on December 30, 2019 on Sketchbook B. It’s reposted here as part of a project to move some of my favorite writing to my new site.
Adding some fiction to the mix
I tend to read mostly non-fiction*, but for 2019, I made a concerted effort to read more fiction and thoroughly enjoyed the change of pace. In all, I read 24 books during the year. According to Goodreads, that’s 8,410 pages.**
So how did I find the extra time to read more? As I started to change my relationship with social media, I also figured out that I needed to change how (and when) I used my phone. So most evenings, I avoided using my phone after dinner and read a book instead.
I also made sure I had a book to read at all times. I used Goodreads to track the books I wanted to read and then requested them from my local library. Richland Library has a online interface for requesting books. The book is typically ready for pick up in a couple of days although sometimes, it takes longer for popular books. It was much less expensive than buying them all new.
And finally, as I wrote about earlier this year, getting reading glasses might have contributed to reinforcing my reading habit.
For next year, I’m going to aim for 26 books — one every two weeks. It seems like a reasonable goal with all of the reading and writing I’ll have to do for graduate school this year. I looking forward to adding even more fiction to my reading mix.
* Even when I was a small child, I gravitated towards non-fiction books.
** That doesn’t count all the books and journal articles I read for work. Or articles I read online.
Bob Wertz writes about design, technology and pop culture at Sketchbook B. Bob is a Columbia, South Carolina-based designer, researcher, college instructor, husband and dad. He’s particularly obsessed with typography, the creative process and the tools we use to create.
This post was originally posted on December 29, 2019 on Sketchbook B. It’s reposted here as part of a project to move some of my favorite writing to my new site.
Complicated feelings…
Warning: Significant spoilers for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker premiered last week. I caught a late show on opening night and then saw it again with the family a couple of days later. After the first viewing, I was conflicted. I enjoyed the movie, but honestly, I left a little disappointed. There was just so much to process and I wasn’t sure I was satisfied with all the twists and turns. Chris Trainor at the Free Times posted a great review that pretty much summarized my initial feelings.
When I saw it a few days later, I enjoyed it much more. I knew what to expect and just sat back and enjoyed the ride. A couple of random thoughts…
Palpatine and Exegol. I have lots of questions about how Palpatine came back from the dead and where all those Sith disciples on Exegol came from.
Rey. I don’t necessarily love that Rey is a Palpatine, but I understand why they made that choice. Even so, I never felt Rey was going to really turn to the dark side, so all of the attempted fake outs felt a little flat to me.
Droids. They used C-3PO and D-0 well as comic relief. I especially loved when C-3PO declared Babu Frick “one of my oldest friends.”
“That’s not a navy, sir. It’s just… people.” I thought the final battle was entertaining. So many ships. (Maybe too many ships, to be honest.) The shock of General Pryde when the Resistance reinforcements show up, and the concept that the only way to defeat tyranny is for ordinary people to stand up to evil.
Leia. I think this movie would have been much stronger if Carrie Fisher were alive to deliver her lines instead of using repurposed footage from The Force Awakens. I think they did a good job piecing it together, but it would have been stronger. That said, I’d rather have this movie than one with a CGI Leia.
Media blitz. I didn’t seek out spoilers, but I couldn’t avoid the crush of promotional clips, trailers and commercials. I think it was a mistake to show so much. If I hadn’t already seen the clip of the Millennium Falcon coming to the rescue with thousands of ships, the moment in the end when Poe is giving up would have had more impact. Instead, I was waiting for the scene from the trailers when the reinforcements show up.
Where next? Will Rey start rebuilding the Jedi order? Will there be a new, New Republic or will the universe finally give up on the concept of a single galactic government? Have we finally seen the last of the Sith? I know this is the end of the Skywalker Saga, but they left more than a few direction for future movies and streaming shows.
In the end, I’m satisfied. I don’t plan to see it again in the theater, but will watch it again as soon as it comes out on Disney+. And we’re not done with Star Wars, we’re just ready to move on to other stories in the Star Wars universe.
Bob Wertz writes about design, technology and pop culture at Sketchbook B. Bob is a Columbia, South Carolina-based designer, researcher, college instructor, husband and dad. He’s particularly obsessed with typography, the creative process and the tools we use to create.
Spotted this little guy on a hike with the family today.
Here are my 8 favorite shots from 2019. Lots of wonderful memories… Like I did last year, I picked my eight favorite shots from the last year instead of letting an algorithm choose what pictures others like most. (I’ve written about my Fav8 process on my blog…) #fav8
This post was originally posted on December 15, 2019 on Sketchbook B. It’s reposted here as part of a project to move some of my favorite writing to my new site.
Vincent visits Columbia.
Self portrait in a snazzy gold frame.
I spent Saturday afternoon at the art museum. My daughter — to celebrate her 15th birthday — wanted to visit the Van Gogh exhibit* at the Columbia Museum of Art with a couple of her friends.
The exhibition highlighted not just Van Gogh’s art, but also the artists that influenced him. It’s important to remember that everyone — even a master like Van Gogh — was influenced by the world and art around him.
I’ll also add that if you have an art museum near you, go visit it. We don’t visit the Columbia Museum of Art frequently enough. Today, we spent a little extra time upstairs looking at the permanent collection and I found a few new pieces that I don’t remember seeing before and found interesting.** It’s a great collection and we are lucky to have it here in Soda City.
* If you are in the Columbia area, check out the Van Gogh exhibit. It’s up through January 12, 2020.
** They recently expanded the galleries in the permanent collection. So it’s quite possible they are, indeed, newly on display.
Bob Wertz writes about design, technology and pop culture at Sketchbook B. Bob is a Columbia, South Carolina-based designer, researcher, college instructor, husband and dad. He’s particularly obsessed with typography, the creative process and the tools we use to create.
This post was originally posted on December 14, 2019 on Sketchbook B. It’s reposted here as part of a project to move some of my favorite writing to my new site.
This year flew by…
As 2019 comes to a close, here are my favorite shots from the last year:
My wife, Liz, and I celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary. This is one of my favorite shots of Liz, even if it wasn’t taken on our anniversary.
I’m still enjoying grad school and travelled to Toronto to present my first paper at an academic conference.
We took a couple of hikes as a family up near Asheville. Next year, we need take more hikes.
Ryan started soccer this year. There are lots of shots of him in motion, but I love this one of him crouched in goal — with all the action at the other end of the field.
Liz and I went to a “paint and pour.” I don’t really paint and I wasn’t sure what it would be like, but I had a lot of fun.
The girls and I went to Starbucks. They can be so silly, especially when it’s just them. Loved this moment, but I can’t actually remember what they are laughing about.
Jill was entertaining her cousin Gracie at one of Norah’s lacrosse games in Greenville.
The kids in front of the Christmas tree. I’ll be honest — getting pictures of the family in front of the tree almost broke me — but at least some of the shots turned out great.
If you are the kind of person who loves taking and sharing pictures, I encourage you to find your best eight images instead of using an algorithm to generate the nine images other people liked best. I’ve written a separate post on how I built my Fav8.
Bob Wertz writes about design, technology and pop culture at Sketchbook B. Bob is a Columbia, South Carolina-based designer, researcher, college instructor, husband and dad. He’s particularly obsessed with typography, the creative process and the tools we use to create.
This post was originally posted on December 14, 2019 on Sketchbook B. It’s reposted here as part of a project to move some of my favorite writing to my new site.
Forget ‘Best Nine.’ Why Fav8 is the way to go.
At the end of every year, Instagram is flooded with “Best Nine” posts — an automatically generated composite of the nine images on your feed that received the most likes. But last year, I tried something different… Fav8. I picked the eight images that meant the most to me and put them together into a “Best Nine” style format. Here’s what my Fav8 from 2018 looked like:
A couple of other folks did Fav8’s, too, and it seemed to work well for them. This year, I want to encourage more people to spend some time and make their own Fav8s. There isn’t an app or a spammy ad covered website to make a Fav8. It’s completely DIY. Curating your own compilation takes a little more time, but it’s got some definite benefits:
You can select the images that mean the most to you. I liked all of my Best Nine images from last year, but several of my favorite moments were left off. The system can’t tell which images mean the most to me, it can only tell how many likes each post got. The Fav8 approach lets you pick your favorite moments.
Memory lane. To select your favorite eight shots from the last year, you have to go through all of your images. It’s hard to believe how many amazing moments I had forgotten across the year. Going through the last year of images can be an amazingly affirming experience.
Pick the best shot from the sequence. I like to post multiple images in the same Instagram post, but the Best Nine generator automatically picks the first image in the sequence, which may not be the image you want to use.
So how do you make a Fav8?
It takes a little more time than clicking a button, but it’s pretty straightforward:
Pick the images you love. You can look at your Instagram feed or your camera roll, but pick the images you love. Don’t pay attention to how many people liked the image… just how much it means to you. I used Instagram’s bookmark feature to save my favorites. If you are using your camera roll, just start a new album. (If your images are on Instagram, there are several ways to download the images, but it depends on several factors like your operating system and where the images are stored. Your best bet is to Google the best option for your specific situation. UPDATE: Micro.Blog user Smokey Ardisson mentioned that Shortcuts on iOS and MacOS has a Photo Grid action.)
Narrow it down to the final eight. If you are like me, you liked more than 8 images last year. So think about which images tell the story of the last year? Which moments are most vivid? This might take a little bit of time, but it’s also one of the most fun parts.
Organize the images into a grid. There are many ways to do this. I’m a designer and I used Photoshop. If you want to only use your iPhone, I’ve used Instagram’s free Layout app to make a simple grid of images. (There are many, many apps that can do this.) Of course, there will be one spot left over in a 3x3 grid. Feel free to add whatever you want… your name, social media username, the year, an inspirational quote. Whatever feels right. (UPDATE: Micro.Blog user John Johnston is thinking about adding a map. Love that idea, too.)
Post your Fav8 wherever you like. This isn’t just an Instagram thing. Share it to your favorite social media site. Or write a blog post about your Fav8 and what each of the images mean to you. I’ve posted my Fav8 on my blog and will soon post it on Instagram and Twitter, too.
Bonus! Create something tangible. Too many of our images never leave the phone. This year, I’m going to create a printed version of my 2019 Fav8, frame it and put it in my office.
If you have fun making your image compilation, spread the word. Let others know about Fav8 and encourage your friends and family to do the same. You can use the hashtag #2019Fav8. Or for Micro.Blog, maybe we can use the 8️⃣ emoji?
Bob Wertz writes about design, technology and pop culture at Sketchbook B. Bob is a Columbia, South Carolina-based designer, researcher, college instructor, husband and dad. He’s particularly obsessed with typography, the creative process and the tools we use to create.
Four hoops.
It’s been a long week. (Yes, I’m aware that it’s only Tuesday morning.) Starting this morning right with a Cubano from @indahcoffee.
