i just wanna get my learn on.

So, I just found a program for an online Masters degree. It's at UNCG and prepares grads to teach at the Community College level. It's a Masters of Arts in Liberal Studies.

The courses are things like Biorhythms, the Contemporary World, Age of Revolutions, and many more totally awesome courses that I want to take so much. I just want to learn and study for the rest of my life and make that my job.

People might say: Well, you can do that no matter what your job is.

My response: I want more than that. I want my job to be learning and I want to learn more outside of my job.

I want to study humanity present/future/past from a design perspective because design is what makes us human. It is what separates us from animals, it is why we have a complex civilization. I feel akin to the early philosophers (but not as smart) in wanting to spend every moment studying what we are, why we are here, and what we might be capable of in the future.

butter.

I would like to take a moment to applaud Ramada Inn. As I cruise through the jumble and mess that is our visual landscape, I often pause and take a relaxed, almost therapeutic, breath when I come across a billboard or ad showing Ramada Inn's new identity. They have made a leap away from the clunky, screaming logos of other comparable hotels.

Apparently, this new identity is a part of a huge branding effort made in order to upgrade their image. It is nice when a company's brand translates the message to its visual counterpart with such fluidity and grace.

So, what is Days Inn trying to say with their new logo? I see butter packaging. I'm not sure if that was their intent. I read on the Wydham Worldwide site that the goal was to translate their company pledge "A promise as sure as the sun" into their new branding. Promise? Wait a second. That's a kind of butter. Slippery, greasy, artery clogging butter. Seriously, what is their deal with butter?

I suppose my interpretation doesn't not coincide with Days Inn's intent, but I will say that I personally feel that Ramada wins this rebranding round. Good job, Ramada.

on green.

All this green stuff is daunting and a bit ridiculous. How is it even possible? We are certainly doomed. There is just no way. We've gone too far in the wrong direction. Anyone who tries is just a hypocrite.

When bad thoughts like that start creeping into my mind, I remember that I am an optimist, and I prefer to play on the team that at least tries. That's why I want to make design problems like these my career.

It is going to take at least 100 years to change the world, just like it took about 100 years to get as bad as we are now.

Go green.

skiing = near death.

A trip to the North Carolina mountains did provide me an excellent 3 hour drive by myself where I could think and come up with some new ideas.

However, those ideas could have easily been utterly pointless had my first run down the non-bunny slope killed me like I thought it would while in progress. Let's just say people were staring and saying "Oh, my God" as I zipped by them screaming for dear life and unable to stop.

I made it back to the safety of my computer unscathed and ready to jot a couple thoughts on career development and future ideas.

Portfolio Ideas:
1. Figure out how to make entire portfolio book compostable
2. Take UNC online courses
3. Start a guerilla tree planting club

Blog ideas:
1. Days Inn versus Ramada
2. Phonebooks out of date

today.

So, I met with MD today. She gave me insight about various programs and the sort of degree that comes out of particular schools. She stressed the importance of choosing the right school.

Right off the bat...NC State seemed to be the correct for me. She talked about programs geared towards a polished body of work (Pentagram-like work), ones geared toward self expression and experimenting (using design forms and ideas to artistic pieces), and mentioned ones based on research and the future of the practice (NC State).

Future of the practice?

That is exactly what I want to do. I have that tiny seed of a dream to figure out how to do what McDonough and Braungart are doing for architecture and industry. I feel the need to go to school to earn a more intensive education where I can focus on these ideas and gain an informed perspective.

So. She also mentioned that the problem with NCSU undergrads coming back for grad is that they have trouble making the leap toward having different relationships with professors. She said a good way to counter that is to gain experience. She said it was good that I want work more to get more experience, and she said a year abroad teaching would be good experience as well to counter those challenges.

She also gave me some places to start researching. Even though I feel strong about NCSU, it will be good to keep looking to see if I might be better suited somewhere else.

Another thought. If I cannot apply while I am abroad because of interviews, maybe I should spend a year when I get back working on my portfolio and working at a less demanding job.

Crazzzzzzy.

I hope this stuff works out. I know this is where I want to head. I just need to plan, take advice, and work really hard.

laughable?

So. At such early stages in my thinking and ideas, I have a feeling that I will look back on these early stages of posting and think "laughable."

That's okay, I suppose.

So, here it is after months of coffee shop lunches:

I would like to be more informed of the design of human communication with a focus on how our ideas have changed and will change over time.

Some goals:
1. Use design to make life meaningful.
2. Fight social ills with communication and collaboration.
3. Take the guilty conscience out of graphic design.

I wonder what might happen in the future with all this.

what and why.

I thought it might be time to start organize my thinking.