So, I come to you today with a post after a couple months. I’ve  now been working at Tsuvo for almost a month and a half — and guess what? I LOVE IT. It’s the best job I could have asked for and it’s exactly what I was searching for. I’m very happy there. Working at Tsuvo actually makes me want to be a workaholic because I never want to stop working on the exciting projects we have going!!!

Anyways, aside from the success in my working life, I have some other things going on in my private life. Not with another person, but with myself. Me and myself. Myself and me. Whichever is the proper grammatical way to put it. Basically, I have a new path I have to conquer.. for myself. I have to do this for myself, and it’s going to be hard. People will make it difficult. Friends, life, activities.. all of this will make it difficult, but it is for me. And for once.. I think it’s time that I focus on ME. No one else. It’s about priorities. Goals. (Hence the title of this post.) I can’t deny that I’m nervous for this endeavor. But! It’s good for me. It’s GREAT for me, actually. Well, it should be. I’m sure of it. If I can do it.. then I surely can do anything.

Aside from this challenge, I do have to say.. despite having a job, I am definitely still hurting for money. Perhaps I need to take a class on how to save money? I’m not sure. But it seems as quickly as I make money, it vanishes. Before I know it, I’m scraping the bottom again waiting for my next paycheck. I want to save up, but I have a lot to pay off. Such is life, I suppose. But at least I’m content and surviving. As the economy slowly picks up, I know things for myself will too — and everyone! (Which is nice to think about.) Although, at times, when I watch the news, I am worried about this country. I’m definitely worried about the future of this country and the future of my children (even if I’m single and not on the dating scene.. I still think about my would-be kids! C’mon! I’m a woman!) But I guess that is another blog post for another time. I think the point of this whole post was to get some things off my chest, to let everyone know how excited I am to be at Tsuvo, and that I’m taking a new personal challenge on in my life.

All in all, I really can’t complain much. Life is treating me well, and I plan to make the best of it.

Oh! And of course, the song I was listening to as I wrote this.. you HAVE to take a listen. It’s called “The Light” by Album Leaf. Very soothing.. and yet.. very thought provoking. Enjoy!

So, I find myself sitting here, contemplating some composition issues with a design I am working on while watching AFV in the background and also streaming music from iTunes into my headphones. To some, this might seem like a lot going on, but for me, it’s not really. Multi-tasking is such commonplace these days–and Apple has unfortunately made that even easier for me with Spaces and all the hot keys that let me cycle through all my tasks. But amidst my multi-tasking there always comes a moment when lightning strikes and my thoughts pause. Today, it happened when I heard this song “Taller Children” by Elizabeth and the Catapult. It made a lot of sense when I stopped and thought about it. We are all just taller children, aren’t we? As a graphic designer, I most definitely think so. Imagination is so important in the world of design. And in life, I believe we still seek out the things we wanted as a child: fun, affection, laughter, and things that look cool (that’s where I come in!). So, basically, I realized that I was indeed a “taller child.” And despite many things in my life that are currently shifting, I know in my heart I will remain a child. I do not believe this to be a downfall or hindrance, but rather something that I would like to cling to as a graphic designer and as a human being. Maintaining the optimistic eagerness of a child could actually be an ideal to live up to as I continue to design. Keeping  a positive energy would definitely help curb the “artists block” that sometimes plagues my fingers and thoughts. Of course, all this talk of being a child comes with balance and moderation. In a professional world I will act like a professional, I simply hope that my spirit and energy (or what I would like to refer to as my “passion” for design) not only radiate from my actions and designs, but also become somehow contagious to those around me.

On the topic of being a taller child…I do have to add: I’m not really thaaat tall at all. I’m only 5′0”…but! that is still taller than some children, right?

Hm. I do have some other things to talk about which have come to pass (recently!) in my life. One of which is this new job opportunity I landed at Tsuvo. I’ll be starting off as a part-time designer for them, after which I can hopefully transition into a full-time designer. I had the chance to meet most of the guys on staff, and had two interviews with the founders of Tsuvo. They’re amazing guys and I was blown away by their ambitions and energy! It was so refreshing! I’m definitely excited to be becoming a part of their team. I will officially start working with them December 1st–the day I finally get to DESIGN for a living!

Let’s see, I’ve also lately been getting more and more into the holiday spirit. Christmas decorations are up and abundant! And whenever I think to, I like to change the music to Christmas tunes. Thus far into the season, I’ve baked sugar cookies and poppyseed cake. My next goal is some brownies or fudge! I love baking holiday treats and sharing them with everyone.

Anyways, I hope this blog post finds all in good health. I just took a glance at the clock and realized I should probably get to bed–or at least seriously start thinking about sleep… which will hopefully make me sleep. So, I leave you with the video/song that inspired this post! Enjoy!

Did what, you ask?

Well, if you follow my blog, you will know that when I started it (along with my website) I was number 4 or 5 (maybe even 6!) when you googled “Sarah Gridley.” Instead of me being the first Sarah Gridley to pop up, there was some other Sarah who is a professor/poem author? I’m not entirely sure. All I know is.. she was standing in my way to being in the number one “Sarah Gridley” slot on google search!! Well. I just now googled “Sarah Gridley.” Nothing else. And now I’m number one AND number two!!!!! My website and my wp! Isn’t that exciting?!?

Do it. Go try and search “sarah gridley.” It will bring you riiiiight back here!

I have much more to say about a lot of other things, but it’s very late and I really just wanted to get this achievement (minor, albeit) off my chest so I could sleep. I had to tell someone, and why not the worldwide web??

And in honor of this success, I give you.. “The Final Countdown” by Europe.
Enjoy! And good night!

Normally, I would have more to say in a blog post. But sometimes a song just says it all, don’t you think?
Anyways.
Enjoy.

I was turned on to this amazing song from the trailer for the movie “Where the Wild Things Are” inspired by the actual book, which was one of my favorites as a child. If you haven’t watched the trailer yet, please do. I’m very excited for this move to come out.

So, I’ve recently had the desire to create and manipulate typography in 3-D, I think it takes typography to a whole new level which I have yet to explore. As I searched for a program that would allow me to do this (on a Mac!), I first came across Maxon Cinema 4D. I was excited to see their previews of what the software could do, but greatly disappointed at the price–$995. However, I know that for a program as complex at this, it is a reasonable price.

I didn’t let this discourage me, I kept searching, and then came across Cheetah3D, which I could purchase for a much lower cost–approx $70, and seemed to do much of the same as Maxon’s software. So, I downloaded a trial version to test it out. I quickly saw how foreign the interface of 3D modeling was to me and realized I would need to keep searching from something else–perhaps something free.

And that’s when I discovered Blender! It’s free, open-source, and pretty user friendly (so far). I have now, after watching a few hours of tutorials, successfully created my name in 3D with the typeface of my choice. However, I’ve yet to add color or texture, or anything pretty to it. It still feels like an accomplishment, though. And the 3D interface is slowly becoming more and more discernible to me.

Basically, I wanted to let any designers out there know (if you don’t already) that Blender is free and available and definitely worth a look! It’s fun. Tedious at first, but very fun!

I can’t wait to see what I can create with it.

There isn’t much for me to say about this video except that it makes me want to go design a book/magazine spread. Thrilling to watch for a designer, and perhaps insightful to watch for those who aren’t. Either way, I absolutely adore this video.

Buy it. Learn it. Live it.

I don’t think there is really much more I can say about P90X. I love it. I recommend it. And it definitely gives you that extra boost you need during the day. I know this is a bit unrelated to graphic design, however, I am such an avid supporter of this workout that I feel the need to share it with everyone. It only takes an hour to an hour-and-a-half for 6 days a week, for 90 days.. and you will transform your entire body. Then simply maintain and upkeep it with the workout afterwards. There are 3 different programs to follow, I chose the “classic.” And I believe once I finish that, I will do the “lean” routine, which will help make all those muscles I just built look even better! Anyways, look into it if you’re looking for that extra something you’re missing everyday. 

Of course, since I feel I must say my input about this as a designer, I would like to add the way the typography has been treated in the P90X logo, it almost looks like “PACK” which is perfect since you WILL get a 6-pack from this workout. Also, in the poster series I have put up above, you can see that the bodies spell out P9X, minus the 0–at least I think so. Either way, I support this and Tony Horton is a great trainer and motivator in the videos. You’ll love him.

After waiting, stuck with CS2 for years as I watched all those around me upgrade to CS3 and then CS4, I finally got it! CS4! Design premium. Isn’t it beautiful? I know, it’s not as pretty as the silver “Master Collection” box, but for my eager eyes it’s so beautiful. I’ve had enough time to play around in all the programs and have to say.. multiple artboards..YESSS. Ingenious. And the way the tabs/toolbars can magically shrink to the side and get out of my way.. wonderfulll!! Also, I like that you can choose a customized palette view such as “Typography” and it just knows what I need on that side. Overall, I am thrilled.

CS4 Design Premium

Any comments on the new features of CS4? I’ll definitely be looking into it more as time goes on. If I could hug CS4, I would. Instead, I’ll just hug the box it came in!

Well, it has been quite a while since I updated my blog. In fact, it’s been a while since I updated quite a few of my pages. But that is the beauty of life, isn’t it? Change.

There have been a lot of changes in my life since May. For one, I am now an official college graduate! I received my Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Graphic Design, Magna cum laude. The second significant change in my life was my older brother getting married. He’s a Second Lieutenant in the Air Force and I have to say, I was a teary mess of joy seeing him and my sister-in-law finally tie the knot. We flew all the way to Virginia for this wedding, which was quite a trek for my family and I. I rode six planes there and back, with six layovers! I’ve had my fill of flying for a while.

Upon my return home, I have been updating my resume and am on the hunt for a job. I recently uploaded a new resume for you to download on here if you are interested. I need to make some new videos for my youtube, I think I’ve left my viewers over there hanging for a little too long.

I appreciate those who stop by and take a read of my blog. I’m definitely excited to get a foot into the professional world of design, and am even more eager to make my mark there.

I’d like to end this post with a video of a song that reflects on how I’ve been feeling lately, and how things have seemed. For everything, turn, turn, turn… there is a season, turn, turn, turn…

After spending 6 hours uploading these videos, I finally have them for all of you to see! I hope you enjoy. Two of them were commercials and two of them were introduction and closing videos for our NSAC presentation. I will work on getting them added into my portfolio. I have a lot of work to update into it, a whole section for NSAC.

Opening:

Hammer Commercial:

Screwdriver Commercial:

Closing: