Existential Design Thoughts
I am a designer and constantly reevaluating what my niche is. Maybe it is the naive child in me, but I still believe that one can design their own career based on the crossover between their passions. I had a realization that designing for pharmaceutical companies isn't exactly why I went to art school. But, when I am designing something that I love, my life is a little closer to perfect…
As a designer, I'm constantly reflecting on where my true passions lie. Perhaps it's the idealistic child within me, but I firmly believe in shaping one's career around the intersection of their deepest interests. Designing for pharmaceutical companies, while lucrative, doesn't quite align with the artistic aspirations that led me to art school. It's when I'm immersed in projects that resonate with my soul that life feels a little closer to perfect.
This notion of intertwining passions led me to embark on a side project inspired by a simple Venn Diagram. Picture each circle representing a different aspect of your life, with one circle symbolizing your career and the others representing your various interests. Now, imagine all these circles intersecting in real life. For me, it meant melding my love for craft beer, typography, and games into a creative endeavor.
Starting with pairing favorite beers with fitting quotes, I honed my typography skills while contemplating what brew the author of each quote might enjoy. Crafting coasters for Chicago-based breweries presented an intriguing challenge—how to capture the essence of each brand while ensuring recognition?
Beyond beer, my passions extend to volleyball, blueberries, and connecting with new people. As a bartender, I discovered the art of finding common ground with every patron, illustrating the natural overlap between design and social interaction. Could this synergy pave the way for a backup career? It's a possibility, especially considering the proliferation of platforms designed to facilitate connections.
“The future belongs to those who learn more skills and combine them in creative ways.”
My first time brewing beer
I decided to homebrew this week for the first time! I have a friend who has only brewed once before and we decided it would be fun to do together since we are both still learning the process. We stopped in the Brew and Grow after work, which is conveniently only about two blocks from my apartment. That store was unexpectedly overwhelming! If I knew enough to be dangerous…
I decided to homebrew this week for the first time! I have a friend who has only brewed once before and we decided it would be fun to do together since we are both still learning the process. We stopped in the Brew and Grow after work, which is conveniently only about two blocks from my apartment. That store was unexpectedly overwhelming! If I knew enough to be dangerous I could have some fun in there, but I am not comfortable using the mill yet. The mill is like the cereal in Whole Foods where you pour exactly what you want into a bag and you measure it on the scale. I would really need to do my homework to know what I need from this section of the store, right now I am not prepared for such an open-ended project. I do know that I want to brew a porter or stout since these fall temps are dropping, so we settled on purchasing a starter kit. It turned out to be a comfortable choice since the directions were broken down very easily for us - yes, of course, it probably won't be the most interesting beer I've ever had, but this week is for learning the basics.
I will say that brewing wasn't as interesting of a process as I had hoped. My friend compared it to fishing - and patience has never been my strong suit! We spent most of the time prepping and cleaning all of the things, and then you boil the wort for an hour while you wait and eat homemade pierogi. After the boil was finished, we carefully poured everything into a bucket that was sitting in an ice bath. Dad, since you are my only reader - I will let you know how the beer turns out in a few weeks!
