Death and Shithead

Two great discoveries today while googling for a type design museum in Amsterdam:

"You've got to find what you love." A graduation address by Steve Jobs. One that you *won't* sleep through, for sure.
http://news-service.stanford.edu/news/2005/june15/jobs-061505.html

This talk confirms my belief in letting both good and bad experiences influence your life for the better. This also applies to design. Sometimes I start a project knowing my goal but the path I take to get there sometimes takes an unexpected turn and since I trust myself, I sometimes roll with that oddity and shape it into something great. It's learning to trust those artificial mistakes and using them that makes a more interesting picture. Whether you are a designer, a researcher or a blog reader.

Another topic in Steve's address was Death. In my 10th grade biology class I remember learning about "programmed death", a science concept that describes how once something is born, it begins to die. This is true for more than nature. For in everything we make, as soon as it is constructed, it begins to fall apart. This can happen in many forms, physical, cosmetic, economical or useful are the ones that come to mind. Paper vs Plastic. Bell-bottoms vs. white t-shirts. Prozac vs. a Generic. Google vs. CD catalogs. The fact that everything dies isn't a bad thing. It keeps the cycle moving in a better direction. Without this friend called Death, we would be surrounded by a whole lot of junk and not even know it.

---> The Story of "Shithead"
One of my favorite 'funny name' stories is this. I didn't know that it had circulated past my small circle and it was fun to read an article about it.

http://www.designobserver.com/archives/003635.html

If I had stuck to only looking for that type museum, I would have missed this. The moral of the story? New possibilities are seen by being open and trusting, not an unobservant Shithead. :)