WOW... "The mystery of the Major League Baseball logo designer"

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=lukas/081105


is he the designer? i think so... if the articles speak truth...

"we are in the business of user experiences not art work"

NOTE: I am a crazy writer and the following was written on pure impulse. Thanks. lol.
WHAT!!! Are you serious! That quote would ring in my head loudly from the first day I heard it. From a boss that I had in a small digital shop I was recently working at, whose name will remain nameless (only because of my loyalty to the fellow workers there, creative and non-creative team members, the kind that appreciate us, alike).

This digital shop was full of talented people from the top to the bottom. Matter of fact... SCRATCH THAT! They were just talented people period! There was no top or bottom. Everyone was elite in the skills they knew they possessed and skills in which they were rightly hired for... Everyone knew that about each other except for one man... (Sad music now resonates through the following - not the violins from soap operas but the funny kind from cartoons). I was on board as a "designer." Meaning (in this company's case) I was working under a creative director, a creative design director, and a senior designer, each amazingly inspiring in their own ways.

I was given my first project on my first week to design a few comprehensives for an upcoming website for a recently signed "high-profile" client... There is much to argue about the process of this self-proclaiming "high profile interactive agency" L.M.A.O. (no ia, nor wireframes, creative briefs for the client, no designer and client interaction, the list goes on, etc and some more.) I was expected to present the first round of progress internally to the big boss, "Chief Innovation Officer", who is not in anyway active in day to day creative department activities. He had not delegated anyone in the creative department to manage between me and the expectancies of the first round of designs. I had sent numerous emails to the Chief Innovation Officer numerous times and had received no response for weeks!!! So I continued along my path on what felt right. None of my creative department seniors didn't think to manage me, naturally, being that I was seemingly having fun and moving along just fine. Everyone thought my work was cool, and beautiful. They all gave me tips and what not along the way. WAIT A SECOND MY PPL! OBVIOUSLY there is already a problem...
The "Chief... INNOVATION OFFICER" is not communicating with the CREATIVE DEPARTMENT... Creative... Innovative... Create... Innovate. If I didn't color the first issue for you well enough...

I typed within Google search, "define: innovate," and got the following:
Innovate: develop or change an established concept, component, system, process to meet an identified by an incremental or evolutionary process. See Create.
www.ee.wits.ac.za/~ecsa/gen/g-04.htm


I did the same for "create" and, honest to God, I found it to be strikingly hilarious...
create:produce an essentially new product, apply original intellectual effort. See Innovate.
www.ee.wits.ac.za/~ecsa/gen/g-04.htm

... sigh... Um yeah dude. They bounce to eachother... They bark loudly to eachother... These words level to each other... by meaning... To this Chief Innovation Officer it was as though he was blind to see these two words, who are reflecting twins in definition, "create" and "innovate."

I look back and say...

Never-mind that he didn't like my designs. Even though I know my work is beautiful and crafted with a high level of detail, and praised by everyone in the office. Any aesthetic comments, are totally subjective. Never mind that his title felt more like a reason to belittle people, and show others what a great sack of christmas walnuts he had.

the problem was...
His large sack of walnuts forgot the beer that makes this process loose, fun, and ever growing on both entry designer end and director end. Even though I was already an Art Director at a major world wide ad agency before I jumped into this job which didn't seem like the career opportunity I thought it would be. This guy made me feel like I made a big mistake leaving the ad agency. That's life. The weird "beer" metaphor comes from this process from which develops the masterpiece that both he and I could grow and agree upon...

I'll skip the fact that he actually yelled at me in front of the non-creative, non-web experienced staff about how I presented the multiple webdsign home page comprehensives (The same way I had presented them to him in email all along my process developing the design and art work)acting as if all this that I was presenting should be a surprise. He is at this point probably never going to receive any loyalty or respect from me as a creative person from this point on should he continue this route... and yeah... you may have guessed it. He definitely continued this way... except in private... and that just got fucking WEIRD!!! I eventually left to start my own business.

I couldn't do a 9 to 5 for an ass hole. That is the truth. I am in a position (young, energetic, constantly hungry) to leave a job to work toward what I believe in. Many would find it arguable that maybe it is never too late or too early to fight for what you believe in... Hmm... Makes you think huh? Anyways!.. Back to the point...

He created no relationship through out this project. That means major negative things:
1. He wasn't working with me on this project as my director.
2. He didn't delegate those who were in the creative department who may know the type of stuff he's looking for to guide me through to his expectancy.
3. I never freaking knew what he thought of the work while through the process!
4. No mentorship.
5. No process.

Who did he think he was? To yell at me? I have big walnuts too.

Make moves now

Take a moment to breathe. The world around us is full of successes and opportunity to get to these successes ourselves. Opportunity is a ubiquitous subject. People talk about opportunity. People inspire others to take opportunities that they feel are great. But no one can talk to us about how to find it. It is the individual that must seek his own opportunity. Whether it be with a partner who can share the vision or a follower/diciple who is willing to learn with you a new experience.

The song of life is a wonder that can never be the same. A new line is added everyday. A new chorus. Lines replaced or removed. And an unexpected vamp at the end may come about. Positive or negative.

This is broad. This is abstract. this is a step back and out from the everyday and taking time to analyze it.

Life is Simply Marvelous. Love life and life will love you.
you could be broke, alone, and hopeless or you could be the opposite by taking action.

Famed designer, Stefan Sagmeister, "... Hoping things will get better in the future is stupid. I have to move NOW..."