So, How Was Your Day? Breakfast: Cup of cold water. Tea. Cheerios. Lunch: Turkey sandwich with multigrain bread, lettuce, onion, provolone, and honey mustard. Water. Banana. Second cup of tea. Dinner: Tilapia, avocado, onion, and lime tacos. Lots of salsa. More water. Morning ➛ I snooze the alarm for another five minutes before crawling out from under the warm covers. Hot shower, blazer and dress, and out the door. As I bus into the city, I WhatsApp my friend in Hong Kong, read a few inspirational verses from my Bible app, and scroll through my workberry for the morning Financial Times headlines. Caribou Coffee is the first stop for my Pomegranate Oolong tea (extra large cup please!) before I get to my desk. I organize my notepad scribbles from last week’s meetings in California and remind myself to send thank you notes. I munch through a bowl (or was it two?) of cereal while working on slides for a client presentation later this week. Noon ➛ Stomach is growling, so an early lunch today. A phone call and a few emails later, and I’m in a meeting room with some colleagues. We have the great opportunity to be interviewed and featured in an industry magazine, so it’s an afternoon of prep and brainstorming with the communications team. Night ➛ I never know where the time goes in my day, because I look up from my desk and it’s already a quarter after five. I’m at Brooks Brothers 15 minutes later for the annual “Suited for Success” event hosted by One Million Degrees, a nonprofit organization focused on helping community college students. I stand in the back of the echoing atrium in a crowd of mentors, board members, and supporters, and watch in awe as a group of 20 scholars descend down the marble staircases dressed as sharp as any CEO. The whole time, I couldn’t help but wonder where my mentee, a young mother and aspiring pharmacist, will end up next year. Words of wisdom (dress for the job you want) and advice (socks should match pants not shoes) are shared before the shopping begins (clothes for a good cause? finally putting my hobby to good use!). After chasing down a few hor d’oeuvres and cookies, it’s time to call it a night. Delicious home-cooked meal from the husband, a quick DIY facial, and then the long awaited sleep, finally in my own bed. Three Last Things… 1. What’s up with you looking so young? Are you a child prodigy or something? Child prodigy – I wish! I’ll take that as a compliment. I do try and add a few years to myself by dressing up more often or being in a suit at work (though I still get comments that I look fresh out of high school). I can thank years of great skincare (my mom has been giving me tricks since middle school) and my parents for their genes. My mom and dad both live healthy lifestyles – they could pass for being a decade younger than their true ages! 2. How did you become a mentor with One Million Degrees? I first heard of One Million Degrees (OMD) through a colleague I used to work with. At the time, I was looking to get more involved in the city. Over coffee one afternoon, she suggested that I give mentoring at OMD a try. Many organizations throughout the city are dedicated to children, high school students, or adults. But the ‘limbo’ and lack of resources that many community college students might find themselves in is rarely addressed. The name of the organization is interesting too – a million degrees has no bounds, and that’s what we’re going for. My experience has been really amazing so far. My mentee, a very driven young lady, was actually just accepted into her top pharmacy school – an amazing feat for someone who also needs to juggle a family life with kids! We meet once a month and catch up on life and talk about classes or any career-related issues. We actually spent the last two meetings prepping for her interviews. I’ve come to realize how blessed I have been to have certain resources and relationships, whether through friends or family, and being able to share some of this knowledge with my mentee and helping her grow to achieve her dreams has just been an amazing experience so far. 3. Wait, hold up, what is this DIY facial? Here’s what a standard facial at home looks like: I start by cleansing my makeup, and then I exfoliate. Professional exfoliants are great, but the best scrub is found right in the kitchen – olive oil and sea salt (courtesy of my aunt actually – I’m telling you, skincare runs in the family). Olive oil is one of the best and most affordable oils for the skin. Contrary to what many think, adding olive oil to the skin doesn’t make you break out – it can help soothe and hydrate deep into the pores. The salt, on the other hand, actually combats a lot of the impurities and acne that might be deep in the skin. Just mix a little in your palm and scrub in circular motions! Rinse with warm water, and your face feels amazing. Leaving some olive oil alone on the face for about 5 minutes can act as a great mask. Face gels or cooling lotions are great too – anything water based is great for the skin to soak up for a few minutes. And of course, I finish with a rich moisturizer – a must in a city like Chicago! Jessica lives in downtown Chicago with her husband. She is a Hedge Fund Associate at Northern Trust and a mentor for One Million Degrees, a nonprofit focused on helping community college students succeed. onemilliondegrees.org

So, How Was Your Day?

Breakfast:

Cup of cold water. Tea. Cheerios.


Lunch:

Turkey sandwich with multigrain bread, lettuce, onion, provolone, and honey mustard. Water. Banana. Second cup of tea.


Dinner:

Tilapia, avocado, onion, and lime tacos. Lots of salsa. More water.

Morning ➛

I snooze the alarm for another five minutes before crawling out from under the warm covers. Hot shower, blazer and dress, and out the door. As I bus into the city, I WhatsApp my friend in Hong Kong, read a few inspirational verses from my Bible app, and scroll through my workberry for the morning Financial Times headlines. Caribou Coffee is the first stop for my Pomegranate Oolong tea (extra large cup please!) before I get to my desk. I organize my notepad scribbles from last week’s meetings in California and remind myself to send thank you notes. I munch through a bowl (or was it two?) of cereal while working on slides for a client presentation later this week.



Noon ➛

Stomach is growling, so an early lunch today. A phone call and a few emails later, and I’m in a meeting room with some colleagues. We have the great opportunity to be interviewed and featured in an industry magazine, so it’s an afternoon of prep and brainstorming with the communications team.



Night ➛

I never know where the time goes in my day, because I look up from my desk and it’s already a quarter after five. I’m at Brooks Brothers 15 minutes later for the annual “Suited for Success” event hosted by One Million Degrees, a nonprofit organization focused on helping community college students. I stand in the back of the echoing atrium in a crowd of mentors, board members, and supporters, and watch in awe as a group of 20 scholars descend down the marble staircases dressed as sharp as any CEO. The whole time, I couldn’t help but wonder where my mentee, a young mother and aspiring pharmacist, will end up next year. Words of wisdom (dress for the job you want) and advice (socks should match pants not shoes) are shared before the shopping begins (clothes for a good cause? finally putting my hobby to good use!). After chasing down a few hor d’oeuvres and cookies, it’s time to call it a night. Delicious home-cooked meal from the husband, a quick DIY facial, and then the long awaited sleep, finally in my own bed.

Three Last Things…

1. What’s up with you looking so young? Are you a child prodigy or something?

Child prodigy – I wish! I’ll take that as a compliment. I do try and add a few years to myself by dressing up more often or being in a suit at work (though I still get comments that I look fresh out of high school). I can thank years of great skincare (my mom has been giving me tricks since middle school) and my parents for their genes. My mom and dad both live healthy lifestyles – they could pass for being a decade younger than their true ages!

2. How did you become a mentor with One Million Degrees?

I first heard of One Million Degrees (OMD) through a colleague I used to work with. At the time, I was looking to get more involved in the city. Over coffee one afternoon, she suggested that I give mentoring at OMD a try. Many organizations throughout the city are dedicated to children, high school students, or adults. But the ‘limbo’ and lack of resources that many community college students might find themselves in is rarely addressed. The name of the organization is interesting too – a million degrees has no bounds, and that’s what we’re going for. My experience has been really amazing so far. My mentee, a very driven young lady, was actually just accepted into her top pharmacy school – an amazing feat for someone who also needs to juggle a family life with kids! We meet once a month and catch up on life and talk about classes or any career-related issues. We actually spent the last two meetings prepping for her interviews. I’ve come to realize how blessed I have been to have certain resources and relationships, whether through friends or family, and being able to share some of this knowledge with my mentee and helping her grow to achieve her dreams has just been an amazing experience so far.

3. Wait, hold up, what is this DIY facial?

Here’s what a standard facial at home looks like: I start by cleansing my makeup, and then I exfoliate. Professional exfoliants are great, but the best scrub is found right in the kitchen – olive oil and sea salt (courtesy of my aunt actually – I’m telling you, skincare runs in the family). Olive oil is one of the best and most affordable oils for the skin. Contrary to what many think, adding olive oil to the skin doesn’t make you break out – it can help soothe and hydrate deep into the pores. The salt, on the other hand, actually combats a lot of the impurities and acne that might be deep in the skin. Just mix a little in your palm and scrub in circular motions! Rinse with warm water, and your face feels amazing. Leaving some olive oil alone on the face for about 5 minutes can act as a great mask. Face gels or cooling lotions are great too – anything water based is great for the skin to soak up for a few minutes. And of course, I finish with a rich moisturizer – a must in a city like Chicago!

Jessica lives in downtown Chicago with her husband. She is a Hedge Fund Associate at Northern Trust and a mentor for One Million Degrees, a nonprofit focused on helping community college students succeed. onemilliondegrees.org

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So, How Was Your Day? Breakfast: Fried egg white on toast with avocado, tomato, and jalapeños. Lunch: Grapes, strawberries, blueberries. Dinner: Balsamic-glazed pork chops and broccoli. Morning ➛ Alarm goes off at 6 am - oops. Not on a Sunday. Shut off and go back to sleep until 8:30. Grab my phone and check Facebook and Instagram to see what my friends back home got up to last night (Santiago is 5 hours ahead of California at this time of year). I stay in bed for a while and read food blogs and look though my cookbooks for lunch ideas for the week. A couple of my good friends/colleagues and I just started a project that we have very non-creatively dubbed “The Lunch Bunch,” where each of us takes one day of the week to cook lunch for the others. It’s so nice not to have to worry about making lunch every day, and we have had some fabulous meals. It inspires me to cook things I wouldn’t otherwise make for just myself. Eat breakfast. Make my shopping list and drive to La Vega Central, which is a huge produce market downtown. I go every Sunday. It’s summer here in the southern hemisphere, so all of the stalls are brimming over with fantastic fruits and vegetables. I love the energy of the market - so many sounds, smells, and colors. Park my car and pay a guy 2000 pesos (about 4 US dollars) to wash it while I’m shopping. Come out to a shiny, clean car, load it up, and head to the supermarket where I buy my meat. In the parking lot of the supermarket, a woman drives past and makes a hand gesture at me, the meaning of which I do not know. Text my teaching partner, who is Chilean, to ask him what it means. I’m a bit disappointed that it’s not vulgar/useful. I find very amusing the ways in which different cultures choose to express themselves nonverbally. Shop. Arrive home, and wash and put away all of the groceries. The grapes and berries I pop into my mouth as I wash end up being today’s lunch. Noon ➛ Head downstairs to the pool for some vitamin D and grab a lounge chair, where I read the book for the book club I’m in. It’s a group of expat women from several countries, and we get together once a month to eat and discuss books. I’m hosting the next meeting, so I figure I’d better be sure to finish this book. It’s now an acceptable hour in California for phone calls, so I call my mom and chat with her for a bit, as I do almost every day. I think about how much technology has affected my experiences living abroad. I am constantly connected to friends and family back home. When my mom moved to the States from Mexico in the 70s, I think she talked to her family a couple of times a month. After the pool, walk over to the gym, where I settle in on the StairMaster for an hour and watch an episode of Dexter on my iPad. Not sure how popular that show is here, so I often wonder what people are thinking when they look over and see some graphic or gruesome scene unfolding on my screen. Sometimes I just throw my towel over it. Hit the steam room for a bit, then walk back home. Night ➛ Sit down at the computer to make some travel arrangements. Call hotels and price flights for a girls’ weekend in Mendoza, Argentina. Initiate a group text message to discuss it, and 10 minutes later, all four of us have booked our flights. Rent a car for an upcoming trip to Easter Island (over Easter weekend, actually). Do some preparing for a presentation I’m giving at an educator’s conference in Buenos Aires in a couple of weeks. A colleague and I are presenting on the use of mobile devices in the classroom, so I browse educational technology blogs and put together the demonstration lesson. Grade the short answer section of an online quiz I gave my students and input the grades in the online gradebook. I’m trying to be as paperless as possible in my classroom (not because I’m green, just because I absolutely detest piles of paper), so being able to do everything online is great. Head to the kitchen and make myself some pork chops and broccoli, all in the cast-iron skillet I have recently become kind of obsessed with. Take a shower and dry my hair so that I don’t have to do it in the morning, and am in bed by 10 pm so I can get a full 8 hours and be up at 6 am to tackle another week. Three Last Things… 1. What’s up with you teaching in Santiago? How did you get a job there? While I was doing my teaching credential years ago, I found out about international teaching from a professor. There are American and international schools all over the world that hire English speaking teachers. I was really interested in doing it, but at the time I lacked the certification and experience. By the time I finished my credential program, I already had a teaching contract, boyfriend, etc. Life had happened. About five years later, I was in a place where I could make such a move, so I signed up with a recruiting firm, went to a job fair, got a job, took a leave of absence from my job, and moved to Bogotá, Colombia to teach middle school history for two years. Last year I felt the itch to live abroad again, so I repeated the process and moved to Santiago about 9 months ago. I feel so fortunate to have a career that I enjoy and that I can do pretty much anywhere in the world. 2. Online quizzes and teaching with mobile devices is cool - but how much technology is too much in the classroom? They don’t even teach how to write script anymore. Interesting question. I can’t remember the last time I wrote in full cursive. We have to consider how kids learn these days. Their brains are wired differently than adults’ are because of all of the technology they have grown up with. They process information differently. It’s my job to deliver content to them in ways that are engaging. I can have them analyze a photo or a painting on paper or projected on the board. They might tune in, I might have a few kids raise their hands and share their thoughts. Or I can give them an iPad with the same image on it. They can zoom in on details, mirror their screen on the board to share, or text in their thoughts. You would be amazed at the instant engagement and participation. 3. It’s disappointing that the gesture that woman gave you didn’t mean anything vulgar. So, give us one that is. You know, just in case we ever make it to Santiago. I asked around. Apparently the middle finger is a universal favorite. Erica is a Calforinian living in Santiago, Chile, where she is an eighth-grade social studies teacher.  photo credit: Amy Bell 

So, How Was Your Day?

Breakfast:

Fried egg white on toast with avocado, tomato, and jalapeños.


Lunch:

Grapes, strawberries, blueberries.


Dinner:

Balsamic-glazed pork chops and broccoli.

Morning ➛

Alarm goes off at 6 am - oops. Not on a Sunday. Shut off and go back to sleep until 8:30. Grab my phone and check Facebook and Instagram to see what my friends back home got up to last night (Santiago is 5 hours ahead of California at this time of year). I stay in bed for a while and read food blogs and look though my cookbooks for lunch ideas for the week. A couple of my good friends/colleagues and I just started a project that we have very non-creatively dubbed “The Lunch Bunch,” where each of us takes one day of the week to cook lunch for the others. It’s so nice not to have to worry about making lunch every day, and we have had some fabulous meals. It inspires me to cook things I wouldn’t otherwise make for just myself. Eat breakfast. Make my shopping list and drive to La Vega Central, which is a huge produce market downtown. I go every Sunday. It’s summer here in the southern hemisphere, so all of the stalls are brimming over with fantastic fruits and vegetables. I love the energy of the market - so many sounds, smells, and colors. Park my car and pay a guy 2000 pesos (about 4 US dollars) to wash it while I’m shopping. Come out to a shiny, clean car, load it up, and head to the supermarket where I buy my meat. In the parking lot of the supermarket, a woman drives past and makes a hand gesture at me, the meaning of which I do not know. Text my teaching partner, who is Chilean, to ask him what it means. I’m a bit disappointed that it’s not vulgar/useful. I find very amusing the ways in which different cultures choose to express themselves nonverbally. Shop. Arrive home, and wash and put away all of the groceries. The grapes and berries I pop into my mouth as I wash end up being today’s lunch.



Noon ➛

Head downstairs to the pool for some vitamin D and grab a lounge chair, where I read the book for the book club I’m in. It’s a group of expat women from several countries, and we get together once a month to eat and discuss books. I’m hosting the next meeting, so I figure I’d better be sure to finish this book. It’s now an acceptable hour in California for phone calls, so I call my mom and chat with her for a bit, as I do almost every day. I think about how much technology has affected my experiences living abroad. I am constantly connected to friends and family back home. When my mom moved to the States from Mexico in the 70s, I think she talked to her family a couple of times a month. After the pool, walk over to the gym, where I settle in on the StairMaster for an hour and watch an episode of Dexter on my iPad. Not sure how popular that show is here, so I often wonder what people are thinking when they look over and see some graphic or gruesome scene unfolding on my screen. Sometimes I just throw my towel over it. Hit the steam room for a bit, then walk back home.



Night ➛

Sit down at the computer to make some travel arrangements. Call hotels and price flights for a girls’ weekend in Mendoza, Argentina. Initiate a group text message to discuss it, and 10 minutes later, all four of us have booked our flights. Rent a car for an upcoming trip to Easter Island (over Easter weekend, actually). Do some preparing for a presentation I’m giving at an educator’s conference in Buenos Aires in a couple of weeks. A colleague and I are presenting on the use of mobile devices in the classroom, so I browse educational technology blogs and put together the demonstration lesson. Grade the short answer section of an online quiz I gave my students and input the grades in the online gradebook. I’m trying to be as paperless as possible in my classroom (not because I’m green, just because I absolutely detest piles of paper), so being able to do everything online is great. Head to the kitchen and make myself some pork chops and broccoli, all in the cast-iron skillet I have recently become kind of obsessed with. Take a shower and dry my hair so that I don’t have to do it in the morning, and am in bed by 10 pm so I can get a full 8 hours and be up at 6 am to tackle another week.

Three Last Things…

1. What’s up with you teaching in Santiago? How did you get a job there?

While I was doing my teaching credential years ago, I found out about international teaching from a professor. There are American and international schools all over the world that hire English speaking teachers. I was really interested in doing it, but at the time I lacked the certification and experience. By the time I finished my credential program, I already had a teaching contract, boyfriend, etc. Life had happened. About five years later, I was in a place where I could make such a move, so I signed up with a recruiting firm, went to a job fair, got a job, took a leave of absence from my job, and moved to Bogotá, Colombia to teach middle school history for two years. Last year I felt the itch to live abroad again, so I repeated the process and moved to Santiago about 9 months ago. I feel so fortunate to have a career that I enjoy and that I can do pretty much anywhere in the world.

2. Online quizzes and teaching with mobile devices is cool - but how much technology is too much in the classroom? They don’t even teach how to write script anymore.

Interesting question. I can’t remember the last time I wrote in full cursive. We have to consider how kids learn these days. Their brains are wired differently than adults’ are because of all of the technology they have grown up with. They process information differently. It’s my job to deliver content to them in ways that are engaging. I can have them analyze a photo or a painting on paper or projected on the board. They might tune in, I might have a few kids raise their hands and share their thoughts. Or I can give them an iPad with the same image on it. They can zoom in on details, mirror their screen on the board to share, or text in their thoughts. You would be amazed at the instant engagement and participation.

3. It’s disappointing that the gesture that woman gave you didn’t mean anything vulgar. So, give us one that is. You know, just in case we ever make it to Santiago.

I asked around. Apparently the middle finger is a universal favorite.

Erica is a Calforinian living in Santiago, Chile, where she is an eighth-grade social studies teacher.  photo credit: Amy Bell 

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    •       2 notes

So, How Was Your Day? Breakfast: Cereal. Orange juice. Vanilla earl grey tea. Lunch: Leftover Khoresht-e Lubia from the night before (Persian green bean stew). Dinner: Sliders. Waffle fries. Bourbon. Morning ➛ I set my alarm for 7am, snooze once or twice, eventually check my phone for any emails that may have come through, finally get out of bed, and off to the gym. At any given moment, I have a song or set of songs I’m trying to get through but tend to resort back to a few that are constantly on my radar. I listen to this ongoing playlist at the gym and when I’m home getting ready. After I’m all dressed, I turn on the news, make breakfast, and work on my laptop for a few minutes before heading to the office. Note: me being on my laptop consists of avoiding answering emails (unless it’s urgent) and is more or less me surfing the web while listening to some music. I’m bad at listening to music, in that I skip after only a few seconds into a song and don’t listen fully until I find something that catches my ear. I head into the office and am greeted by my colleague’s French bulldog, Harley. Currently playing: Little Green Cars, Yadi, Dead Times, Alizee, Kidnap Kid, MNEK, Gorgon City ft. Yasmin, Rudimental, Syron, John Newman, Vacant, Tourist. Noon ➛ I have a phone call with a brand about the day-party my company is throwing at SXSW, which ends up turning into a bigger conversation about sponsoring a few of our artists’ tours this year. After, I finalize a few more details surrounding the party and make sure our invite is all set to go out in morning. I go back to working on coordinating the marketing and radio plans for an artist tour that is announcing this Monday. I was supposed to go to a meeting to discuss branding/marketing with a company downtown, but it’s snowing heavily outside. We reschedule and I hole up in the office. I warm up my leftovers from the night before and eat at my desk. I monitor news surrounding the agency’s artists and have our interns coordinate company website and social media postings. Currently playing: Annie Mac’s Sunday Show. Night ➛ My colleagues and I have a get together at Small Bar in Logan Square tonight. I work in Logan, so I drive over to Small Bar right after work with a few coworkers. I’m ready to call it a night after having four sliders, waffle fries, two glasses of Bulleit bourbon, and great conversation with my colleagues. I head home and immediately start listening to a song that I have not been able to get out of my head the whole night. Eventually, I get into bed, check email, and take care of anything pressing. Around 11:30pm it’s lights out for me. Currently playing: MNEK on repeat. Three Last Things… What’s up with SXSW this year? Who are the bands/parties that shouldn’t be missed? Honestly, SXSW has changed and isn’t what it used to be. I don’t recommend people go unless they have to for work or have a legitimate reason to attend. The conference has shifted towards the industry and has become heavily branded. The focus on music is lacking and almost every band that plays down there now is signed. I could ramble on and on about it. But if you do go, check out the Billions Showcase at Antone’s on Friday, March 15th. You’ll be able to catch some amazing artists. 2. You probably get demos up the wazoo. How are you able to determine when some “has it?” This is tough as there really is no right answer. I am sent a ton of music, which is probably the reason why I have A.D.D. when I listen. I can get a strong understanding of how a song or an artist’s music will be after only a little bit into each song. The music will also have more weight if a trusted source brings it to me, but there are also a ton of occasions where my own research will lead me to something worth pursuing. If I connect with an artist, I have to look at what team is in place, and contemplate whether it’s worth pitching to the agents. It’s hard to do, but I think you have to be able to look at the bigger picture and foresee if the artist in question is unique, has a following, and can grow into something sustainable. There are a bunch of acts that I’ve found and haven’t given a second thought. A few months go by and the act becomes the next big thing. I never get hung up on this, because I always think that I passed on the artist for a reason. 3. I heard you speak Farsi. Translate: “Ardie, you look smoking hot in your photo.” Thanks. Ha. Way to make me blush. Translation: Ardie, axe-toe khaylee khosghele. Ardie lives in Chicago and is the Marketing and Media Manager for The Billions Corporation, a live music booking agency. He’s also a violinist. @ardieparty billions.com Photo credit: Tenae Graybosch

So, How Was Your Day?

Breakfast:

Cereal. Orange juice. Vanilla earl grey tea.


Lunch:

Leftover Khoresht-e Lubia from the night before (Persian green bean stew).


Dinner:

Sliders. Waffle fries. Bourbon.

Morning ➛

I set my alarm for 7am, snooze once or twice, eventually check my phone for any emails that may have come through, finally get out of bed, and off to the gym. At any given moment, I have a song or set of songs I’m trying to get through but tend to resort back to a few that are constantly on my radar. I listen to this ongoing playlist at the gym and when I’m home getting ready. After I’m all dressed, I turn on the news, make breakfast, and work on my laptop for a few minutes before heading to the office. Note: me being on my laptop consists of avoiding answering emails (unless it’s urgent) and is more or less me surfing the web while listening to some music. I’m bad at listening to music, in that I skip after only a few seconds into a song and don’t listen fully until I find something that catches my ear. I head into the office and am greeted by my colleague’s French bulldog, Harley. Currently playing: Little Green Cars, Yadi, Dead Times, Alizee, Kidnap Kid, MNEK, Gorgon City ft. Yasmin, Rudimental, Syron, John Newman, Vacant, Tourist.



Noon ➛

I have a phone call with a brand about the day-party my company is throwing at SXSW, which ends up turning into a bigger conversation about sponsoring a few of our artists’ tours this year. After, I finalize a few more details surrounding the party and make sure our invite is all set to go out in morning. I go back to working on coordinating the marketing and radio plans for an artist tour that is announcing this Monday. I was supposed to go to a meeting to discuss branding/marketing with a company downtown, but it’s snowing heavily outside. We reschedule and I hole up in the office. I warm up my leftovers from the night before and eat at my desk. I monitor news surrounding the agency’s artists and have our interns coordinate company website and social media postings. Currently playing: Annie Mac’s Sunday Show.



Night ➛

My colleagues and I have a get together at Small Bar in Logan Square tonight. I work in Logan, so I drive over to Small Bar right after work with a few coworkers. I’m ready to call it a night after having four sliders, waffle fries, two glasses of Bulleit bourbon, and great conversation with my colleagues. I head home and immediately start listening to a song that I have not been able to get out of my head the whole night. Eventually, I get into bed, check email, and take care of anything pressing. Around 11:30pm it’s lights out for me. Currently playing: MNEK on repeat.

Three Last Things…

What’s up with SXSW this year? Who are the bands/parties that shouldn’t be missed?

Honestly, SXSW has changed and isn’t what it used to be. I don’t recommend people go unless they have to for work or have a legitimate reason to attend. The conference has shifted towards the industry and has become heavily branded. The focus on music is lacking and almost every band that plays down there now is signed. I could ramble on and on about it. But if you do go, check out the Billions Showcase at Antone’s on Friday, March 15th. You’ll be able to catch some amazing artists.

2. You probably get demos up the wazoo. How are you able to determine when some “has it?”

This is tough as there really is no right answer. I am sent a ton of music, which is probably the reason why I have A.D.D. when I listen. I can get a strong understanding of how a song or an artist’s music will be after only a little bit into each song. The music will also have more weight if a trusted source brings it to me, but there are also a ton of occasions where my own research will lead me to something worth pursuing. If I connect with an artist, I have to look at what team is in place, and contemplate whether it’s worth pitching to the agents. It’s hard to do, but I think you have to be able to look at the bigger picture and foresee if the artist in question is unique, has a following, and can grow into something sustainable. There are a bunch of acts that I’ve found and haven’t given a second thought. A few months go by and the act becomes the next big thing. I never get hung up on this, because I always think that I passed on the artist for a reason.

3. I heard you speak Farsi. Translate: “Ardie, you look smoking hot in your photo.” Thanks.

Ha. Way to make me blush. Translation: Ardie, axe-toe khaylee khosghele.

Ardie lives in Chicago and is the Marketing and Media Manager for The Billions Corporation, a live music booking agency. He’s also a violinist. @ardieparty billions.com Photo credit: Tenae Graybosch

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So, How Was Your Day? Breakfast: Stuffed unicorn. Crest. Chicago tap. Lunch: Pistachio log. Baguette. Haribo. Dinner: Pickle tots. Pork-something-or-other. Scotch. Morning ➛ My morning starts when my two-year-old son, Gus, crawls onto my face in bed and requests in a totally-too-loud-for-6am voice that I must wake up at once. Upon my refusal, he proceeds to play a car-themed video game on my I-Phone as he wedges his knee cap into my neck throat. My daughter scampers in carrying some sort of rainbow-colored equestrian animal that she introduces to me for the 1400th time. Usually, the unicorn’s name is Olivia. On this particular morning, I recreate the post-mortem of this delightful scene with the help of my photographer friend, Anthony La Penna. He speaks child. Noon ➛ Dash down to the corner for the cheese drop that Stamper Cheese offers during the winter. Feels a little sketchy nabbing a brown paper bag from a dude in a white van on the side of the road, but they do cheese good. Once Gus finally naps, I sneak in a few projects around the house: paint a door frame, build a fort, design some stickers for the Cakegirls, host an impromptu Dora the Explorer dance party, craft an Old Fashioned with a couple extra Luxardo cherries. Night ➛ My wife, Jen, and I get a babysitter for the evening and are grateful to hit the town for a few hours. Try out Trenchermen in Wicker Park and admire the wonderous pink spread that accompanies the pickle tots. Take notes for my Small Snack map before heading out to meet friends at Ada Street for cheery banter and a Pig’s Nose Scotch served in the coolest glass of which I was unable to convince the bartender to let me steal. While we are at it hit the Hideout for two Gumballheads. Uber ourselves home. Wander Instagram before dreaming of flags. Three Last Things… What’s up with Small Snack map you mentioned? What is that? A Small Snack is the single best thing to eat, drink or do at a bar, restaurant or other locale. I chart these on maps of my own design for neighborhoods across the country and elsewhere. They are like little curated culture junkie walking tours. 2. Your book, This Is Your Book is such a thoughtful and modern take on a traditional baby book. How did it go from being something you made for your own baby to a published book? Thank you. Three things that made a difference for me were 1) creating an original idea, 2) honing a marketing plan, and 3) finding a great book agent. Though my book was based on a familiar genre, mine was markedly different than the others in tone and design. In addition to writing, designing and self-publishing the book at first, I also created a web presence and sold the books to new moms and dads before a publisher ever came into the picture. That process helped me work out a lot of the kinks and proved I had a viable product. Finally, my wife did a lot of the networking that led to a partnership with a book agent at Stonesong Press who was willing to champion the work. Book agents are the gatekeepers to the publishing world and mine coached me through writing a proposal as well as connecting me with the deal makers at publishing houses. 3. How would you describe the taste of stuffed unicorn. Magically delicious. Ryan lives in Chicago with his wife, Jen, and two kids. By day, he’s a creative director conjuring up ideas for Happy Meals and Miller High Life. By night, he designs maps, prints, and books for his label, Star RM. He is the author of This Is Your Book and is working on yet another one of his Small Snack Maps. www.starrm.com  smallsnack.com photo credit Anthony LaPenna

So, How Was Your Day?

Breakfast:

Stuffed unicorn. Crest. Chicago tap.


Lunch:

Pistachio log. Baguette. Haribo.


Dinner:

Pickle tots. Pork-something-or-other. Scotch.

Morning ➛

My morning starts when my two-year-old son, Gus, crawls onto my face in bed and requests in a totally-too-loud-for-6am voice that I must wake up at once. Upon my refusal, he proceeds to play a car-themed video game on my I-Phone as he wedges his knee cap into my neck throat. My daughter scampers in carrying some sort of rainbow-colored equestrian animal that she introduces to me for the 1400th time. Usually, the unicorn’s name is Olivia. On this particular morning, I recreate the post-mortem of this delightful scene with the help of my photographer friend, Anthony La Penna. He speaks child.



Noon ➛

Dash down to the corner for the cheese drop that Stamper Cheese offers during the winter. Feels a little sketchy nabbing a brown paper bag from a dude in a white van on the side of the road, but they do cheese good. Once Gus finally naps, I sneak in a few projects around the house: paint a door frame, build a fort, design some stickers for the Cakegirls, host an impromptu Dora the Explorer dance party, craft an Old Fashioned with a couple extra Luxardo cherries.



Night ➛

My wife, Jen, and I get a babysitter for the evening and are grateful to hit the town for a few hours. Try out Trenchermen in Wicker Park and admire the wonderous pink spread that accompanies the pickle tots. Take notes for my Small Snack map before heading out to meet friends at Ada Street for cheery banter and a Pig’s Nose Scotch served in the coolest glass of which I was unable to convince the bartender to let me steal. While we are at it hit the Hideout for two Gumballheads. Uber ourselves home. Wander Instagram before dreaming of flags.

Three Last Things…

What’s up with Small Snack map you mentioned? What is that?

A Small Snack is the single best thing to eat, drink or do at a bar, restaurant or other locale. I chart these on maps of my own design for neighborhoods across the country and elsewhere. They are like little curated culture junkie walking tours.

2. Your book, This Is Your Book is such a thoughtful and modern take on a traditional baby book. How did it go from being something you made for your own baby to a published book?

Thank you. Three things that made a difference for me were 1) creating an original idea, 2) honing a marketing plan, and 3) finding a great book agent. Though my book was based on a familiar genre, mine was markedly different than the others in tone and design. In addition to writing, designing and self-publishing the book at first, I also created a web presence and sold the books to new moms and dads before a publisher ever came into the picture. That process helped me work out a lot of the kinks and proved I had a viable product. Finally, my wife did a lot of the networking that led to a partnership with a book agent at Stonesong Press who was willing to champion the work. Book agents are the gatekeepers to the publishing world and mine coached me through writing a proposal as well as connecting me with the deal makers at publishing houses.

3. How would you describe the taste of stuffed unicorn.

Magically delicious.

Ryan lives in Chicago with his wife, Jen, and two kids. By day, he’s a creative director conjuring up ideas for Happy Meals and Miller High Life. By night, he designs maps, prints, and books for his label, Star RM. He is the author of This Is Your Book and is working on yet another one of his Small Snack Maps. www.starrm.com  smallsnack.com photo credit Anthony LaPenna

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So, How Was Your Day? Breakfast: Fried egg on toast, salted/peppered. A few berries. Huge glass of water. Small decaf iced coffee. Lunch: Platter of cheese, almonds, tomatoes, carrots, apple slices, pita chips and hummus. More water, and lots of it. Dinner: Caprese salad. Spinach and goat cheese pizza. More water. Morning ➛ The alarm clock (aka baby monitor) sounds and I’m awakened by my 6-month-old daughter scratching at the sheets of her crib mattress. She babbles for a few minutes, then her talk turns louder as she lets me know she’s ready to play. I leave my husband and two dogs in bed and pad over to her nursery to start our day. I change her diaper and nurse her, then we head into the kitchen for breakfast. She sits on the kitchen counter and plays with her favorite toy (a wooden spatula) as I cook and read my emails aloud to her from my phone. After I’m finished eating, I leave my phone in the kitchen and we head to the spare bedroom for a good hour of uninterrupted, tech-free playtime: crawling, bouncing, singing, eating blocks and chewing stuffed animals. It’s fairly quiet, just Bee and me. She tires quickly so I lay her down for her morning nap. I then head to the office to answer emails and plan my day. She naps for an hour or so, and then we start the cycle all over again, sheet-scratching and all. Noon ➛ My husband wakes up (he’s a night owl) and takes over baby duty while I shower, prep some lunch and head into our office to start my work day. I draft a few articles, answer emails, distract myself with Twitter and take breaks throughout the day to feed and smooch the baby. She’s in that fun, squishy stage where she smells like perfection and Skittles. Today I squeeze in a few calls: (1) With a snap manufacturer in Los Angeles to order custom color samples for a baby onesie line I’m designing, and (2) With a European content creator to discuss an upcoming keynote presentation I’m giving this summer. More Twitter distractions, some mindless Instagramming, some lengthy blog post edits and a few additional email responses before my husband calls me in for dinner. Night ➛ Enjoy a quiet dinner with the husband and baby, which generally includes taking turns feeding Bee avocados and re-capping our days. Tonight, I head back to the office to tie up a few loose ends while my husband gets Bee ready for bed. He calls me when it’s bedtime and we head back to the nursery for her last feeding and some cuddle time. After Bee goes down for the night, my husband and I go through our nightly ritual of The Decision: (1) Watch an episode of Fringe? or (2) Enjoy a sauna? (My husband just built the most decadent Finnish sauna out of a spare closet in our bathroom.) Tonight, Sauna wins and we chat until our fingers prune and the steam fogs the door. I head to bed early to prep for another quiet, early morning with Bee, and Ken heads out to the office to edit a film he’s working on. He tucks me in with the dogs and I drift to sleep in 2 minutes or less. Three Last Things… What’s up with your dreamy porcelain skin? Your skin products, please. Oh gosh, this is so hilarious because I have the most problematic skin in the universe. Everything breaks me out (I think the latest discovery is dairy, but I’m not willing to forgo cheese), so I’m constantly changing up my skincare regimen. Right now I’m using a combination of jojoba oil as a make-up remover, Neutrogena deep clean facial cleanser and Dermalogica skin smoothing cream. I also use shea moisture body wash and am obsessed with EO’s lotion for my legs/arms. And, of course, my #1 skin product is Photoshop. 2. You made a commitment this year to join the slow blogging movement. What was your tipping point to take a step back and let your ideas marinate? I think after you become immersed in any job for so many years, you start to lose the why of it all. Blogging became very plug-and-play, and I hated that I was following the same formula for generating content and producing posts. It was becoming easy and old and tiring, and I wanted to jump-start my creativity again. So I returned to my roots - the reason I started blogging, which was to focus on discovery and ideas and sharing. As a result, I’m less concerned about posting daily and more concerned with whether I’m inspired at the very moment I hit “publish.” It’s been an amazing change - I feel invigorated by the idea that I can sit down for the day and have no idea what I want to share with the world, and I find that I’m letting my thoughts and imagination dictate the content I’m publishing, rather than what I have planned in my editorial calendar.I think, too, that when you’re constantly searching for the next big trend or designer or product, you lose the magic that comes with truly connecting with the product or person you’re sharing. I’ve so enjoyed interviewing artists/designers again and truly listening to their stories. It’s been an incredible inspiration for me to hear of the struggles they’re overcoming daily. It’s nice to allow myself the time to ruminate over an in-depth concept, rather than trying to summarize and condense it as fast as I can so I can move onto the next post. It’s like a slow feast of flavors, rather than a quick trip to the drive-in. I’m so thrilled with the pace. 3. Your mission is to uncover “how design can change the world”. What designs have had the biggest impact on your life since you started Design For Mankind? Oh man, choosing one piece/concept is so hard, but I find myself continually thinking of this infographic journal project even though it’s been nearly a year since I uncovered it: the Infographic Journal by Merel Brouns. I just can’t help but think how much better our world would be if we all took a moment to truly reflect on our days in this fashion - from the mundane to the groundbreaking. What sort of things would we realize about ourselves? There are so many minute behaviors and habits that we sweep under the rug, but by documenting everything about our days, the proof is in print. How might this motivate us to make positive changes in an effort to live a life that’s [quite literally] note-worthy? An inspiring thought, yes? Erin lives in Indiana with her husband, daughter, and two dogs. She is a writer, speaker, stylist, and consultant. Erin’s work has been featured in Glamour, Lucky, Dwell, Nylon, Apartment Therapy, and The Huffington Post. Her blog, Design For Mankind, was named one of the “top 50 design blogs in the world” by the London Times. designformankind.com  designforminikind.com

So, How Was Your Day?

Breakfast:

Fried egg on toast, salted/peppered. A few berries. Huge glass of water. Small decaf iced coffee.


Lunch:

Platter of cheese, almonds, tomatoes, carrots, apple slices, pita chips and hummus. More water, and lots of it.


Dinner:

Caprese salad. Spinach and goat cheese pizza. More water.

Morning ➛

The alarm clock (aka baby monitor) sounds and I’m awakened by my 6-month-old daughter scratching at the sheets of her crib mattress. She babbles for a few minutes, then her talk turns louder as she lets me know she’s ready to play. I leave my husband and two dogs in bed and pad over to her nursery to start our day. I change her diaper and nurse her, then we head into the kitchen for breakfast. She sits on the kitchen counter and plays with her favorite toy (a wooden spatula) as I cook and read my emails aloud to her from my phone. After I’m finished eating, I leave my phone in the kitchen and we head to the spare bedroom for a good hour of uninterrupted, tech-free playtime: crawling, bouncing, singing, eating blocks and chewing stuffed animals. It’s fairly quiet, just Bee and me. She tires quickly so I lay her down for her morning nap. I then head to the office to answer emails and plan my day. She naps for an hour or so, and then we start the cycle all over again, sheet-scratching and all.



Noon ➛

My husband wakes up (he’s a night owl) and takes over baby duty while I shower, prep some lunch and head into our office to start my work day. I draft a few articles, answer emails, distract myself with Twitter and take breaks throughout the day to feed and smooch the baby. She’s in that fun, squishy stage where she smells like perfection and Skittles. Today I squeeze in a few calls: (1) With a snap manufacturer in Los Angeles to order custom color samples for a baby onesie line I’m designing, and (2) With a European content creator to discuss an upcoming keynote presentation I’m giving this summer. More Twitter distractions, some mindless Instagramming, some lengthy blog post edits and a few additional email responses before my husband calls me in for dinner.



Night ➛

Enjoy a quiet dinner with the husband and baby, which generally includes taking turns feeding Bee avocados and re-capping our days. Tonight, I head back to the office to tie up a few loose ends while my husband gets Bee ready for bed. He calls me when it’s bedtime and we head back to the nursery for her last feeding and some cuddle time. After Bee goes down for the night, my husband and I go through our nightly ritual of The Decision: (1) Watch an episode of Fringe? or (2) Enjoy a sauna? (My husband just built the most decadent Finnish sauna out of a spare closet in our bathroom.) Tonight, Sauna wins and we chat until our fingers prune and the steam fogs the door. I head to bed early to prep for another quiet, early morning with Bee, and Ken heads out to the office to edit a film he’s working on. He tucks me in with the dogs and I drift to sleep in 2 minutes or less.

Three Last Things…

What’s up with your dreamy porcelain skin? Your skin products, please.

Oh gosh, this is so hilarious because I have the most problematic skin in the universe. Everything breaks me out (I think the latest discovery is dairy, but I’m not willing to forgo cheese), so I’m constantly changing up my skincare regimen. Right now I’m using a combination of jojoba oil as a make-up remover, Neutrogena deep clean facial cleanser and Dermalogica skin smoothing cream. I also use shea moisture body wash and am obsessed with EO’s lotion for my legs/arms. And, of course, my #1 skin product is Photoshop.

2. You made a commitment this year to join the slow blogging movement. What was your tipping point to take a step back and let your ideas marinate?

I think after you become immersed in any job for so many years, you start to lose the why of it all. Blogging became very plug-and-play, and I hated that I was following the same formula for generating content and producing posts. It was becoming easy and old and tiring, and I wanted to jump-start my creativity again. So I returned to my roots - the reason I started blogging, which was to focus on discovery and ideas and sharing. As a result, I’m less concerned about posting daily and more concerned with whether I’m inspired at the very moment I hit “publish.” It’s been an amazing change - I feel invigorated by the idea that I can sit down for the day and have no idea what I want to share with the world, and I find that I’m letting my thoughts and imagination dictate the content I’m publishing, rather than what I have planned in my editorial calendar.

I think, too, that when you’re constantly searching for the next big trend or designer or product, you lose the magic that comes with truly connecting with the product or person you’re sharing. I’ve so enjoyed interviewing artists/designers again and truly listening to their stories. It’s been an incredible inspiration for me to hear of the struggles they’re overcoming daily. It’s nice to allow myself the time to ruminate over an in-depth concept, rather than trying to summarize and condense it as fast as I can so I can move onto the next post. It’s like a slow feast of flavors, rather than a quick trip to the drive-in. I’m so thrilled with the pace.

3. Your mission is to uncover “how design can change the world”. What designs have had the biggest impact on your life since you started Design For Mankind?

Oh man, choosing one piece/concept is so hard, but I find myself continually thinking of this infographic journal project even though it’s been nearly a year since I uncovered it: the Infographic Journal by Merel Brouns. I just can’t help but think how much better our world would be if we all took a moment to truly reflect on our days in this fashion - from the mundane to the groundbreaking. What sort of things would we realize about ourselves? There are so many minute behaviors and habits that we sweep under the rug, but by documenting everything about our days, the proof is in print. How might this motivate us to make positive changes in an effort to live a life that’s [quite literally] note-worthy? An inspiring thought, yes?

Erin lives in Indiana with her husband, daughter, and two dogs. She is a writer, speaker, stylist, and consultant. Erin’s work has been featured in Glamour, Lucky, Dwell, Nylon, Apartment Therapy, and The Huffington Post. Her blog, Design For Mankind, was named one of the “top 50 design blogs in the world” by the London Times. designformankind.com  designforminikind.com