the power of taking time off

Being young and self employed, it's really started to hit me lately how much work must be accomplished before I feel comfortable taking even a few days off. This isn't really a financial constraint, but more a factor of having no one to hand work off to, so responsibilities tend to hang around like those stray cats in my parking lot who poop on cars and sharpen their claws on convertible soft tops.  One of the highlights of when I was in school and working summers, was stopping work two weeks before school started and having the time to do whatever I wanted.  Time off wasn't about travelling to some exotic place, but it was the ability to appreciate your surroundings and let your mind explore and grow.

My friend sent me the TED lecture below by one of my favorite graphic designers, Stefan Sagmeister, about the importance of taking a sabbatical. I don't see taking an entire year off as a realistic possibility for me anytime soon, but certainly on a smaller scale it seems manageable. When your mind doesn't have to focus only on whatever is immediately in front of you, your creative abilities are expanded.  When you do return to work, the quality will improve and over time the sabbatical periods will actually increase profitability.

lost my camera when I need it most

I'm actually about 95% done with this little loft interior build out that I have been creating for myself. Problem is, I left my camera on the bar at the Standard while I was paying my tab and it disappeared. I put the camera down and walked all the way to the elevator before remembering that I had forgot my camera. Was probably only gone 2 minutes at the most and it was gone. So... something else to add to my need-to-buy list.

In the meantime, I took a few photos of the progress with my camera phone. Using the loft bed design really opened up the floor plan. There are a few things that I still need to finish up. I need to hook up the pulley system to that I can raise and lower the bed. With the bed raised to the ceiling, I'll have about 7'-6 underneath so that will really make the whole apartment feel much more spacious. I also want to put some curtains up in front of the shelving under the bed. Shelves tend to get cluttered quite quickly and I always feel more at ease in a clean and well organized work area. More posts to follow.

Why we need real healthcare reform

I don't normally like to think of this blog as something political, but I came across an interesting article in the LA Times this morning and thought it is important to pass this along. The story is of an LA man who needed a liver transplant to save his life. Blue Cross agreed to pay for the transplant, but the waiting list at UCLA medical center was so long that the man feared he would die before he was able to get the transplant. He chose to go to Indiana instead and waited 6 weeks instead of over 2 years. Blue Cross refused to cover the out of state procedure and the man was left on the hook for $206,000.
This is a clear right vs. wrong situation. The purpose of a healthcare system is firstly to save lives, plain and simple. Blue Cross, being driven by greed and willing to do whatever is necessary to keep their pockets fat was willing to let a man die over $200 grand. Now the court has ruled that not only must they pay his medical fees, but also his legal fees which I am sure will be far greater.
This is a feel good story, but I can only imagine what would have happened if the average middle or lower class person was in this same situation. They would have either lost their life or lost everything they owned to pay for the procedure. This is a perfect example of why the only solution to the healthcare mess in this country is to create a not for profit public insurance program. There are problems with any system, whether it is a for profit company such Blue Cross, or a public government run system such as in Europe or Canada and most other civilized countries, but a not-for profit system will put the needs of its clients first. In the last several years, we have seen massive greed and aloof management bring down many banks and other large companies. The greed that controls the health insurers will only insure that things get worse for their customers.

How to live in under 500 square feet, part 1

One of the many projects I have been working on recently is the interior design for my own small studio apartment located in Downtown Los Angeles. The entire apartment is just under 450 square feet but the main room seems smaller than it should due to fairly large bathroom and eat-in kitchen. I am the process of moving into this apartment from a large shared house, which offered more than enough space to indulge in my habits of collecting musical instruments, books and assorted E-Bay bargains. Obviously the challenge of this project is to fit my ten pounds of junk into the five pound can I am about to move into.
The first step was to build as much shelving space as possible. However, this all needs to be accessible and while storage space is great, I also don't want to look like I am living in the middle of a walk-in closet. Secondly, I am unwilling to give up my large bed which offers an additional impediment to my rapidly shrinking floor area.
The solution had to be either a bed which folder up and out of site, ie. a Murphy bed, futon, or hide-away couch. The problem with all of those options is that they either take away from floor or wall space. The second option would be a loft bed. I took this a step further, what if the loft bed also could raise or lower so that you could still have enough room to stand under the bed when it is fully lifted. Therefore, option two it is! I am still able to have shelves on all walls, plus the bed can move out of the way when it is not needed.
I'll post some photos soon. In the meantime are some digital images of how the project is developing.