Nudity and Design

On my lunch break at work, I read books. It’s my compartmentalized brain’s way of saying “this time is for comics”, “this time is for websites”, and “this time is for books without pictures”.

I’ve been reading Edgar Rice Burroughs, H. Rider Haggard, H.P. Lovecraft, Edgar Allen Poe, Robert Howard, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. So you see, even when I do read books I don’t exactly go all contemporary.

Although lately I’ve been enjoying the Steve Jobs biography. I just finished it and it was quite a read. Love him or hate him, love Apple or hate it, it’s a good book and worth your time. I don’t get political, I won’t discuss religion with you, and I won’t tell you how to raise your kids. But I will talk to death the virtues of DC over Marvel. And I will punch in the nose the next arrogant idiot who extols the virtues of an open operating system.

I. JUST. NEED. MY. COMPUTER. TO. WORK.

Okay… Phew… eremmm… ANYWAY…

One thing that the Steve Jobs biography does particularly well if you’re an Apple fanboy, as I unabashedly am, is give you a greater appreciation for the design and effort that went into their beautiful line of products. I cried and hugged my device after I finished reading the chapter on the iPod.



One of the things that caught my attention was the anecdote about iPad covers and iPhone cases. Jobs didn’t like them. I had never given that any thought, but Apple put so much time and effort into the beauty of the device and here we were covering the things up.

I glance over at my iPhone.

The biographer goes on to say that was the notion that moved Steve Jobs to have Apple create their own smart cover for the iPad. If people wanted to protect the screen that much, Jobs wanted to show them how best to do it.

I run a finger down the spine of my iPad case.

Not everyone liked the smart cover, but you have to admit that if the purpose was to offer up a product that would serve as a case and a stand for the iPad, but not really increase the bulk or mar the beauty of the craftsmanship, then Apple achieved that goal. And they offered a gee-whiz moment too when they had the magnets of the cover turn the iPad screen off and on.

I nervously fidget with my iPod’s protective hard plastic shell.

Ahem.

I finished the book. Made no changes to my routines, processes or layout, and went on with life.

But…

…what if…

One day at work, I slipped iPod, iPhone, and iPad out of their protective coverings and laid them all out on my desk in their usual spots.

I checked around, behind me, somehow sure someone would be standing there just shocked beyond believe at my brazenness.

It felt wild. It was the feeling of freedom! Enjoying the form in all it’s untethered glory, as things were meant to be!

It also felt wrong.

I checked around behind me again. No one was there. No laughing and pointing or shock and surprise. No phone calls to HR to report my bold activity.

I slowly repositioned the protective cases of each of the devices and lined them up on my desk in their usual spots.

Quite enough of THAT craziness. Let’s not do that again.

I let out a deep sigh and got back to work.


Thanks,
DCD

Chad and Jeremy and Batman

Folks,

The other day, I was watching the 1966 Adam West Batman television show with my six-year-old son, Alex.  The show is on fairly often in my house.  My twelve-year-old son, Ashton hates it.  He delights in pointing out how cheesy and unrealistic it is.  I haven’t the heart to explain to him that he’s missing the whole point of the show.  My eleven-year-old daughter Katie doesn’t care one way or another, skipping in and out of the room at her leisure when the show is on.  

I don’t have really strong memories of the show, having only seen it a few times in the seventies.  When you grew up in the seventies, you were at the whims of broadcast television.  I seem to relate it strongly to memories of my Grandmother Lomax’s house in North Carolina.  I remember catching it there and being disappointed that I wouldn’t see the second part of the two-parter because we were leaving the next morning.  I remember first seeing the show at a friend’s house in Texas during the “Hide and Seek in a Cactus Patch Incident of 1975”.  We’ll leave that for another blog entry.

But Alex?  Alex LOVES the show.  He’ll sit quietly playing with his action figures afterwards, and I’ll listen in as he narrates their adventures just as the announcer does on Batman.  Alex even cuts to commercial break, cutting back in so we can see how the hero gets out of the deviously devised trap.  Whatever else I’m doing as a father for my kids, I know I’m creating strong Adam West Batman memories in Alex.  So you’re welcome, future grandchildren.

So we’re watching the show one day and two singers come on.  The plot is something like Catwoman planning to kidnap these two musicians and Batman’s gotta stop her.  They even have the two guys staying at Millionaire Bruce Wayne’s house for extra safety.

Knowing the show has a history of random guest stars, I hit the IMDB app on my trusty iPad and found out that they were indeed, real musicians.  Chad and Jeremy.  Okay.  I’ve never heard of them, so let me leap onto iTunes, download their album “Yesterday’s Gone” that seems to have the most acknowledgement, and try them out at work the next day.

Wow.

No.  Good.

Which means I love them.

I love music.  (Thanks to Matt Rusnak.)  Specifically, I like music from the sixties and seventies and orchestral movie soundtracks.  (Matt takes no credit for that last bit.)  Sometimes I’ll listen to music from the 1980’s.  Very rarely I’ll engage a few playlists I have of modern music.  So it’s not like I’m unfamiliar with the era of the sixties, or unaccustomed to this kind of music.

But just… wow.  I’m totally imagining them as the Justin Beiber’s of their day, selling relatively well and getting guest shots on TV shows.  But just getting respect from no one.  

My favorite by far is their song “My Colouring Book”:  

I’ve a most unusual coloring book

The kind you never see.

Crayons ready?  Very well…   

Begin to color…   

meeeeeee.

Wait… what?  Back up.

Some of the songs make me think these guys were not taking themselves too terribly seriously, which makes me love them even more.  I love to sit at work, Chad and Jeremy in my iPod, ‘seat dancing’ for all to see.  There’s something about not taking yourself too terribly seriously that is incredibly liberating.  And we can all relate to that scene in whatever movie’s playing where the main character gets caught singing and dancing when they think no one’s looking.  One of my most endearing traits on my last team was my habit of suddenly slipping into a loud rendition of Captain and Tenille.  Love will keep us together.  You and me, babe, forever.  Indeed.

I have yet to find anyone that remembers Chad and Jeremy.  I have not yet asked Adam West.  My father-in-law looked at me as if I’d grown a second head.  I played them for my metal-loving friend Mario Adractas.  He was less than enthused.  So yeah, let me know if I’m wrong about these dudes and they’re just the bee’s knees, second only to the Beatles, Animals, Byrds, Stones, Doors, Beach Boys, Monkees, and Englebert Humperdinck.

It’s just the nearness of you, darling.

They did do a version of “The Girl from Ipanema”.  I find it jazzy and it makes me sway my head from side to side while I pretend to sing.

So I URGE you, go out and study Chad and Jeremy.  Not to advance the music of the sixties into the decades of our future.  No no… the Beatles have that covered.  Instead, use Chad and Jeremy to start random group instant messages to all of your co-workers spelling out the lyrics and not explaining to them what you’re doing.

Open the door, and let me in!

It’s me!  It’ s me!  I’m here again!

Gimme a smile, and show me through.

You know I’m here to be with you!

No one here to see us!  No… one… else… around!

So cuddle me tight.

And turn out the light.

Your mama’s out of town… TONIGHT!

It will sow confusion and discord.  Believe me, I know.

Thanks,

DCD