Succeed On with Afghans, Long Blacks & Pyrotechniques.

Every weekend I cross the road from my sweet wee rental only to sit at one of the most lovely cafes I am glad to have become accustomed to. 

However, as of late my routine weekend visits have diminished due to a certain other who I have been getting to know. Sorry to inject some personal sopiness in, but as per my last post I feel it is only natural to speak of real romance when it offers itself-it's what Austen would do.  

But alas, that other has given his time to the working world this weekend. Which has left me in a place only to return to my usual one. And it is, I have now realised, a much overdue return. I have been neglecting a side project which had me so excited about ever since the thought turned aspiration turned destined reality became itself. But the said other has stolen the place of excitement, leaving the project neglected and sitting in the back of my mind-but never out of the mind I assure you!

So with this familiar time given to me, I picked up my laptop, whatever issue of Frankie I could find in my lounge and walked across the road and through the doors of my dear Foxtrot Parlour cafe. 

And because I'm sure you would like to know, I ordered a long black and an afghan. Both of which were damn lovely- even though when trying to brake the afghan in half, one of the halves decided to make an escape...to the floor. Sigh. 

Finally, after dipping the afghan in the dark silk that was a long black, and flicking through my own, and Foxtrot's own Frankies, I wrote... And wrote... And wrote. And I feel like I finally hit what I have been trying to hit for months. It seems the return to routine only awoke a searched for hit this wee project needed. And now, once again, I am excited and feel as if I belong next to Brian Blessed typing away on my laptop as part of an ASB Succeed On TVC. 

I just love this damn feeling. And I can't wait to share more about my project. 

Also, just as an added loveliness to this day of wonderful, when leaving Foxtrot, the lovely Foxtrot man himself passes me a small brown bag and as I say to him in a rather perplexed manner "sorry, what is it?", he casually replied "another afghan, to make up for the half that ran away".

And lest we forget, there is no size or criteria for success, it's all success! And we must give praise with pyrotechniques!

What would your Bitch do.

If there was but one question to ask at all times, some completely sane people would say...

What would Britney do.

In my world, I think it shall be; 

What would Austen do.

There are far too many occasions when we can stay completely absorbed in our own heads, naturally. But to what gain does it do. Whilst I will be first to admit and in fact promote (again, naturally) that I am one in a generation who are self promoting, ambitious, nieve, confident and ridiculously over-eager, I adamantly believe there is no other way I would want to be.

It amuses and confuses me as to why people should choose to cater to anything other than the awesome. Working in an industry which is so passionately driven, I sometimes get lost in the founding that there is higher values dictating this said passions placement. 

When there is a passion, an idea, a direction and a team, how is that we as the team can stray so far away to a point of competete absurd disconnect. 

I shall now, forever and foremost (at least until there becomes a day-if ever, when I leave the ad world) question myself in such circumstances with the question...

What would Austen do.

For she would merely react and reply with the utmost wit whilst casually promoting 
self-righteousness, intelligence and guidance.

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single agency in possession of passion must be in want of great people. (p. 1, Ch. 1, Vol. 1).

Cosmetic Brand Surgery.

 

Is it not the most wonderful thing when something that brings such cheap thrills as is, is given a dose of aesthetic brilliance.

 

Just 'cause.

 

Well in this case it's not actually just 'cause.

 

It's because New Zealand Lotteries is sane. Sane in the sense that they, perhaps with the delicious guidance of Wendy Rayner or craft of designer Brogen Averill, see the safety in a facelift and a rebrand.

 

NZ Lotteries and Running with Scissors have just launched a new range of Instant Kiwi tickets. And marketing manager Robert Saunders says it's the biggest facelift for the tickets since it started selling them back in 1989.

 

It is becoming far too dull a conversation and I would go as far as to say even daft, when people speak of risk in a tone that suggests in avoidance of the new, they stay successfully adrift in their industry.

This is so obviously not the case.

 

It is now a time more than ever, to not get lost.

And anwyay , what is advertising if not to be seen. There is only so long you can now be noticed, no matter how brilliant the creative. Saturation of media is only too common. So cosmetically rebrand* away, bitches!

 

*with utter and utmost planning of course

 

In saying all of this, I have found some merit in my own venturesome thought of having an advertising museum.

 

 If Da Vinci can be remembered, adorned and have his work placed in gold frames, surely work of George Lois and the like deserve such recognition.

Advertising doesn't deserve to be forgotten.

 

 

 

Pride in Purpose Apparently.

Much like my previous correlation of Jane Austen to Rory Sutherland, I now find myself making that same alignment of Austen to another source of advertising inspiration.

 

 

In attendance to a morning that is Creative, there were four points that I wrote on that thing we humans call a card.

 

 

Whilst the well dressed Boss 1 of agency Running With Scissors, Friday (yes, that is his name) did not appear on stage walking hansomley out of water with a wet white shirt clenching to his chest...

 

Skip to 1.25 for instant reference.

 

...he was however what I would call an inspiring Mr Darcy-like character of advertising.

 

I spoke to him once.

I think I would call him subtly creative.

 

Much as Mr Darcy is silently generous. 

Possibly the most generous man in the world that is Austen. 

 

As could Friday be the most inspiring creative I've come across in advertising-however this is a mere feeling I get from him as opposed to a statement based on knowing him.

 

I would also not be surprised if Friday was to say in regard to me "She's not creative enough to tempt me"...

 I say that given our short course of conversation which only allowed my meagre positive opinion about his agency to come from my lips which  hardly seemed to rivet his interest.

Luckily  I wasn't conversing in the hope for employment. Content as I am given .99 provides me with a world...perhaps well paralleled to quick characters much like that of Oscar Wilde's world.

 

 Scotish other half and Boss 2 Andy, is quite similar to the Mr Bingley (Darcy's other half), a ginger (I think) man that screams lovliness in that damn charming and chirpy accent. He spoke of advertising and the work place in the most natural way that it should be.

 

That is, happiness.

 

 

 

I am continuously (in the one year that I have been in the world of real work) steppnig in directions which I haven't been told to go in, purely from interest and lack of complatency. That to me is happiness. And Running With Scissors successfully assured me in their talk today, that your own direction is the best direction.

 

And that is the direction I shall continue to take.

Meet you there, bitches.

 

Today is.

Alas, today is my last day at home ending the festive break. 

I am so glad that today is going slow.

I was rather dreading today in the thought that it would fly by with packing and saying goodbye to my room, my wardrobe, my parents kitchen, backyard, dog, cat...etc etc.

But instead, today has been delightfully slow and full of LOTR, sun and goodness.

However, it does make me wonder what 2013 has installed for me.

I seem to have this odd mix of feelings about it; a stir of absolute goals and restless to-dos and then a sense of complete ease and content.

As Gandalf said "All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us"...

and that Gandalf, I shall do.

Stay tuned.