Everything Is Gonna Be Okay

A dear friend of mine calls me every so often and says, "Tell me everything is gonna be okay".
I remind him that everything is cyclical, clients come and go, relationships come and go and that, ultimately, things work themselves out. Easy enough to say but for some, especially now, believing it is another matter. I'm sure my friend asks me for this occasional reminder because it gives him comfort. But it's temporary. Stress builds, situations change and the universe seems to pile it on, to the point where he needs another reminder. Just about the time I get the call, things for him seem to quiet down, work comes in, checks come in and I'm again proven right. See...cyclical.


I know that for many of us times have never been tougher or scarier. But it can't last forever. It can and will get better. Jobs will come back, the economy will improve, our industry will grow and this town, this state will recover.

Now, you may be saying "Mound, please remove your enormous head from your ass and look around!" And if you are saying this, I know who you are.

Everything is gonna be okay.

The Mound

No problem

I do not believe there is such a thing as a "mid-life crisis". And even if there is, I'm not having one.

Of course, I've been told that I do exhibit all of the classic symptoms. The motorcycle, the tattoos (got a new one on Sunday), the earrings, the goatee. The whole "biker" vibe. To me, these are just fun transportation and decoration. To some, they are outward signs that there is something wrong with me. There isn't. Yes, I'll be 50 in October and I suppose that does qualify as "middle age", but that isn't a crisis. In fact, it's anything but! I've managed to survive half a century on this planet and I feel pretty blessed to have made it that long. I've had multiple "close calls" and sometimes lived a little too close to the edge, but for reasons unknown to me, I'm still here. Every day, every moment is a gift to be enjoyed. So that's what I'm doing. It's only a crisis if there's a problem. Other than the beard being itchy, my ears being hairy, tattoos being painful and life being too short...no problem.

It's Freedom Baby, Yeah!

Marna's husband, Larry stopped by the studio with their grandson Ben today. What a precious little man!

After seeing my big two-wheeler in the parking lot, Larry mentioned to me what a great day it was to be out on the bike. He's right! It's 12 noon, sunny and 80 and the road is calling. In fact, it's screaming. As most of you are aware, motorcycling has become a passion of mine. In late June I did a 1250 mile trek around our beautiful state on my own, then in late July, Communicores Dean Saigeon joined me for an 8 day, 1900 mile trip on our pimped out Victory Motorcycles that took us to places like Mackinaw City, Tahquamenon Falls, Whitefish Point, Munising to see the breath-taking Pictured Rocks, all the way up to Copper Harbor. What an experience! You owe it to yourself to travel and enjoy this amazing State of Michigan. However, for those that haven't, a video of our travels is in the works. Dean brought along his new Kodak HD hand-held video camera and I strapped on a new Contour HD helmet cam and we documented the entire journey. Not only will you be awed by the scenery, captivated by our narrative and thrilled by our motorcycling expertise, but you will surely be impressed by how much Dean and I can eat and drink. Especially me.

Well, gotta go wash and wax my baby. It's a beautiful day to be out on the bike.

The Mound

You should have a blog!

Alright then, I WILL!


OK, now what?

I know, I'll complain about stuff. How about when an advertiser has something good going and decides to change it, just for the sake of change. Makes me crazy. Today, an agency producer sent me a rough cut of a new TV spot to look at and asked me to help them choose some new music for it. Thing is, it looked a lot like the old TV spot. Same format, graphic treatment, same pace, same announcer, you get the idea. I suggested that since they were sticking with the same look and feel they should consider keeping the track the same. Campaign equity, branding, message consistency, I used all the buzz words. "Nope, we're tired of that music". Not the end client, mind you. The agency is tired of that music. Perhaps that's because they've heard it about a hundred times for every one time the television audience has heard it. Honestly, I'm sick of it too, having heard it about a hundred times more than the folks at the agency have. But the TV audience is no where near as in tune with it as we are. In fact, when I asked one of the folks that works in my office about it, she said "I like that music, I know when I hear it, even if I'm in the other room that it's a (insert client/product name here) spot".

But why should I care? After all, a music drop is a music drop, right? I get paid the same either way, right? Nope, still makes me crazy.

That felt really good. I think I like this blogging thing.

The Mound