Confessions of a Graphic Designer

This final day of 2015 started out pretty normally. Woke up, fed the cats, put on my make-up, got dressed, then looked at my to-do list. All doable! I needed to pick up my car from my mechanic of 19 years, and no one was around to drive me there, so I called Uber . Uber was in 50 percent surge-price mode, so I said, forget that! Opened Lyft and put in my location and request... Lyft did something weird. I watched the Lyft car circle around, then was notified the car had arrived. Scanning all directions—no Lyft. The driver calls and tells me he is in West Seattle. Uh, yeah. I was 20 minutes away in Madrona. Wonder what happened? Obviously I couldn't wait for him, so I called my old standby, Farwest Taxi. They said it would be 15 minutes until a cab would reach me. No thanks. In this age of "I have no time to wait," I called Yellow Cab next. They arrived in 5 minutes. An older East African gentleman was driving and he wouldn't exceed 25 MPH....

Rejection sounds negative, but it can play a positive role in choices we make. It can force us to pivot in a new direction and help us develop skills to adapt and succeed. By changing our focus to something we hadn’t planned, rejection can lead us to a better outcome than if we’d simply been handed the thing we wanted. In pursuit of happiness? Last fall I learned of a great job with one of my local design clients. They were looking for a communications director who could write, work well with others, and organize the department. Plus it was a bonus if they had design and social media skills. I’d had my business for a long time and, thinking I might be an ideal candidate, I vigorously pursued it. Five months of meetings and interviews led me to become one of two finalists. The search culminated when I had a 9-hour successive interview with about 40 people. After ruminating three weeks, they emailed to say neither of us were chosen, and they were going to start the search anew....

Building the Legendary Alki Surf Shop When I first tell them, friends look at me with a confused expression. But for many, the more they learn, the more excited they are for this next daring step in my life. This month, my husband, David Horsfall, and I have been consumed with demolishing a former tattoo shop, seven steps up from Alki Beach, and rebuilding it into what we hope will be part of the vibrant Alki Beach and West Seattle communities. Alki Surf Shop began last fall as David’s dream. Years ago after seeing an episode of the Real Housewives of New York City, I noticed something interesting: All the women were very wealthy, and they all SOLD things. David ruminated about my observation, and several years later came up with the concept of Alki Surf Shop, and began work designing t-shirts, branding, and  the marketing communications needed to launch www.alkisurfshop.com . Ty and Katie near the Seattle Statue of Liberty We will be selling our Alki-bran...