Yogurt Meltdown

No doubt, there is something special in this year we are going through. Incidents that tend to happen fast are threatening to pass as if they never happened; those that linger might never leave us at all. Either way, they fall upon us in surprise.

"You're a philosopher!", a teacher in my daughter's elementary squinted at me, tilting her head slightly. I said to her that probably we all are, yet maybe this trait is somewhat more pronounced in me.

When I return to this remark, the teacher's remark, it adds up to the array of impressions I have of everything around me and around the world. And my family, along with endless other families, familiar and foreign to me, continue to inspire me.

What is it indeed that inspires people?

A small part of an answer could be seen in the following:

Being self-obsessed always risks being blind to what's around me. I live, work, cope and explore. Sometimes I am totally frustrated, like when the company that makes my favorite yogurt replaces its packaging from 750 grams to 650. Obviously there are more serious frustrations like dysfunctional communications in the team I work. But mostly I succeed in much of what I do and even gain appreciation from said team. I solved the yogurt issue, as usual, in an unconventional way. And it always feels like a lot of luck is involved. But quick reflection reveals that a lot of planning, work and creativity took place.

And then I hear that my sister saved the life of a refugee; my brother provides heavenly treats to his satisfied clients; my sister in law continues to consult complex industries. And my mom? My mom leans back at the head of the table in a content sigh.

This is only part of the answer: I am part of this. The excellence I am trying to promote has roots somewhere. Yes. I am like this too. But not only. And not alone. I am part of something larger than me.

Occasionally, I allow myself to lean back in a content sigh.

But this happens fast and is threatening to pass as if it never happened.

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When another sister in law asks me how my yogurt issue was resolved I had to share.

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Actually, the issue is still unresolved. I just didn't want to worry anyone. Or burden anyone with redundant details. It's still in progress. Initially I sent Liberté an email asking them to urgently return the 750 grams packaging. In return I got a gift card valued at approximately two yogurts of my choice.

In short, I stopped buying the 650 grams units.

In more detail, I but another item of the same company that is still packaged in a 750 grams container.

In even more detail, I buy two products of the same company and mix them for consumption in the following days.

But I had a grandmother who had a habit of answering simple questions with elaborate stories. This one pays homage to her. We purchased a scale that is accurate to the gram. The one we had that is accurate to the 5 grams was good enough in my view. But my daughter insisted that we must have the one gram accurate scale. We could have used my three beams scale from the time I was mixing glazes. It is accurate to the tenth of the gram. To this she said "enough is enough"!

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There are days when I think of the Meltdown incidents where embarrassed parents stand beside their screaming toddler in the middle of a shop. No one really knows why and what would save the moment. Even stepping quickly out to the street makes no difference.

I had this moment today. I was surveying the yogurt shelves. The sacks below my eyelids drooped into a miserable gaze. I felt how my energies drained onto the sticky floor beneath the industrial cooler. Not only was my favorite yogurt absent, I had to confront the reminders to previous disasters lined up in front of my eye. One time I accidentally brought home a vanilla yogurt - Gosh, NO(!). Another, it was a 0% yogurt (Eeeeek!)

I can't help thinking of the Meltdown incidents and muse: I wish I could throw myself down, here on the floor so that someone could pick me up in their hugging, soothing and comforting hands.

Still, I returned home with one container of a 5% yogurt and one with 0% which I will mix together into a reasonable compromise. This in turn brings me back to my dear pottery teacher, who among other things, taught me to say: "How I envy myself!"

Treadmill + Video = Comedy

Watching a 110 Meter Hurdles race where one of the athletes sprains his ankle, throws me back to one of comedian Orny Adams' sketches. In my head I paraphrase his punch line from that sketch into: "Are you interested in an exciting career of tearing ligaments, breaking bones and risking high blood pressure? Become a world class athlete. Side effects include: toned body."

The original sketch deals with a hair loss prevention treatment. The way Adams turns ideas into absurd ones is fascinating. I have a similar tendency that produces amusement for me and my family and friends. Occasionally I enjoy putting the results of my humor in words. Here is this day's result.

So in August of last year I sprained my ankle. After a few months of healing, I returned to jogging gradually, each time adding distance to my treadmill sessions. A while ago, I realized the option to watch sports events on the treadmill screen. This is very useful in overcoming the creeping boredom a treadmill session entails.

I am amazed, in light of my reasonable fitness, with how fast those athletes run.

Today for example, I turned the speed up occasionally to 13.5 KM/H. In a marathon (42.2 K) they run on average 20! After about one (1) Kilometer I need to dial the speed down to 10 KM/H. That speed keeps me honestly satisfied. I'm not racing anyone; just admiring other athletes. Then I watch that guy who, at almost school-zone speed-limit, sprains his ankle on tripping the first hurdle (https://bit.ly/2SGd018). But then, Orny Adams washes up my memory (https://bit.ly/2UUAXiT).

The transcript? Here you are:
I was gonna take Propecia.
Yeah, everyone’s like, wo, why don’t you take Propecia!?
So I look into it and one of its side effects is erectile dysfunction.
You lose your erections!
That’s more than a side effect.
That’s more like WHAT THE PILL DOES!!
It’s more like... a, you,... loose your erections,... oh, you might grow hair.
The commercial should be like,
“Are you sick and tired of all those unwanted erections?
Try Propecia.
Side effects include hair.”
etc.

Gotta b. kiddn'

The infinitely complex undertaking that threadless is taking - to provide a platform of engagement for a massive audience - fascinates me. They started with attracting people through competitions and now we have the Artist Shop to try out.

Yes, this is Hebrew

Stumbling upon a t-shirt prints shop in Tel Aviv, in the later years of the twentieth century started my journey of turning threads of inspiration into wearables. The English version of the one on the left is shown at the top, the image in the center comes from a book by Halbritter; the shirt on the right is my expression of frustration over the introduction of caps to Tetra Pak cartons ("Return the cap to the bottle!").

At the time when printed t-shirts became a prominent item in the American culture, I was a bit dismissive of people making billboards of themselves. Then, in the early nineteen nineties my brother's designs for transfer technology exposed me to the broader side of this engagement. After moving to Canada in 2002 I walked into a place that made prints on t-shirts. I was appalled to realize how expensive making one would be, maybe three times the amount it cost me in Israel. However, the idea of finding ways and venues to continue my habit of turning ideas into objects stayed.

Not available on threadless as a t-shirt anymore

Then, in 2010 my sister sent me an orange shirt with a lovely design of a fox. This was the first time I became aware of the company named threadless. Still, the price seemed appalling to me. But why worry, here is a venue where my ideas can join a stream of like-minded people, and possibly even be purchased around the world. My first submission was kindly rejected, making me feel like, why bother…

My first submission on threadless

OK, I appreciate the way things are handled here. The concept of putting your stuff out and gathering feedback, directly and indirectly, is at the core of the design process. Moving ideas from concept to reality on the threadless platform is fun and friendly. The Artist Shop is a welcome addition to the package. I'm happy to have been able to witness its initial stages of development. It's exciting to follow a process like this (the development of an interactive, functional mechanism) and also participate in its making. Occasionally I send feedback to the threadless team. They are open to ideas and have even implemented successfully some of mine.

Some of my submissions this year, 2016

Sharing insights with unknown people for unguaranteed prospects is not easy for me. Every day requires a set of choices to be made: "Do I post a design? Should I send this feedback or keep it to myself? Is this going to be a t-shirt or a tote bag? How much more garbage does the world need?" An intangible sense of worth is constantly challenged. I solve this by trusting myself, trusting my own intentions. Whatever inspires me I try my best to keep alive and kicking.