Elena says:

“I’m gonna be a big sister!”

(First I have to figure what “big sister” means, but Mom and Dad seem to think that I’ll like it :)  And they said that I have until October to figure it out :) )

(Matt and Nancy sitting across from each other at the dinner table, each messing with their computers…)

Matt: humming annoying song

Nancy: “If you’re trying to impress me, that song isn’t helping.”

Matt: “What if I tried a different one.”

Nancy: Rolls eyes

Matt: sings “You never close your eyes, anymore whe…”

Nancy: interrupting “Okay, THAT makes me want to close my laptop and hit you over the head with it!”

Matt: laughs “Can I blog this?”

Today was a big day for us. Elena used the potty for the first time (and she did it four times at different points throughout the day.)

This lead to no end of discussion of pee-pee and poo-pee (as we have affectionately termed it in our household.)

Tonight on our date, which is when we have most of our important family discussions, Nancy asked me if we should come up with a nicer term for… you know.. number one… than “pee-pee”. Something more polite, more delicate. Naturally, I asked why. Apparently the word “pee” is looked down on as a bit of a crude word in some households. “You’re kidding.” I replied. She wasn’t.

So I thought for a moment, and (being in a rather mischievous mood, and it being a private conversation (that I am now sharing with the world)) offered: “How about ‘piss’?”

Shocked gasp from Nancy. Slight rib jab.

“No! I’m serious! It’s a biblical term!”

More shocked gasping. Disbelief.

Read-em and weep. The word “piss” occurs 8 times in the King James Version of the Bible.

* Alright, so I know it’s a crude term. I stopped using it frequently in public a few years ago. (“Aw, piss.” used to be a favorite expression of mine…) Funny story though, right? Don’t worry. We probably aren’t going to teach Elena to say “piss”. Probably.

Oh great. Matt has a new hobby.

Most of you who know me know I have a wide variety of interests and passions. I tend to dive into things I do with a lot of vigor and excitement. Most of you who know me WELL know I tend to have a hard time getting things done, because I have so much to do.

At the SXSW conference I attended a week ago, I got into several conversations around the topic of GTD. I decided I needed a system. I’ve discussed in the past needing a system for finances, diet, and schedule. I’ve found good systems for diet and finances, but had yet to find one for schedule.

Getting Things Done is a sort of system, more of a philosophy, or WAY of doing things that transcends schedules, calendars, and to do lists. Simplifying life, staying organized, keeping accurate schedules (and sticking to them)… it’s more of an approach to life than a scheduling system.

I’ll be writing about my new hobby on my Web Design Blog. Follow along if you dare. :)

Today, I read a compelling, and surprisingly well-written article in an online magazine that I follow on the topic of Web design. I think I saw a little bit of myself in it. At least, myself as I want to be.

Creativity is an inborn capacity for thinking differently than most, seeing differently, and making connections and perceiving relationships others miss. But most importantly, it is the ability to then extrapolate contextually useful ways of employing that data: to create something that meets a specific challenge. By this definition, creativity is merely a tool; it does not convey skill. For a dedicated few, though, this inborn capacity is then further augmented by certain disciplines, including:

• ongoing curiosity,
• the desire and habit of looking more deeply into things than others care to,
• the habit of comparing stimulus with result, and
• a habit for qualitative discrimination.

It is primarily these disciplines that set top creative professionals apart from those who are merely gifted. It is also these disciplines that help shape a designer’s intuitive senses, which are vital to design craft, processes, and overall success. Being merely creatively gifted is no qualification for design expertise, and the idea that creativity is a magic bullet that anyone or any designer may employ to positive effect is a vacuous notion.

I consider myself to be a creative person. I also like to think that I practice (to some extent) those listed disciplines. I am a “creative professional” but I’m certainly not a “TOP creative professional” (yet). If nothing else, the article was inspiring, and helpful in understanding the appropriate ways of wielding creativity. Give it a read.

On Creativity by Andy Rutledge