Month: February 2012

A Few Things That Made Me Smile

richlevyfcb Advertising, Design, Family, Ramblings 1 Comment

Today’s posting is going to be about a few odds and ends that I’ve been meaning to write about but never got around to putting them down on paper. Dumb things that made me laugh while commuting to work or things that happened that just made me smile. You know, stuff.

Frogger
Do you remember the arcade game Frogger? If you don’t, the basic premise of the game is a frog is trying to cross the street without getting run over by a car or truck. That’s it. That’s the entire game. And yet I would play over and over again until I got the high score on the machine. Every morning I play a human version of Frogger while getting of the Shuttle train from Grand Central. As soon as I get off the subway the foot traffic pattern means that one group of people have to cross a second group at a 90-degree angle. So imagine the game of Frogger, I’m the frog and the foot traffic is the car. You move one step forward, one step to the side, someone passes, you step forward again. And you try not to get hit. The problem, just like the game, you always gets hit. Someone always curses. Someone always yells. And eventually, it’s game over. Who would’ve thought way back in 1981 that all those quarters spent on Frogger would be helping my morning commute 31 years later. Certainly not me.

Instant Classic Ski Race
My son had a ski race this weekend. He came in third. He was really happy about winning a third place trophy and was very proud of his achievement. But what really made me happy was that he was incredibly happy about HOW he skied. He told me immediately after his first run that it was the ‘best run of his entire career.’ I love the fact that he thinks about his ski racing as a ‘career.’ Later that night when we were looking at photos I took at the mountain, he called them ‘instant classics’ and wanted them printed for his bedroom wall. He told me that the race ‘will be the highlight of his entire year.’ He was very happy with the result, very happy at his friends’ reaction to his race, and of course, very happy for the 8” piece of plastic that the Interclub race program calls a trophy. He thinks I should build him a trophy case for his awards. I don’t think so. But they are on his bedroom dresser.

I Don’t Drink
You’d be surprised how many people commented on my post about how I don’t drink. But my favorite was someone who sent the following cartoon. I thought it was hysterical.

Interviewing
I think I’ve written enough about stupid things NOT to say in an interview. But I feel the need to express this one again. Please don’t come in for an interview and tell me that you’re not interested in a certain part of the job. Don’t waste my time. Either you’re all in or you’re all out. I’ve had three people in the past two weeks tell me that they are REALLY interested in 40% of the job description, but not interested at all in 60%. One interview was 4 minutes long. Another waited until the end. And another didn’t tell me at all, but followed up with an e-mail afterwards. I’m not hiring any of them. Please, please, please, please, don’t waste my time. If you want to meet and talk, send me an e-mail and we’ll get together some place for a cup of coffee. (Notice I didn’t say ‘for a drink.’) But don’t waste interview time only to disqualify yourself at the end. Thank you.

So there you have it. What’s on my mind today? Commuting, Drinking, Interviewing and instant classic races.

2.8.12

Yet Another Conversation With My Son – Part 4

richlevyfcb Family, Ramblings Tags: 1 Comment

My wife is out of town this week. So it’s guy week around the Levy household. It also leaves a lot of time of interesting conversation. Here are a few of my favorites from the past few days.

Girl Trouble
Son: Dad, why does Gina (name changed) keep hitting me?
Me: I think that’s her way of showing you that she likes you.
Son: By hitting me? That doesn’t make any sense.
Me: But that’s the point, she can’t make sense of how she’s feeling, so hitting you seems like the right thing to do.
Son: Oh, that’s weird.
Me: It’s actually kind of cute.
Son: Is that what people mean when they say someone is ‘hitting on them?’
Me: Probably. That seems right.

Being A Fan
Son: Are you rooting for the Giants or the Patriots?
Me: I don’t know. I guess the Giants. But only because the Colts aren’t in it this year.
Son: What if the Colts played the Giants, would you root for the Colts?
Me: 100%.
Son: I think I’m rooting for the Giants. But if the Patriots win, I’ll switch to them.
Me: That’s not how it works; you root for one team win or lose.
Son: Do you hate all teams from Boston?
Me: I wouldn’t say hate ….
Son: So I can be a Red Sox fan?
Me: No.
Son: Mets?
Me: No.
Son: Orioles?
Me: OK, you can root for the Orioles.
Son: But that’s only because the Orioles stink, right?
Me: Yes.
Son: Just like the Colts.

Cell Phone
Son: Dad, when can I have a cell phone?
Me: Not yet.
Son: I know not yet, but when. Next year? The year after that?
Me: Why do you want a cell phone?
Son: To call you when I need you.
Me: There are phones everywhere. You can use any phone to call me.
Son: I can’t send a text message.
Me: True.
Son: And I can’t contact you if I get into a bus accident on the way home from school.
Me: True.
Son: And I can’t call you to pick me up from the mall.
Me: Wait, you have never been to the mall by yourself.
Son: That’s because I don’t have a cell phone.

So that’s what’s on the mind of a 9-year-old. Cell phones, sports and getting ‘hit on’ by girls. Ahhhh, it never ends.

2.7.12

Answers to questions people have asked about my past posts

richlevyfcb Advertising, Design, Education, Family, Ramblings 2 Comments

How’s the exercise going?
It’s been slow and painful. I’m hoping that I can really tackle a set routine this week. I’ve created a daily workout on my computer and I’m beginning to put it into practice. And yes, I’m tired.

Reading my posts?
Someone just said something very funny to me, so I thought I’d share. I just mentioned to a woman in my office that I hadn’t talked to her for a while. She replied, “But I read your blog.” Hmmmmm, somehow people don’t need to talk to me because they’re reading what I’m writing? I hope not. So, if you’re reading this, come by and say hello every now and then.

More funny stuff my son says?
Many people have advised me to create a separate blog specifically for the funny stuff my son says. I’m not sure I’m ready to commit to a second blog so soon. For now, he stays on the main site. BTW – look for tomorrow’s post. He said some incredible things this weekend.

Did I purchase that guitar?
While tempted, I didn’t purchase a 1961 Epiphone Casino reissue. I liked the guitar but didn’t love it. So I couldn’t justify the purchase.

When will you write again about your class?
I only teach once a week, so if you’re looking for posts about my class, you’ll see those every Friday.

Do people really say those stupid things to you?
Yes, I don’t make up the dialogue. I have witnesses. In fact, the ‘women on the chairlift’ conversations are as close to word for word as humanly possible to remember.

Do you ever proofread what you write?
Yes, I’m famous around the agency for making funny typos. I’m sorry. I really try not to put typos in my posts. But I’m a terrible proofreader. Of course, that’s just an excuse; I’m actually a terrible speller.

Is this what you sound like?
Yes, if you were in my office, these posts would sound just like having a real conversation with me. And yes – at times I say really dumb things.

2.6.12/PM

15-Year-Old Scotch, 12-Year-Old Wine & 3-Month-Old Beer

richlevyfcb Family, Ramblings 1 Comment

I don’t drink alcohol.

Anyone who knows me will testify that I’m a terrible drinker. I barely drink at all, and when I do, I nurse a beer forever. I don’t know why I don’t drink. It’s not like I made a decision not to drink. And I do have a beer or glass of wine from time to time with friends. But I don’t consider myself a drinker. In fact, my beer of choice has turned into Stella Artois because people don’t make fun of me for ordering something like a Coors Light. I never know what to order, because I don’t order enough to know better.

But this weekend people who knew exactly what they liked to drink surrounded me.

My daughter and her boyfriend cracked open two bottles of 15-year-old scotch to taste the subtle differences between a blend and a single malt. They were in heaven. The special glassware, the perfect amount of ice and the exact timing of when to drink their choice were timed to perfection. Of course, they poured me a glass. And when I tried it I thought I would choke. It smelled like lighter fluid and it tasted like an empty ashtray. (I’m guessing, since I never actually tasted an ashtray.) But there they were, my 20-somethings enjoying their scotch like Don Draper from Mad Men. It was actually fun to watch. And funny to think that I would actually every be able to finish a glass.

At the same time, my wife was uncorking a nice bottle of 2000 French Bordeaux. Now, while I’m not much of a wine drinker, a least I can handle a glass of wine. And the smell of a 2000 Bordeaux is special. I love to smell the oak and the subtle aromas that come from every bottle. But after a few sips, I’m done with wine, too. I don’t think I’ve finished a glass of wine in 5 years. My wife and I have this little ‘drinking tango’ that we’ve perfected over the years. We both pour a glass, we both start to drink and when she’s finished her glass, she then finishes mine. She’s happy. I’m happy. In fact, there are times when I switch glasses with her without her asking. It looks like I’ve finished a glass, when I’ve barely had a few sips. It’s a win-win for everyone.

And now that brings me to beer. I don’t know why, but I can drink beer all day and all night and never get any kind of buzz. All I get is bloated and full. I think it was my years working on beer at two different agencies. I worked on everything from local Baltimore beers to the King of Beers, Budweiser. I was exclusively a Bud man when I was getting a free case every month for working on the brand. I realize that I don’t really drink much beer now. Sometimes when I do open a bottle, people notice.

Somehow I don’t get the same enjoyment from drinking. Perhaps I’ve become confortable not drinking. Perhaps I’m a control freak and don’t like the subtle loss of control that drinking brings. Perhaps I just prefer iced tea. Or perhaps there’s a guardian angel watching over me telling me to use judgment because I’m not a drinker.

Or perhaps I just don’t like to drink.

2.6.12

I Don’t Care Who Wins The Super Bowl – I Just Want To Win The Office Super Bowl Pool

richlevyfcb Ramblings Tags: , , 1 Comment

This week I invested $40 in our office Super Bowl pool. According to Fox News, this week is the second largest illegal betting week of the entire year. And even though many companies have policies that prohibit internal betting, everyone looks the other way for the Super Bowl. Well, if my company has such a policy, I know 100 people who are in hot water.

Now, I find myself in the unusual position of rooting for a score versus rooting for a team. Go, Pats, Go Giants, come on scoreboard. My numbers: Patriots 7, Giants 0 and Patriots 5, Giants 1. So here are some scores I can hope for. First quarter: Giants 10, Patriots 7 or Patriots 7, Giants 0. Sounds good, right? The problem is in the last 10 Super Bowl games; there has never been a first quarter score of 10-7 or 7-0. OK, I suddenly don’t feel so lucky.

How about halftime scores, Patriots 7, 17 or 27, Giants 0, 10, or 20. Hmmm, not feeling so good about halftime either. OK, what about the end of the game scores, Patriots 7, 17, or 27, Giants 0, 10, 20, or 30. The alternate score: Patriots 15, 35, 45, Giants 21, 31, or 41. I have just decided I’ve thrown my money away.

So it seems like my best shot is the first quarter. Tough, hard fought quarter where the Patriots squeak out a touchdown in the final moments of the quarter for a 7-0 lead. Or the defenses can’t stop the offenses, and both teams march up and down the field for a Giant lead of 10-7. Either way I cash my illegal check for 250 smackers.

After cashing in, I can enjoy the rest of the game knowing that there is little chance for me to win again. Unless, of course, the defenses stiffen and the score remains 10-7 or 7-0 for the rest of the game, and I run the table on all four quarters. But of course, that will never, ever happen.

So the odds are I won’t win any money. The odds are I’ll root for the Giants no matter the score. (Peyton’s little brother plays for the Giants. And I like Peyton.) And the odds are that I’ll play one of these pools again. In fact, the number one largest illegal betting week is right around the corner.

It’s called March Madness. And I have $20 ready to donate to somebody else.

2.4.12

Excuse me, Professor Levy

richlevyfcb Advertising, Design, Education Tags: 2 Comments

Last night, I taught my first advertising class at the Fashion Institute of Technology, teaching a Senior Portfolio Design class. I hope the students enjoyed it, because I had a blast. What I found was a group of students who were eager to get better, eager to learn, and eager to get a job in the industry.

I was thrilled.

Teaching a class is a little like opening a box of chocolates, as Forrest Gump said, “you never know what you’re going to get.” I’ve taught before at the School of Visual Arts, and it was a completely different experience. There were some very talented students and some people who were never going to be good in the field.

But last night was different.

Last night, I met 14 people who all could be very good in this industry. All have the potential to be special. I was struck immediately with these things:

Design:
There are some incredible designers. The work all looks clean and crisp. Even the work that wasn’t very conceptual, still looked great. Heck, I may hire one of the students to redesign this blog site. The design work is far, far, far superior to the conceptual work (so far).

Copywriting:
This is an area that needs a little help. The ideas are there. Sometimes they’re a little buried, but they’re there. The students have done most of the hard work. But to make some of these concepts great, they need a little more help in the copy department. Luckily, I’m a copywriter. I’m going to need to push harder in this area.

Selling Skills:
We’re going to work hard on selling. When I asked the students what they wanted to get out of the class, almost all wanted help in presenting their work. How to talk about their ideas. How to sell their ideas. How will it hold up in the real world? When I told them that I planned to videotape them in an interview setting and let them watch it, they all squirmed a little in their seats. Clearly this will be a little hard. But the more we practice, the better they’ll get.

Really Fun, Nice People:
I was also struck with how nice everyone was. If there was a prima donna in the group, it didn’t show itself last night. (Perhaps I was the prima donna of the group!) Everyone was welcoming, helpful, fun, funny, interesting and had a point of view.

Real World:
There is a fear that their work won’t hold up in the ‘real world.’ They are all aware that school work and real world work is very different. They are welcoming my real world experience and ask that I be brutally honest. I promise to do that.

Well, one week is in the books. 14 more weeks to go. I’m looking forward to what the future holds. As someone once said in a movie ‘stick with me kid, I’ll make you a star.’ I promise to do everything I can to make sure these students are prepared to get jobs in this industry.

I also promise to curse less. But don’t hold me to it.

2.3.12

Agent K

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When my daughters were younger, we used to have secret agent names for each other. At one point we added the letter “o” to our names, so my secret agent name was Daddy-o, and my daughters we Nikki-o and Kristen-o. But that got old, and we started using Agent R, Agent N and Agent K.

Not too long ago, I found a note hidden in a bracelet box from Agent K. It was written on notepaper and written in pre-teen cursive. Here’s the entire note – I love every word.

Hi, I’m Kris Levy and I like being me. I am comfortable in my skin and I don’t try to be someone I’m not. I really think that’s important, you know. I mean if you hate who you are, then what’s the point of living?

Some people think I’m ugly cause of a bad reputation. I go somewhere where they don’t know me and they think I’m a goddess – so I say: screw ‘em. If they’re not nice to you then why make peace – just ignore them (harder than it seems.) I haven’t quite gotten the knack of it yet.

A little more about me. I am not racist, but I don’t believe in dating out of race. I am nice and a little bit of a nuisance. I hate when people call me “not normal” and what is that? I am as of Feb 19th, 5’ 3” and 100 pounds. If you really care, I have size 8 feet, but that’s if you care.

I am good or personally extremely good at art. I want to be a fashion designer and put myself in my own runways and say hi to my friends back in Philly and say ‘Ha! I made it’ to my enemies. That would be a blast!!!

This is MY chat room – enter if you dare – but I’m warning you, ya better be nice – no cursing. This is a nice chat room. Well, I gotta go. I am kind of tired and my hand hurts so write to me at (—-) and live by this motto – “to fear love is to fear life. Take a deep breath, go for it and don’t ever look back.”

So long for now, yours,
Agent K

I love so much about this. I love that as a pre-teen my daughter knew she wanted to be a designer. And on Monday, she begins a new position as a Store Design Coordinator for Urban Outfitters. It seems she knew all along that this is where she belongs. After a stint at Free People (owned by the same company) – she’s moving onward and upward to the big brand. I’m very proud of her.

I also love that she knew from a young age that she wasn’t going to fit in everywhere. That certain people wouldn’t get her and certain people would treat her like a ‘goddess.’ She has always lived on her terms.

Congratulations Kristen on your new gig. It’s going to be amazing. I always new you could do it. I’m as proud as a father can possibly be. As you said in your hidden note, “go for it and don’t ever look back.”

I love you,

Agent R

2.2.12

If You Were Stranded On An Island

richlevyfcb Ramblings 3 Comments

I love these silly questions: if you were stranded on an island and you could only bring one album, one movie, one book and one TV series, what would they be?

OK, let’s make some assumptions, you have an endless supply of electrical power; so you can listen to your album, watch your movie and TV series. Let’s assume you happen to have a solar power source, and all your devices work – but you don’t have an Internet or satellite connection – that would be too easy.

Let’s also assume that this island has enough food and fresh drinking water that you’ll be stuck there for let’s say 10 years. And let’s also say that you’re alone.

Phew, that was a lot of assumptions. That said, here are my choices:

One album:
I thought about this a lot. There are so many artists I love, so many albums I’d love to listen to over and over again. I think I’d want something hopeful but also something that is timeless. So I decided on the “Woodstock” soundtrack. What? I know, you expected The Beatles Revolver or Rubber Soul. Perhaps even Goats Head Soup by the Rolling Stones or The Who’s Tommy. Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon. All great albums. All in my top 10. But for the variety, the different artists, the songs, and the joy – I’m going with Woodstock. Janis Joplin, The Who, Crosby, Still, Nash & Young, Sly and the Family Stone. Gotta love it.

One movie:
This is probably the hardest category of all. What movie would I want to watch over and over and over again? It’s certainly NOT going to be Cast Away with Tom Hanks or any horror or science fiction that would freak me out at night. I thought about the Godfather – but I think I’ve played that too much already. I thought about my all time favorite movie – Patton – but even that would get old. Nope, my choice would be ‘Some Like It Hot’ starring Jack Lemon, Tony Curtis and Marilyn Monroe. Funny. Timeless. And I never get sick of it.

One book:
I admit, I thought about “How to survive anything,” but decided that was too easy. I also checked off books I’ve read, loved, but never recommended to anyone. I decided I needed a book that makes me laugh every time I pick it up, a book that spoke to me personally, and a book that I’ve recommended to many people. So my choice: ‘A Walk In The Woods’ by Bill Bryson. It’s a travel journal about his adventures walking the Appalachian Trail. If you haven’t read it, please do. You’ll laugh a lot.

One TV series:
This was the easiest one for me. While there are many TV shows I love and I loved growing up, Seinfeld, The Cosby Show, All in the Family, MASH, and Cheers, I think I’d get sick of them eventually. But the show I can never get sick of is ‘I Love Lucy.’ I can watch re-runs of that show every day and laugh. I think its genius. And I would be happy with Lucy, Ricky, Fred and Ethel forever.

So there you have it. Woodstock, Some Like It Hot, A Walk in the Woods and I Love Lucy.

What would you choose?