• Marvelous Monday

    Yesterday I posted a Marvelous Monday discussion prompt theme in the Wiggle Work community Discord, and it was more impactful than I expected. The questions were:

    • What thing are you doing today that should set you up for a marvelous week to come?
    • What are you looking forward to most today?
    • What’s a small gesture you’ve made or action you’ve taken recently that seemingly made someone’s day better?

    These questions helped me think about the week to come in a different light. Like how the week goes is something I can directly craft over something that will happen to me—there’s strength within this mindset over the powerlessness of the other. It felt great and energizing to process these questions and produce an action-oriented game plan to manifest what I’m determined to be a marvelous week.

    As always, it was great reading through everyone else’s responses as well. Someone shared that they helped a stranger pick up dropped cards on the sidewalk—what a lovely exchange to think about instead of all the hostile, political fueled interactions we exclusively read about.

    It was all-around a positive exercise with positive imagery and I like the idea of doing this theme more regularly.

  • Needing Goals

    I saw a LinkedIn post recently that celebrated not having goals. I can possibly understand this perspective, but for me, it sounds like a nightmare filled with aimless chaos—so, my summer in many ways. 

    I lost sight of my professional goals these past couple of years because of my surgeries and I spent the summer spiraling over it. Due to the emergency and prolonged nature of it all, I lost touch with most of my work contacts. I’ve been struggling to recover from the impact of this ever since. My schedule and future seem less clear and I’ve been thinking a lot about the fragile nature of the work environment I’ve created over these past seven years as an independent brand and marketing designer. 

    Further, once my mind gets warmed up about a topic, wandering becomes boundless and I’ve also been trying to figure out which aspects of this career I like and which I really don’t. It’s time for a BIG change, and to feel calm and grounded about this so that I make the right moves, I need formally established goals. I know that without these goals I’m going to keep treading water and and am ready and excited to move forward and not look back. 

    We have a goal-sharing call at Wiggle Work tomorrow and it’s motivated me to thoroughly spell out my intentions and my roadmap to get there. I can’t wait to share these and get a glimpse into what others are working on—there’s still time to join us!

  • Project Fall Through

    I had a project unexpectedly fall through for August, and it had me a bit rattled. I’ve been thinking about what to do for a few days now and realize I’m struggling because I feel fairly flexible in regards to what happens next—which is not a situation I’ve found myself in for many years. 

    For the past decade, I’ve been focused on branding, design, and marketing in the tech space. Before that, I worked in nonprofit administration, managing programs and writing grants for at-risk youth initiatives. I’ve enjoyed all of this work, and the path here has been surprisingly cohesive, with writing, project management, communication, and strategy being at the forefront of it all. Still, I find myself often missing mission-driven work, creating an inner conflict where I have to ultimately choose between these two worlds, firmly settling into a single direction. This feels impossible, though, since realizing I do not have strong convictions about job titles or roles at all

    I really just miss working with great people on great projects, with bonus points around supporting a mission grounded in environmental or social justice. I can do this within a number of roles, including as an employee or contractor. And while I still prefer a remote setup, I also now see the appeal of a hybrid setup when necessary. 

    There is a part of this that could potentially look like a career crisis of some kind, but I’m slowly realizing it’s actually just hard-earned insight into what does and doesn’t matter and the true value I bring to projects and the values I admire most in others. So, I don’t actually know what I’m going to do about losing this project, but I somehow now feel excited about the unrestricted possibilities.

  • Hemp Protein Bars

    I spent years searching for a protein bar that didn’t have fillers and too much added sugar. I ended up having to make my own and wanted to properly document this. Since it certainly doesn’t fit on my allergy-free food blog, I’ll add it here.

    Ingredients:

    • 1 jar almond butter (no palm oil added)
    • 125 grams (half bag) of Pascha chocolate chips
    • 1/2 cup coconut oil (unrefined)
    • 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
    • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
    • 1/2 cup hemp hearts
    • 1 cup max protein hemp powder
    • Course salt for top

    Melt the liquid ingredients low and slow, and then add hemp hearts and protein. Pour the mixture into a parchment-lined glass baking dish (8x12) and top with salt, refrigerate until hardened (a couple of hours), and then cut into bars.

    Makes 12 bars with 16 grams of protein each.

  • Mutual Portfolio Review

    At some point next week I will have wrapped up an inital draft of a personal portfolio, something I haven’t done in years. I have a lot of mixed feelings, including dread, over it, but I’m pushing through and it’s coming along nicely.

    I had a birthday recently and am reminded of one of my professional goals: to move away from graphic and visual design and fully into a position based in strategy and creative direction by 40. While I have definitely made progress here, it’s been slow. With only a year remaining, I realize I need to change my approach.

    I’m crafting a portfolio that takes a closer look at three recent projects and the varied work required for me to complete these successfully. Sure, visual design is a part of these projects, but it’s only able to fall into place after a lot of research, strategy, and relationship building—this is what I actually love doing. Yes, I created an identity for a nonprofit this year, but I also wrote their mission statement, defined their brand’s personality, and helped them craft their values. I need a portfolio that focuses on these foundational elements first and visual design second.

    I’d love to collaborate with someone for a mutual portfolio review soon. My experience is rooted in writing, graphic and visual design, marketing design, UX/UI design, some front-end development, and general micro agency things. Let’s share our goals over coffee and gather thoughtful feedback to help each other achieve them.

    Reach out on Mastodon, email, or Discord, and we’ll get started—can’t wait.

  • Breaking Records

    Work has been especially challenging recently, and I grumpily wrote this week off entirely because of it. If I look past work, though, some pretty great things actually happened.

    I set my new post-surgery cycling record (6.5 miles) AND my walking record pace (14.4 minute mile average/14.2 fastest split) this week. I also drove the longest distance since surgery. Driving was the first thing I lost the ability to do, and it was difficult and scary to do again.

    Ben and I had some time together and got important house stuff done. There was no shortage of shitty things that happened, but I don’t want to lose these wins because of them. And hopefully I can make sure my future work weeks are not quite so unbearable.

  • Sneaker Science

    Sneakers are a near-constant purchase for me and a frequent source of frustration. It’s hard enough to find the perfect pair to cover as many comfortable miles as possible, but then, each year, that sneaker model changes dramatically. These updated versions usually don’t resemble or perform as well as the previous, beloved year’s model. Getting outside opinions can further complicate things since everyone’s needs and preferences are so different. I hit this issue every 200 miles.

    I’ve rotated between a few different models of Brooks and ASICS for many years. While there’s a lot to love about the Brooks brand, the quality of the models I was getting each year reduced to the point where I was even getting toe holes (Glycerin 20) in each pair before 90 miles.

    I have not experienced this quality dip with ASICS and have grown to prefer their gel insoles–it’s a difference that can be felt immediately. But their Gel-Kayano model was making my underpronation (insufficient inward roll of the foot after landing) worse, and the latest model has become nearly identical to Hokas, which I’ve found overly bulky and unstable.

    It all feels impossible and overly expensive until I remember to just go to the local runner’s store. I brought in my old shoes so they could look at my treadwear pattern, and I shared brand preferences and activity goals. I walked away with a pair of ASICS Gel-Cumulus 26, which feel like they will be perfect—for now.

  • Bike Milestone

    Today, I hit a post-surgery bike milestone of 5 miles. This feels especially huge because, due to the nature and journey of my injury, I haven’t been able to sit on my Peloton for a year and a half.

    I celebrated by getting some healthy tacos for Taco Tuesday, which made me instantly miss my usual unhealthy steak tacos with all the sauce that gives me heartburn. Aside from that, though, I’m trying not to let the Peloton brand experience bring me down. I’m still not ready for classes and, therefore, have yet to reactivate my Peloton account.

    They make using this machine that I supposedly “own” an intentionally bad experience without an account. A notification banner even hides access to important UI when riding. Finding the ability to “Just Ride” is in tiny fine print at the bottom of the screen, and they have clearly put a lot of thought into making sure it’s all terrible and a little shame-inducing to use without their pricey, monthly account. I had always planned on reactivating, but this has me thinking I need to possibly explore other non-subscription options at some point.

    Maybe I’ll stick with the Peloton and maybe not. What I care about most is just being able to be on a bike. At least my outdoor bikes are mine–for now.

  • Too Nice

    I have already written and deleted a bunch of paragraphs about this. But I think it boils down to this: I think being too nice is working against me now. At least in the current state of things, where somewhere along the lines this is getting translated to no boundaries and mistreatment.

    I can’t point to any single thing that brought this on, but rather a series of things that have built up over the past couple of months. I generally default to being nice and trusting at work and out and about in the world. Not all situations make this easy. It takes deliberate effort and some days are harder than others, especially when other people are unapologetically not making the same effort.

    However, something that is becoming less clear is how to be nice while also making sure people know and feel that this does not equate to weakness. Further, I also realize this is a complex and often sexist issue. With a few exceptions, this has not been so much of a problem until now. Maybe my tolerance level has changed, or maybe others are becoming less regulated. I don’t know. Either way, this has become a priority after a recent out-of-line DM, which, in a strange way, I’m grateful for since it was the final catalyst for seeking change.

  • Bye Brace

    I had my 6-week post-spine surgery checkup today, was cleared for PT, and got the green light to remove my brace. It’s equal parts thrilling and terrifying. This was my third spine surgery since July 2023, and I’m struggling to not carry that baggage with me and treat this as a fresh situation. Therapy (talk therapy) is helping, but I think time is needed more than anything. I asked the orthopedist’s office what protocols they have for monitoring the surrounding discs. They said none and that I need to enjoy my life and not think about that. I really need to figure out what that looks like.

    For now, I’m going to spend the day working less than usual, going for a walk, researching the perfect PT office, and just existing without overthinking anything. The sun is out. It’s warm. I actually still need to remove my brace, but I will soon. Probably.

  • Weekend Guilt

    Sunday is always the day when weekend guilt sets in. As a family, we tend to be homebodies. I like recovering from work, going for longer walks, and getting into internet things like starting and customizing this micro blog. I also looked into bird feeders with cameras so that I can put trygarden.ing to good use this year. Further, I’m still making my new office cozy and watching Conan’s new show. We have a family board game lined up for later. We will do more once the weather is consistently better, but you won’t ever find us going on sporadic trips or concerts or bars. We like going out to get plants or antiques and then just coming back home.

    I guess the problem is when other people ask me what we are doing and then share their intense, action-packed plans. The things I’ve listed don’t seem like much or very impressive when I say them out loud. And I can’t help but feel a bit of guilt as a result.

    The thing is, though, this is what we need and enjoy. I’m still healing from surgery. We have a lot of allergies in the house that make most trips too difficult. We like being cozy and around our stuff. I really want to shake the guilt of this, lean into it, and own it–I don’t need excuses! I guess it’s probably very boring to some, but a weekend itinerary sounds very stressful to me.

    Hi, my name is Joni, and I like doing nothing on the weekends.

  • Walking Pace Milestone

    I hit a new post-surgery walking pace this morning: 15:08 minute mile.

    I’ve been thinking a lot about whether or not I’ll get back on Strava, and I’m leaning towards no. I really liked the data, but I can get that with other apps. The social feature is a bit too painful when going through something like an epic injury. Most of all, though, I think it encouraged (for me) a lot of unhealthy habits and personal competition, and I really lost sight of my original goals and struggled to care about anything else. I couldn’t see this in the moment, but it’s pretty clear now. I don’t want to go back to that level of obsession.

    I’m happy to hit this little milestone right before the six-week mark. But, ya know, I’m not obsessing over it or anything!

  • Hello World

    I’m excited to try this platform out after seeing many of my favorite people praise it. This has motivated me to be unmotivated with actual work today and focus on cleaning up all my internet accounts and updating my colors everywhere.

    I can’t wait to follow along with everyone.