Blank Canvas Syndrome
Like they say, jump in with both feet. Fake it 'till you make it. Do it before you're ready. The magic (and growth) happens outside your comfort zone. Become it. If it was easy, everyone would do it… ?
OK.
I usually feel like I don't know what I'm doing. But again, usually, I do manage to figure it out. I often feel like I don't have anything to say. Sometimes I'll scream it out loud anyway. A whisper is always a choice too, to see if anyone is listening. I'm getting better at that. Listening. It is a challenge sometimes.
Any of this sound or feel familiar? Great! I love it when someone can be honest with themselves. We've all been there at one time or another. And we adapt.
I plant myself behind a keyboard. Learn, create, and experiment all I can until more pressing matters arise. Sometimes by the time I can dig back into it, seems everything I thought I knew has become obsolete. It's fun!
Lather, rinse, repeat, bang your head. Metal Health will drive you mad.
In the meantime while I figure out how to figure it out, I've got some space to fill here. It's also a great exercise in writing and organizing my thoughts. One day I'll look back on this first post and it will be an excellent low water mark against how far I've come. Bang your head.
I've gotten far enough to design and develop this website —show off my stuff. I used only the most vanilla of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. If you want a great structure, you better build a strong foundation. I've got some momentum going. If I can keep it up while also helping other people, all the better.
The best time to sandbox is when no one is watching yet.
Perish the thought I ever get anonyone's attention
About
Hello, My name's Tony. Thanks for dropping by.
Some time ago, I went “Back to School” —no Rodney Dangerfield jokes, graduating with an A.A.S. IT Mgmt. / Web Design and Development. School was a fine start but knew I could do better if I wanted to help people. Ever the autodidact I decided to invest more time to better educate myself. This website represents my current abilities in both design and development. Currently anyway, (wink wink). I won't always have all the answers, but I know where to find them. Or I'll keep looking. One of the hardest things I've done lately is write this bio.
The best way to learn is to do. What are you up to, use some help?
Drop me a line and let's talk: tony@anthonyjames.design
Thoughts
Oh, I've got some. Let's keep it simple for now, while I work out the logistics of the thing. The Code.
This space is going to be archive for my old main content posts. You know, up there ↑
And trust me, line length will be top priority. Just so you know I know.
First, I have to grapple with knowing many people are much better writers than I. Presumably they also have more important things to say. And who would ever care what I have to say anyway. Wasn't it in Texas they like to say the smallest dog barks the loudest? Who needs that? I do read a lot, observe and think a lot and come up with some pretty novel concepts, as far as I'm concerned. After I pat myself on the back about it, I'll read some 800 year old book and what-do-you-know. They had that concept back then, already? Before powdered milk even! Damn It.
Then again, writing stuff out always has been a great way to sort things out and understand myself better. If nothing else I'll get better at communicating in general, even if no one else ever sees it. And after all that effort, why not toss it out there. Up there.
But that distraction is for another day. I could go on tweaking —and stalling, forever.
I gotta go live with this thing. Ready or not.
Portfolio
Web Design and Development°
My friend Mae was looking for a clean and simple website to share her poetry. Check it out at Nobody Likes Poetry if you're a poetry aficionado.
Mercurial YoYo
This one is in early stages of exploration and will be another chance to exercise restraint. It's easy to throw everything and the kitchen sink at a creation. That's part of the fun of it, going wild. Even as I know a design isn't done when you can't add any more, it's done when you can't take anything else away. Simple but elegant and functional. It's an art in itself.
♣ Classic Motor Coach Mockazine ♣
Once upon a time, the back‐forty at my grandpa's was home for his proud, decaying collection of 87 Studebaker's. Plus two school buses. I used to spend hours climbing around and pretending to drive them.
Time wore on, as it will. The family found ourselves with the task of clearing them out. We found homes for the ones we could. The rest well, at least I've got the photographs. I put one of the bus photos to good use in a project for a magazine layout class. It was well received, which was nice.
♥ Buzzy Bee Mead ♥
Every so often, my sister and I brew up a batch of mead. It's a honey wine that's easy to make. Easy to mess up.
There have been a couple long waits for a batch to do its thing only to end up with flat, syrupy goo. We took notes. We made adjustments. We try, tried again. We took a ribbon at the local fair. I thought that was a great excuse to give us a little polish so I designed a faux brand and label, for the bottles. And posterity, of course.
Click through the pics for more.
‡ Digital Photo Editing ‡
This here is an image of an old church from way back. When?
I'm not quite sure of the when but it was somewhere between the discovery of electricity and pavement.
They had yet to perfect the parking lot, but produce a photograph? No problem. Yes, I jest. Only in fun. The Web can be so dry sometimes.
Nonetheless, it is an interesting photo. It was a perfect candidate to practice some digital photo editing.
Click on the photo for before and after.
≅ Gift Box Design ≅
Got my hands on a die-cutting machine —consumer model, don't get excited; and do my best to find its limits.
Man vs. Machine vs. Cardstock.
Certain the gift shops I'm acquainted with would be interested in such a novel idea, I pushed through the hard times. Onward to victory!
There were no takers. Just as well. Producing them at scale would have killed me.
Click on the photos for a peek at the insides.
Contact Me
Well that's what I'm up to, lately. In a nutshell. If you like what you see and think I'd be a good fit and of some help in what you've got going on, I'd love to hear from you: tony@anthonyjames.design
☺ Thanks for dropping by ☺