Sisyphus by Titian / 1549

Well, it’s finally happened: I have laid the groundwork to become yet another online asshole. Yes, now that I have joined the burgeoning ranks of the blogosphere, I, too, can make my opinion known to anyone in the world-wide-web with frightening ease and frequency.

Ironically, I used to publish opinion pieces about various personal and professional matters on my very first web site (then eurodan.net)—almost 10 years ago. However, at some point, I decided that my online presence should just be a relatively objective record of my graphic design work—basically, an online portfolio. I think this happened when I started becoming more concerned with seeming “professional” or something.

The pure portfolio sites (there have been several iterations) served me well, I suppose. In the late ’90s, the dot-com boom was deafening (especially in Seattle), and I knew that even my basic knowledge of digital media would give me an edge on my otherwise-more-qualified competition for design jobs, and I used it to good effect. Indeed, it was almost schtick: I wouldn’t bring anything to interviews—not even a resume; when they asked me if I had anything to show, I would casually mention “Oh, it’s all online,” as if anyone who had anything other than a web site for their portfolio was terribly passé. Keep in mind that hardly any of these jobs actually involved any digital media design. Nevertheless, my plan worked, for a while… Read the rest of this entry »