So true about how our design sense spills over into other aspects of our lives. But I have found my puzzle-solving trait coming in handy as of late as I pack for our move in 9 days and counting!!!!! Filling a box is a work in progress--I work each and every item into its own special area to attain "the perfect pack job". Total organization.

However, due to this "laying out and strive for perfection" characteristic, I've found a need for a messy outlet to avoid overload: Tupperware®. Mine is never organized nor shall it ever be. Mismatched covers and warped containers keep me on an even keel.

"Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible."
— Frank Zappa

I used to be that way when I was a fresh young designer - or that way at a hyper-level. Everything I looked at I would critique or wonder how they accomplished it either via the printing process or on the computer.

I think I still do that, but now it's more of a background kind of "hmm... I wonder...". It doesn't quite take over my life so much that I feel frustrated by it.

It's the nature of having a profession. I was hanging out with a friend and her boyfriend. Her boyfriend's a contractor who specializes in concrete work, and there was one day we were walking into a restaurant and he immediately points down at the ground and says 'shit, what an awful patch job!". I look down to see some patching on the concrete sidewalk, but I really didn't care much about it. It amused me when he pointed it out, though, because I know the same thing goes on in my head when I see a really bad ad layout.

In any case, I enjoy life, though. I don't feel frustrated at my eyes constantly seeking out design techniques and the like. Sometimes I think I get to enjoy certain things more than others might... I watched Wall-E this weekend, and I just remained totally amazed and inspired at the design work that went into the Wall-E character in particular. I was particularly fascinated by how they achieved the reflections and highlights in his binocular "eyes". Just beautiful work.