Creative Space 2.0

This weekend marked the first time in recent memory that I had an abundance of free time. I had no work, no photo shoots planned, and no real pressing chores or errands to get done. With the exception of plans to go watch the Oscars on Sunday night, I had two days to just lay on the couch. Sadly, I never got around to that.

On Friday after work I was going through my Around the Hat postcards to organize them, and it struck me how my apartment had become consumed by side projects. A photo book to scan for my folks was all over my desk, some video tapes were stacked across the kitchen counter, and my prints and postcards filled the dining and coffee table. There wasn't a free surface to actually work anywhere anymore. I suppose that's what kicked off the idea, because right then I decided it was time to upgrade my work space.

Come Saturday I was out the door and decided to take a road trip to the IKEA in Calgary. Not only did I already know what I wanted from there, but it was an easy excuse to do some joyriding in my new 300. It was actually a lot of fun, and the idea of building a more efficient work space was a good motivator. I ended up buying a new shelf, desk extension, table top, mountable work lamp, and a couple of large wall frames.  

This is what my desk / edit suite started out as, and below are the pictures of the outcome after all of the building, deconstructing, purging, and reorganizing. It turned out not to be a very relaxed weekend until Sunday night, but I'm loving all of the extra desk space to lay projects out now. I think it looks pretty good too.

BEFORE. My desk before the new shelf and extension.

AFTER. My updated work space.

Hycroft China Coffee Mug

Much like the Hycroft cowboy hat souvenir or the mini Medalta jug, this Hycroft mug is another cool bit of Medicine Hat history I have in my collection. My friend Andrea gave me this, and it's stamped with the classic Hycroft 22K gold paint on the bottom. 


There was another style of mug that seems like the more stereotypical design associated with Hycroft that had a little circular handle for your finger. What's cool about this one though is the "Coffee Break" message on the side, and the "Now Back to Work" painted on the inside of the cup. I love the vintage olive colour too.  

Jeeves No More

Today marks the end of my other online project, Jeeves and the Jaguar.  Started back in June 2011, I created the site to document my travels in my Jaguar XJ8 and my love of the pop culture that surrounded it. I retired the car this month after the transmission went, but I wanted to mark the ending with a final post on Jeeves by sharing some of my favorite pictures. See the conclusion here.