40, 40, Look Who's 40

Über excited about driving out into the countryside with my family! I know, I know, it doesn’t take much to make me happy these days. I just enjoy them so much! There is such a freedom when there is no debt and ya have a good paying, enjoyable job, that enables you to enjoy life without worrying about how you will pay for gas or food. To make it even better, it looks like the sun is going to make an appearance after all.

Moved to Tumblr

Don't forget that I'm over here now...   http://richertim.tumblr.com/

Tumblr

Tumblr is so much easier to post to that I think I'll continue my posts there and less so here. If you "Tumble" look me up there at http://www.tumblr.com/blog/richertim

Just Testing

I have tried a new app that sends my Blogger posts to Tumbler as well so seeing if it does it automatically or if I have to manually do it each time.

The Future Has a Fantastic View!

Hello, hello, helloooooooooo...

It's been a fantastic couple of weeks, months even, here in YEG (YEG is the International airport designation for Edmonton that people use here for Twitter and such). My wife's mom and brother have been with us for a visit and it's been so good to see them.

I didn't realize how much I missed everyone back in Ontario until I saw the two of them. Our last 6 years or so in Ontario were very stressful. We had some extreme life events happen at a time when our marriage was not as solid as I believed it to be. My wife and I had drifted apart and had really lost that support for one another that had always been there in the past, even to the point of losing our love for each other. During these years I had also pushed my friends and my faith away into the background. I was living for myself and not for my God or my family. For this I have truly and deeply repented. My wife and I both made mistakes, we are and never have been perfect. Our marriage was akin to the Titanic, we thought it "unsinkable" but learned that it was not. We have climbed aboard the life-raft and are now afloat together.

Our move to Edmonton was a turning point in our life. It forced all that had been hidden from each other to the surface and into the light. We have had obstacles to overcome and this is where our faith has been reignited, in our God and in each other. Although these obstacles are behind us now, we are still on a journey of healing together. The operative word there being "TOGETHER". Our love and desire for one another has been rekindled and I am speaking in faith that our marriage will be stronger in the end. Healing continues.

Long story short, if there is something to be learned from all that I have been through these past years, something learned that I can pass on to you, it would be that communication is always KEY in your relationships. Let those in your life know what you are going through and let them help you through it. Don't keep things bottled up inside, but also don't blow your top at every little thing, or even at all. Make sure that the people you are closest to, either your spouse, partner, children or friends are indeed closest to you. Meaning, don't put other things before them, that was my mistake and that almost cost my marriage. Putting myself and only what I wanted to do ahead of my wife sent her elsewhere to seek the love she craved and when you crave love it doesn't take much to turn your heart to another, which then sent me towards inappropriate things to satisfy what I felt was lacking, our hearts are fickle things. Nothing is more important than the people you are close to, not your job, not even your life. Learn to lay down your life on a daily basis for these people because if you can do that then they can only ever feel loved by you. Keep in mind always that love is not just a feeling, love is a choice, it is a verb not just a noun or adjective. It is a choice because you can choose to love even when the feeling isn't present, that may sound strange but it is true. I know from experience and if you choose to love feelings will inevitably return. Making a stand for your relationships and not throwing them to the wind and moving on speaks more volumes to the generations that are behind us than anything we could really ever say. We give up too easily. Nothing worth having is ever easy, and nothing easy is ever really worth having...

TR

Been Awhile

Life is going great here in Edmonton. Finally all settled in. Job is really good, family is well and my relationship with my wife is fantastic. So many many things to enjoy in Edmonton we're taking advantage of as much as we can. Took a beautiful walk through Terwillegar Park with my wife and son. It's amazing that such beautiful spaces exist within the boundaries of the city.

I leave you with a couple shots of our hike.

Good Times

A month has snuck by since my last post and I have a few things to share. First in that list is my acquisition of a job here in Edmonton. I was hired a little over a month ago as a JR. Prepress Technician and Designer at Printworks LTD. it is a really nice job, pretty laid back but busy. I'm able to do some design/layout work while learning all about the print industry. I work with a great group of people and for a really great General Manager. I am definitely ready to pick up some freelance work as well though, or at the very least just start working on some personal projects . On a second note my wife and I have had a rekindling of our marriage and love for each other that makes being in a new city, with a new job much easier to handle.

TR

Welcome to 2013

I wonder at times if one is considered a blogger if they are not blogging on a regular basis. A Blogger is defined as: someone who keeps and updates a blog, it doesn't say it has to be on a regular basis, although a person can start to feel guilty if they aren't doing so.

It isn't that I don't want to blog, I guess it's more on the side of - what does one blog about? I tend to ramble on about various aspects of my life, when I should just narrow it down and make a more concerted effort to blog on things that are more "bloggable". Perhaps that should be my resolution for 2013 (even though I tend not to make such things) to make a more bloggable blog.

Now that I am living in Edmonton there should be a vast plethora of things to write and photograph about and share here. For instance, my family and I took in Candy Cane Lane last week. Candy Cane Lane is a decorating event on a single street stretching for 8 blocks where almost every house is a fantastic setup of lights, models and music. Started back in 1968, it still continues today. There are sleigh rides, hot chocolate and countless people walking up both sides of the street. On either side, every other block or so, there are huge bins for people to make donations to the local food banks. It was a heartwarming and endearing time that I'm sure my family and I will include in our holiday traditions from now on.

TR

Here's a pic of one of the setups, it's a Snowman tanning bed :)

It Continues...

In the beginning there was the move and it was good and life-giving. A chance to start over somewhere fresh and unencumbered. There was new hope, new experiences, new horizons, but that was then, this is now, now there is merely the drive. The drive to find work, the drive to procure gainful employment. This is a more difficult feat than I was lead to believe. It is a new world here and therefore I have left behind all those whom I knew and respected and networked with, creating an empty slate that has yet to be filled. I am hoping that this slate will become full again once I have entered the Graphic Design work force here. At this point in time I wonder, am I missing something? Is it my credentials or the province that I have come from? Is there some unwritten rule or bias towards Ontarians that I am unaware of? Or do I merely lack the necessary qualifications that the majority of completely "over-reaching" employers are looking for? I can't imagine anyone living up to the expectations of many of the graphic design postings here and what the employers are looking for. Often absolutely unreasonable and insane, requiring not only knowledge of graphic design and all programs associated with that profession but also knowledge of multiple coding or programming languages, as if that is ever part of a graphic design program. 

Well I guess I have griped enough now. Time to get back to my website redesign. 

TTFN

TR

Adventure Continues...

It's almost the end of my first month here in Edmonton and interviews are starting to happen. I have applied at multiple, multiple, multiple places including a Wine/beer store just around the corner from me that is looking for "Brewcrew" people. It is fantastic living here in Edmonton, everything is so convenient. I have started getting more and more feeds on my Twitter (@richertim) that are art/media related to Edmonton and can't wait to start getting plugged in to that scene here. It would indeed be much more fun if I had been able to bring all my friends to Edmonton with me, but I do look forward to meeting new people and making more friends here. To all of you back "home" in Ontario, keep the Facebook updates going I don't want to lose touch with any of you. 

I leave you with a photo from Edmonton that I took on my first visit here when my wife and I were looking for a rental home. 

Thanks for reading, stay tuned always more to come. 

TR

S'all Good.

My last post was over a month ago now, September 22nd to be exact. I shared about our house selling and the move to Edmonton. We have now been here for two full weeks and we are adjusting nicely. Our kids are meeting new people and my wife has started a new job at a Walmart just around the corner from us, it's not a big paying job right now but something to get started at least. I've applied to quite a few design jobs but have to wait for the postings to run their course before they go through the resumes. I am not wanting to rush out and take just any job that I can find, I want to find a position that I can truly enjoy and sink my talents into. There are so many opportunities here and I am slowly getting in touch with various art and media groups. It is very difficult to start from scratch again, to re-network and find connections here in Edmonton. One step at a time I guess, one step at a time... 

TR 

On The Horizon

I am plagued with bitter-sweet feelings this week. Our house has sold and our closing date is quickly approaching, filling me with great excitement but also with much trepidation. We have so many things to get done, mostly packing and eliminating items we aren't taking, but the thought of the move that I am taking my family on is at times overwhelming. After much research on various cities across this great country we decided on Edmonton, Alberta. Not only a beautiful city, it is chock full of festivals, arts, great education and medical facilities, low income tax, lowest gas prices, high-paying jobs (most with full benefits), I could go on and on. Opportunities abound and you don't have to be bilingual, as is the case for many jobs here in Northern Ontario and in Ottawa, another city we had looked into.

My time working with Melissa Anwatin on "Simplified Living" was a fantastic experience but came to an end the beginning of August after my family and I settled on where we were moving to. I wish her all the best as she continues forward with it. My hope is to find a studio in Edmonton that I can fit into and really begin to build my career as a Graphic Designer.

With everything that still needs to be done for the move, including a fly out with my wife to secure housing, I don't think I will be posting again until we are settled in out west.

Until then,
TR

Photo Editing

It's been a couple of weeks since I had posted anything so I thought I'd post a few photo edits that I did up yesterday. I took these photos last summer at the North Bay Heritage festival. I wanted to give them an older 35mm kind of look. I think I succeeded to a certain extent.

Enjoy :)

TR

Busy, Busy, Busy...

I know, I know, it's been a little while since I posted last, which is actually quite a good thing. It means that I've been busy. Not only am I a stay-at-home dad these days, but studio work has really picked up with MATR Designs. We have completed the French River Tourism Guide and have almost completed one similar for the St. Charles Municipality. We have a fairly large website on the go currently as well, with a few other estimates out in the wind waiting on decisions from clients. The 4th issue of Simplified Living is now out and we (and by we I mean myself and my design partner Melissa Anwatin), are currently working on issue #5 due out for August/September. On top of all that, school is almost out for the kids which will mean, most likely, endless amounts of time on the road driving them to work/friends/events/ etc... That pretty much sums up the last little while, and probably the next little while as well, but stay tuned, I definitely need to get back into regular posting soon...

TR

Here's an illustration I had done for one of the articles in issue #3 of Simplified Living. It was about a child's ability to utilize their imagination at every moment.

It has been awhile since I've posted anything so I wanted to at least post to let you know all is well. I have been working pretty steady with my partner at MATR Design. Our next issue of Simplified Living will be on the stands in less than 3 weeks so keep your eyes open if you are in or around Northern Ontario. TR

New horizons

Well it's official, only one more week of work and I'll be officially unemployed. Looks like more studio work is coming down the pike though for my new design studio MATR Design, which is a collaboration with Melissa Anwatin, whom I work with on Simplified Living Magazine.

It's been quite slow for a few months now and for the last month I was cut back to 3 shifts a week. Since I was traveling 200km a day (round trip) it was becoming evident that it wouldn't be economically feasible to continue working there. Today I was informed that next week would be my last week. I have learned over the years (here comes the sage words), that when one door closes another opens. It's time to get MATR Design up and running, so look out world... Here we come.

 

Nothing Major

Getting in the groove of working on the magazine Simplified Living, with my partner-in-crime Melissa Anwatin. Working on the third issue now. Between the two of us we have 6 articles already done. Profile and photo shoot to do this weekend. Heading Down to Parry Sound for this one. Ramping up to be another great issue! TR

Hello, hello...

Well this is definitely a long time in coming. I realized this morning that it has been quite some time since I have posted here. Balancing family, work and freelance projects has been keeping me quite busy these days.
For those of you who may not know, a colleague from school and I have partnered to start our own studio MATR Designs, a name made from the combination of the first letters of our names, but with a second meaning of making designs that "MATR." Under this studio we have started producing our own magazine titled "Simplified Living." It's a great magazine promoting: Home, Health and Living; a Martha Stewart meets Good Housekeeping kind of thing. We have interesting and helpful articles and really push large photographic spreads. The idea behind the magazine is to get people to slow down, relax and enjoy life a little bit more than they may be doing currently. Our first issue hit the stands on December 3rd, and our second issue will be hitting stands on February 1st. We publish six times a year, and believe me, it's a rush to get everything done on time.

So if you happen to be in the Near North area of Ontario, keep your eyes open for an issue of it, sit back, relax and enjoy.

Here's a photo of one of the recipes from our first issue, it's a roasted vegetable/bean stew.

Until next time, stay well...

TR

Simplified Living

As I mentioned in my last post, I have good things to discuss! Since my last post I have seen the release of a collaborative project between myself and my studio partner Melissa Anwatin of our first magazine, titled "Simplified Living." In it we discuss health, home and living. It's all about slowing down and taking things slower, eating and living healthier and enjoying life in general in our local communities. Our hope is to eventually cover between Manitoulin Island all the way down to the Muskoka region and many places in between. Our first issue met with resounding success and we ran out. We are contemplating a second printing before our next issue comes out.

Here are a few screen-caps of our first issue.

Long Time No Post

Well, I'd say this is long overdue. Seems like ages since I have blogged, and indeed it has. I have been very busy of late, both with my day job and with a very large side project that will be revealed soon.

It has been a very enjoyable fall so far, spending lots of time with family and friends. I definitely missed that over the last three years while I was in school. Even though I'm almost as busy these days, by being able to set my own deadlines it is much easier to fit in social times.

Well, I guess that's it for now. I'll have a lot more to post soon so stay tuned :)

TR