the pod bay door

:: I’ve been in considerable pain for the past few days, upper body pain on my left side. No, it’s not heart-related. The symptoms suggest shingles, but there is no rash or reddened skin. It hurts to put on a shirt, or sit in my car, as the pain is on the left side of my back, as well as my front ribs on the same side. It’s annoying (duh) and maddening, because the doctor can’t really treat it as shingles, unless the rash or blisters appear. Also, constant pain is exhausting. I can focus, go to work, etc., but by supper-time, I’m worn out.

I leave for Nashville on Saturday, so I am predictably concerned, and very frustrated. I don’t want to go there, not knowing if whateverthehell I have will worsen. So I have to take it day to day.

:: Derryl sent a note about the availability of SCTV on DVD. This 5-disc set covers the first season of SCTV Network 90, which ran on NBC in the early 80s. I’ve added it to my wish list.

I loved SCTV, and wonder if the classic SCTV 30-minute episodes will ever be available on DVD. Those shows were produced in Toronto, and in 1980-81, in Edmonton. There is a good website devoted to SCTV here, which links to the official Second City web site, among others.

:: DDB is a worldwide advertising agency (206 offices in 96 countries). They seem to thrive and exist on ideas. Their web site is worth a look. Even better, check out the Canadian DDB site (you’ll need Flash). Launch the Canadian site, and watch the fat men in yellow pajamas. It’s fascinating. I think I’d like to work for them. The web site screams sense of humour, and freedom to create. From the “Careers” section of the Canadian site:

Do you have a lot of crappy ideas? If so, we’d like to hear from you. You see, we’ve found that really creative people tend to have lots of ideas – most of them lousy. And that’s okay. As Thomas Edison once said, “I’ve never failed. I’ve simply discovered 12,000 ideas that don’t work.” (Granted, 12,000 “boo-boo’s” seems a little high, but you get the point.)

Interested? Write to us at igottawork@ddbcanada.com and we can discuss acceptable rates of failure.

The work culture has its foundation in four freedoms: from fear, to fail, from chaos, and to be. Among the tenets of these freedoms:

• Management by intimidation has no place in an organization dedicated to nurturing creativity.
• It is the job of management to first point talented people in the right direction and then to judge their work. But if the approach to that work is responsible and intelligent, people must never be criticized for daring to fail.
• Each individual has a right to be treated with dignity, to be supported in his or her ambitions for higher achievement, and to be provided with a place where a career can grow in the direction of one’s own choosing. But beyond providing for professional growth, talent must be permitted to enjoy a life in which there is also time for laughter, and music, and love, and celebration, and the space to enjoy them.

Can I start tomorrow?

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