WhitespaceLover

29 April 2012

Paragliding: Graphic Designer on Air

876,600 hours to live. After that last entry and a long silence, you’re probably expecting a packed suitcase, a one-way ticket to Europe and early Oktoberfest photos. Unfortunately that is not how things turned out. Just because you realized how you’re trading your time (your life) in the name of sleek designs, it doesn’t mean that you should pull off Justin Timberlake’s stunt in the movie In Time.
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You must do something to compensate if you can’t say au revoir to being a graphic designer yet. Living like a rockstar at night is an option but paragliding might be better. It’s like being Peter Pan with a giant kite as replacement for happy thoughts and fairy dust. Of course, it won’t be as magical as flying over London to Neverland but I imagine the feeling would be the same, seeing Port Au Prince from a bird’s eye view.
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Copyright © Whitespacelover a.k.a. Pong Li since 2010 All Rights Reserved, unless stated otherwise. You may copy and/or use the content of this blog only if you acknowledge this blog and other parties (if there is any) as the source of the material.

16 October 2011

How Much Does a Graphic Designer Cost?

I don't know if this realization is liberating or depressing. 876,600 hours to live. Unless I'm wrong. Graphic designers are not really good in math. Click infographics to enlarge.

You have 876,600 hours to live! Assuming you’ll reach your 100th birthday. If my calculation is correct: there are 24 hours in any given day. 365.25 days in a year, that’s 8,766 hours. Multiplied by 100 years, that’s 876,600 hours to live if you were born right now and if you'll reach 100 years old.
Freelancers, in-house creatives, corporate/office, NGO, factory workers etc. We all have something in common, we’re paid based on the number of hours worked. Or if you’re a Tim Ferriss fan, that’s number of hours spent looking busy inside an office.
I just realized something today; we’re not paid for our time but for our life. So when someone asks you how much is your per hour rate, think of this: you have 876, 600 hours to live. How much does your life cost?

EDIT: After a good chat with a new friend and some much needed sleep, woke up today feeling refreshed and liberated being aware that everyone has 876,600 hours to live... assuming you'll live to a hundred.

Copyright © Whitespacelover a.k.a. poNg Lizardo 2011 All Rights Reserved, unless stated otherwise. You may copy and/or use the content of this blog only if you acknowledge this blog and other parties (if there is any) as the source of the material.

10 October 2011

On Being a Graphic Designer in Haiti

We woke up one morning to this, part of the mountain at the back of our building fell. Luckily my car is safe, the rubble stopped at the nose of the car. ;-)

Graphic Designer, Montagne Noir, Haiti—I once asked for clean running water, continuous electric service and a bit of silence in an apartment. The landlord and the real estate agent looked at me as if I’m asking for some luxury item like Zafiro’s $100,000 razor made from meteorites (and yes, that razor is already on sale!). What’s next, they’ll say people need to pay taxes for their human rights?

Now I believe Maslow when he said that creativity and art ranks as one of the highest human needs that could only be satisfied once you’ve fulfilled your basic needs. It’s hard to create great designs when your head is still trying to understand how the sink could spew murky water, rice and beans all over your kitchen, mmmm smell the morning air! Or when you're still dazed on how part of the mountain fell on the parking lot crushing the neighbors' cars and making the parking lot as useful as coffee to an insomniac. This is what a graphic designer has to deal with in Haiti. Life is a bit complicated here (understatement). It’s a miracle sometimes how we could produce nice designs when the mountain is literally falling over our heads. Though, I should say, when things work life's a bliss. When it doesn't... well, it's like walking into the twilight zone mixed with the worst of Dante's inferno.
Maybe Maslow is not completely right. But I like his triangle…

Maslow's Hierarchy of needs. Courtesy of Wikimedia.

05 September 2011

Apartment in Haiti Lessons

Living room / dining room where I love to work.

Much has been said about Haiti and its daily catastrophes, but not much about expats moving to a new apartment… and after months of skirmish with landlords and ladies, Whitespacelover has moved to Montagne Noir! A.K.A. my excuse for blog inactivity!
So it’s time for a useful entry for expats and for those who are moving to Haiti.
As a graphic designer, I put much emphasis on my personal environment. In a perfect world it would be silent and well-designed but I live in a not so perfect piece of Haiti in Montagne Noir. So, here are some tips to keep in mind when finding a place in Haiti.

1. Hire a local real estate agent. Sure they may charge a 50%-of-the-rent-fee but they will find you a place with your budget and specifications. They will also help you out with issues that you might encounter. They also make the process of finding a place in Haiti faster and easier.
2. Location, location. Take places close to PV (Pétion Ville). Higher than PV like Laboule and Kenscoff is nicer but travel time to PV ranges from: with traffic 1-1.5 hours and without traffic 10-20 minutes. Lower than PV, well, good luck. Also, never take a place that is too isolated.
3. Once you find a place, check if it’s structurally sound. Then check if you have electricity 24-hours a day and "clean" running water—clean meaning you don’t see green stuff or particles floating on the water and it doesn’t smell too much of Clorox.

Custom-made corner desk in the study room that is rarely used. Dining room is better for work. ;-)

4. Very important, prick your ears. If you can hear cars passing by or people talking then it only gets worst. So, abandon or buy some earplugs or noise cancelling earphones.

5. Look for generators. If you see it, you’ll probably hear it. The only choice here is to go look for a new place. Otherwise you’ll never get peace in your new place. You don’t want to sleep to the hum of diesel engines at night or wake up to the early morning fumes.

6. They say the devil is in the details. Look under the sinks, inside the closets, toilet bowls and turn on faucets and showers. If you see something leaking or water trails ask to get it fixed before you move.

7. Test the doorknobs and locks. Though not common, it’s not unheard of people getting locked in or out of their apartments.

So, there you have it. Keep in mind though that we’re in Haiti and most places may not be up to the standards of the country that you used to live in. Be patient and learn to adapt to it.

16 August 2011

Digital Illustration: Le Clos, Haiti

When somewhere new they say, “do as the Romans do.” In Haiti, well… This digital conté crayon drawing of where we used to live was an attempt in naïve style—a popular style in Haiti. Tried my best to be naïve. Unfortunately, when you’re a designer things has to make visual sense, perspective, colors, light and shadows etc. and this logic is like OS X pre-installed in your brain. Though what’s good about being a designer is even if you can’t be naïve, you can still wiggle your way out to create a half-way naïve art. Actually, more like wiggling your way into creating Frankenstein.