Controlled Chaos

While I constantly jot down thoughts, ideas, and interesting discoveries, tracking how I spend my time feels somewhat unnatural. It’s only when I pause to reflect on my week, just before it all becomes a hazy blur, that I truly realize the extent of the time I have and how much of it I waste. To move forward, I recognize the need to introduce more structure into my routine. One of my current challenges is effectively harnessing my energy to accomplish tasks. I currently manage my life through my Notes app and calendar, and in week five, my schedule looked something like this:

Week 5

Saturday:

12:00 AM – 9:00 AM: rested

9:00 AM – 10:00 AM: Breakfast with Alex – Alberto’s Jr. delivered

11:00 AM – 4 PM: rested

4:00 PM – 6:30 PM: Cleaned (Took out trash and recycling, sanitized kitchen and bathroom, did laundry, vacuumed and mopped floors, dusted surfaces, put laundry away, gave Zelda a bath and a haircut)

6:30 PM – 9:30 PM: Our friend Robert came over we caught up on life, ordered Thai food. 

10:00 PM – 12AM: rested

Sunday:

12AM-2:30 AM: rested

2:30 AM – 3:30 AM: Watched What We Do In The Shadows on Hulu

3:30 AM – 9:00 AM: rested

9:00 AM – 10:00 AM: Responded to emails and messages

10:00 AM – 1:00 PM: Worked on sketches for new SASF logo and word mark, finished creating icons for 3 sets of words, took little breaks every hour

1:00 PM – 4:00 PM: Made rice and beans, hung out with Alex and watched shows, got ready to go to my friend’s 40th birthday party. 

4:00 PM – 5:00 PM: Picked up deodorant and other items at Walgreens, Drove to West Seattle

5:00 PM – 7:30 PM: Socialized at the party, ate food, had a cocktail

7:30 PM – 10:30 PM: Went back to our friend’s place to hang some more

10:30PM – 11:00 PM: Drove home to Lake City

11:00 PM-12:00 AM:  Tried to wind down, got ready for sleep

Monday 

12:00 AM-5:00 AM: rested

5 AM – 7 AM: Fed the pets, cleaned, started getting ready for the day

8 AM-9 AM: Felt feverish and emotionally drained, cried, decided to learn from home, emailed Gabe

10 AM-12 PM: rested

1 PM-3 PM: Fed the pets, cleaned, worked on New Wave presentation (finished researching How & Why)

4 PM-6 PM: Finished Production Project 3 sets of words

6 PM – 12 AM: organized my life, relaxed, got ready for bed

Tuesday:

12 AM – 7 AM: rested

7:00 AM – 8:00 AM: Fed the pets, cleaned up a little for the night before, put away laundry,  got ready for school

8:00 AM – 9:00 AM: Left apartment, drove to Northgate station, took the train to Capitol Hill Station, walked swiftly to class

9:00 AM – 12:30 PM: Word sets critique, in class demos, lunch

12:30 PM – 1:30 PM: Worked on photo and sketches for graphic translation

1:30 PM – 2:30 PM: Met with Daina to work on website 

2:30 PM – 3 PM: Packed up, walked to train station, took train to Northgate

3 PM – 4 PM: Waited for Alex to pick me up, called my mom to see how they were doing (Dad has Covid, Mom does not) 

4 PM – 4:30 PM: Rode home together

4:30 PM – 6 PM: Fed the pets, made rice and beans, relaxed with Alex

6 PM – 8 PM: Worked on logo for New Media in Illustrator 

8 Pm – 12 AM: rested

Wednesday:

12 AM – 5 AM: rested

5:00 AM – 7:00 AM: Finished 30 sketches for new SASF logo and word mark, fed the pets, took meds, threw up 5 times, nose started bleeding, emailed Jill, stayed home

8:00 AM – 12PM: rested

12 PM-2 PM: Made Instant Ramen, took a shower, started laundry

2PM-3 PM: Attended office hours with Erik to work on website

4 PM-8 PM: Worked on website (watched videos, brute force trial and error, looked for images)

8 PM-12:00 AM: rested

Thursday:

12 AM – 6:00 AM: rested

7:00 AM – 8:00 AM: Fed the pets, cleaned up a little for the night before, put away laundry,  got ready for school

8:00 AM – 9:00 AM: Left apartment, drove to Northgate station, Took the train to Capitol Hill Station, Walked swiftly to class

9:00 AM – 11:00 AM: Presented website, worked website checklist for final presentation

11:00 AM – 12:00 PM: Lunch break 

12:00 PM – 2:00 PM: Erik reviewed everything we had covered so far, participated in user testing with Alumni

2:00 PM – 2:30 PM: Met with research group to discuss outline for the presentation and next steps

3:00 PM – 3:30 PM: Organized schedule and to do list

3:30 PM – 4 PM: Walked to the train station, rode to Westlake, walked to Pike Place, sat outside the symphony 

4:30 PM – 5:30 PM: Walked to The Shop By Porter, talked to Alyssa, had a beer, walked back to Pike Place, got hum bao from Mee Sum Pastry

5:30 PM – 6:30 PM: Drove home 

6:30 PM – 7 PM: Fed pets, cleaned up apartment, started more laundry

7 PM – 10 PM: rested

10 PM – 12 AM: Finished logo for new media module, finished blog post, got ready for bed

Jadu Heart Poster

What a fun assignement for class show and tell! I got to research the band Jadu Heart and design their poster for Capitol Hill Block Party. The English duo of Diva Jeffrey and Alex Headford has amassed a cult-like following making music heavily influenced by bands before them such as Pixies, My Bloody Valentine and Belle and Sebastian. To get a sense of their vibe and style I browsed their merch, listened to their music, watched their videos and took notes. Their lyrics examine the complexities of human emotions and a smattering of shoegaze, psych-rock, and grungy lo-fi make up their sound. Their visual style is a little gothic, spooky, and DIY. They shoot a lot of their photos and video in open natural spaces juxtaposed with artificial equipment such as amplifiers. As I listened to their song Derealization, I imagined derealization as a creature that only people living in a dream-like state could see. 

Check them out!

Sami Zamora