Archives: Inside the House

Here at the House, there's a large mural in our conference room. The mural—designed by an Intiman set designer—is pretty dramatic and features a pastoral scene . . . I think. There's a narrative happening within it, and I've tried to decipher the story on many a Monday staff meeting. Anyway, we're refreshing the ground floor space with some expansive new whiteboards so we can use the room even more effectively in ideation sessions (the downstairs and upstairs meeting rooms have already added whiteboard amenities; you can never have enough whiteboards—I want whiteboard clothing!). Have a look at some possibilities created by designer Dave Cole.

Which one is your favorite?

Thanks to my colleagues' generosity and matching funds from PBDH, we were able to make a substantial donation to the American Red Cross.

I share this, not to boast, but to point out that doing something, anything is greater help for the Japanese people—more than ONLY watching the news.

Let's not be shy about reaching out to everyone in our network/industry to help the people suffering in Japan.

It simply starts with, "What can we do to help." (Thanks, Leslie.) Then act upon it.

Here are some ways you can help, either on your own, or by banding together with a colleague, classmate or friend:

The American Red Cross
www.redcross.org

Students Rebuild
www.studentsrebuild.org/japan/

Phinney Bischoff designer, David Cole (That's me, so please forgive the awkward third person writing here), will be showing some new art in Fremont during the month of April. The show opens Friday evening, during the Fremont Art Walk, at Portage Bay Goods. Portage Bay Goods is a wonderful little gift shop, full of local art and quirky nonsense - highly recommend for last-minute gift buyers, designers and anyone who appreciates stuff with a lot of visual appeal.

On display (and for sale) will be a collection of original paintings, drawings and prints. There is a sort of a theme: something to do with robots, bicycles and pets in formal wear - but there is also a fair share of randomness mixed in. The latest work includes some very recent, very limited edition, hand-printed greeting cards.

For anyone who hasn't been to an Art Walk event yet, you're missing out. You can see scads of work by a variety of artists (often highly purchasable), enjoy some free wine and spinach dip and meet people (frequently the same artists who are showing). It's a great way to get inspired or just have a fun night out.

A semi-edited-PG-version of a Mad Lib from our Valentine’s Day staff meeting. Not really so much a fairy tale — more like a true story!

I recently attended a Puget Sound Business Journal event on clarifying your purpose and passion, and the importance of approaching business relationships with cooperation and collaboration in mind (even with competitors). It's key to establish internal clarity, understand how it translates to successful external relationships, and constantly re-evalutate and adjust to overcome those roadblocks that always appear and be in tune with yourself and organization.

A closing thought:
A bend in the road is not the end of the road unless you forget to make a turn.

As a part of our never-ending improvements to the PBDH Creative Lounge, we recently repainted - including adding a mural to two of the previously boring hallway walls. The new vibe was so well liked that we have decided to extend the artwork all the way up the stairwell!

Here's a little vid showing some of the mural painting process.