I hope you were in my book.

Looking at my calendar reminded me of all the work that had to take place between the appointments on the calendar. Then came the people.

Some names would show up for several weeks then be gone. Some I still remember some I don't. Then some names show up that make no sense being in there because they are friends of my parents when I realize it's for a funeral service. That trend follows to this day except now that they're my friends and family.

I will say this, I was busy. Always. I can't believe how much running around we'd do all day then come back to the office and get the work done.

Maybe dinner with colleagues then back to work.  We were all young and didn't mind working hard to make our mark. I still don't mind working hard.

Then there's the vacations, hunting and fishing trips, personal stuff.  It was all in there, too. How else would you keep track?

Reading through them has been somewhat like a diary only that it's not so much detail hence that's probably why I can't recall some names.

Some names are in there on a regular basis. Some of the years are better to read than others just like some names are better than others. I often pause and think about that person and wonder what they're doing these days. I guess I could go on FaceBook and try and find them but why bother.

We lost touch for some reason. I hope life worked out great for you.

Then there's births, christenings, PTA meetings, coaching basketball (which I never played) So much the notes involve children and family now as you become , what, and adult, a parent? All of this with your normal meetings and other stuff. It was still a busy little book every year. And just to be spiteful of the new Smartphones I'm sure, they sell the calendars now for about $30.00. It's a one color print job, spiral bound web printed now come on how expensive can that be to produce?

Nowadays my books aren't quite as full as they used to be. Mainly because things got easier. I can also remember more about my business side of my life that my personal side so I don't have to write it down as much not to mention how the technology that I hate to embrace actually keeps from having to work on 5 different size mechanicals in one night. Now it takes about an hour.

I would suggest that if you happened to have kept your old calendars, all these years, go get your mixture just right and sit down and read through them.

You'll be pleasantly surprised and a little disappointed now and then, but it'll give you a great snapshot of how hard you worked and how many great people you met and got to work with.

I hope you were in my book.

Don't forget your calendar.

Back when I first got started in this business you took your calendar with you everywhere. Especially to a meeting so you could coordinate your next meeting, a photo shoot, printing, new layouts, etc. You always had it with you, just like a Smartphone today, except the calendar was paper and you had to write in it. It was your daily lifeguard. Picking up type, remember that, especially on a Saturday morning before noon because that's when the type shop closed. You'd work over the weekend with the new type but you had to have a mechanical ready for what ever day was on your calendar. Then go get some rubber cement, Rubylith, Xacto blades, and glossy photostat paper. Try and get some Warm Grey Windsor and Newton gauchos for that black and white illustration. By the way, Windsor and Newton no longer make the Warm Grey series. 

Save the date. If you can remember to.

Like most of us, I embrace some of the newer technologies but fight tooth and nail not to embrace others. It's a tough road to pick which ones to follow that will always be there. I don't like having to keep up. It wastes too much of limited brain space. Apparently.

I have kept all of my day timer's or desk calendars throughout my career. The years don't matter so much. I just thought I'd photograph the front cover with maybe a little souvenir of that year in the shot. It was hard finding everything I'd like to put in the shots. I don't have a type gauge anymore, or a piece of Rubylith and so many other things we depended on every day back then. I got the set up all arranged and lighting I thought would work well enough and shot the earliest year. The shots look good. I can use them.

Then I started reading through that first year. Then each one after I'd shoot it. OK sometimes before I'd shoot it but so many people and so many places.