ONCE A NERD...ALWAYS A NERD :)

This proves it…I am officially a product of the 1950’s. My almost 84-year-old mother recently corrected me on the pronunciation of Beyonce’s name. What’s really sad is that I’m not even really sure who she is …and what’s worse than that? I don’t even care :)

The same goes for the recent launch of the Ipad. I don’t have a clue as to what it is, what it does, how it works, or what it is and, once again, I really don’t care! It’s not that I am a total recluse by any means. I’m aware of the technology that is at our disposal and I think it’s great in so many ways but I also think we, as people, have lost a lot due to technology. I think we have lost the ability to truly communicate in a meaningful way. I see parents with their children and they’re on their cell phones and, therefore, they’re not really with their children. And what’s worse is when you see little kids on cell phones texting away. I think the parents are missing out on the opportunity to ask their kids what they’re thinking and never knowing what will come out of their mouths. (I used to do that with my daughter just for fun when she was around 4 or 5 and it was great listening to her.) Or driving the kids in the car and, instead of talking about random things happening in their lives, instead parents are talking on their cell phones and the kids are in the back seat on their cell phones. Heck, I’ve seen entire families walking along all on their cell phones.

The internet is truly fantastic and a great tool for research. However, aren’t we missing the actual feel of a book in our hands? I might have mentioned this in a previous post but I remember one summer when I was in 5th or 6th grade checking out every single biography out of our library (they were orange) and then pretending I was that person. I think that the internet can actually detract from our ability to be creative…especially for young children.

O.K., now with all that said…my daughter has a really neat cell phone that she can hold up to a radio and it will tell you the name of the song and the artist. Now that is cool :)

Are you wondering what this post has to do with my greeting cards? It doesn’t (except for in terms of communication). I should have probably titled this post “Apropos absolutely nothing.”

55 AND ALIVE...ISN'T THAT A ROAD SIGN?

Well, that’s me. I’ve come to a crossroads in my life and I’m ready for a change. Actually, that’s not quite true. I lost my job two years ago and it kind of forced me to change…which is both good and bad. The good part is that it forced me to think about what I’m going to next and the bad part is that all the jobs I apply to think that because I’m 55 (and despite the fact that I have been working full-time since I was 19 and spent 32 years at the same company) I am over-the-hill, I have nothing to contribute, and I’m not up-to-date on social marketing skills. I admit it…the latter part is true about social networking, even though I thought of a fantastic name for a Facebook fan page called “The Castaways” which would encompass all the people in my position :)

Due to the aforementioned facts, I have decided that I must (along with many other people my age) “reinvent” myself. In order to do this, I started with determining what I don’t want to do and here’s what I determined:

Don’ts

Buzz (I don’t even want to read about it to find out what it is.)
Twitter (I'm not creative enough and can barely follow telephone conversations let alone RT’s and comments with total strangers.)
Facebook (Did you ever hear of a telephone or writing a letter?)
LinkedIn (I have to admit that this is the “best” of the “worst” and I can actually see where it might lead somewhere.)

Blogging (I'll do it if I have to even though cyberspace is not my idea of communicating.)
Design a website.
Be stuck behind a computer all day long.

Do’s

Have a lemonade stand and sell my vintage greeting cards (Translation: NO social networking).
Develop a strategic partnership with another company that will allow me to achieve this goal.

In a Nutshell

My dad was a newscaster for WWJ TV and Radio when I was growing up in the Midwest during the 1950’s and 1960’s and photography was his hobby. A few months ago I was looking at our family photos, which consist of approximately 1,200 slides, and decided to start designing vintage photo greeting cards. My dad’s photos truly depict a pictorial essay of a typical 1950’s/1960’s childhood that captures an era in time. I am convinced that these photos should remain together as a collection. My father was a great photographer and the pictures tell the story and convey the essence of a typical midwest childhood during the 50's and 60's.

BOTTOM LINE:

If you're interested in developing a strategic partnership, you can view our social networking "lemonade stands" here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kn7xVMuiUXc

and here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfCpWf9uFHk&feature=related

and here:

https://sites.google.com/site/prittiehartpress/ (includes our family history)

And then, if you want to develop a strategic business partnership, contact me at prittiehartpress@gmail.com or, better yet, (949) 310-0135 and we can actually talk...like in the Good Old Days :)

I HAVE COME TO THE CONCLUSION...

that wholesome, clean, and All American is not considered "in" nowadays...and therein lies my problem. After viewing the semi-finalists of the Trendys Awards, where 30% of the winners consist of cards designed with humor that I find objectionable and in poor taste, I've decided that I truly am a dinosaur from another era. I find it hard and sad to believe that this is what America has become. When my daughter was little and my mother came to visit, I'm the mom who refused to let her mom watch anything on TV besides Sesame Street and the Shopping Channel because that's all I thought was appropriate:) I'm the mom who stood up with her reluctant (to say the least) 7 year old daughter and walked out of the Richie Rich movie because of the violence. And when I happened to meet the REAL Richie Rich (a super nice man) who came to my house in November to film a commercial, I told him that his name sounded familiar...and then remembered why and proceeded to tell him--probably not too cool :) I'm the mom who embarrassed her preteen daughter by asking the manager of our local grocery store to please remove a magazine with an objectionable cover to a different place on the rack where it wouldn't be visible to children. I'm the mom who wrote to a bathing suit manufacturer to complain about the provocative swimwear they were designing for preteens. When my barely teenage daughter wanted to watch Pretty Woman, I'm the mom who fast-forwarded through that movie (only showing the appropriate parts) so quickly it was the shortest movie my daughter had ever seen :) Yes, I was and am that mom. And now, my daughter tells me how sad it is that these young kids nowadays dress the way they do and how the movie ratings have changed to allow more sex and violence into PG 13 movies.

So, if you're wondering what that long diatribe means, it's just a reinforcement of the description of myself at the beginning of this blog...I am a nerd and a dinosaur :)

THANKS...

To Bro #2 for leaving such a nice post on my blog:

Tracey: follow your passion. The only career advice Dad gave me was "find something you enjoy doing and the money will follow". Unfortunately, I never took the advice. I will be 50 this year and you continue to inspire me to search out my passion. Bro #2

and to a new friend I made this past year who posted this on my Facebook wall:

"Dearest Tracey ~ YOU are a phenomenal Lady, a beautiful person, doing an extraordinary job, making things happen for those you love, and although you might not always feel it, you are loved and appreciated."

These two comments came at a time in my life when I really, really needed to hear something positive. They made me remember how sometimes just simple acts of kindness can go a long way toward helping someone feel better...so to all those people who make the world just a little bit better and brighter, thank you.

I ABSOLUTELY 100% REFUSE...

to Buzz! I like blogging; I see the point of LinkedIn; I tolerate Facebook; I tweet like a bird on Twitter and flutter around because I still don't know what I'm doing; but I categorically 100% refuse, refuse, REFUSE (and all related synonyms) to Buzz like a bee! There, is that clear enough? :)

A PICTURE OF MY FIRST GREETING CARD DESIGNED BY DESIGN, DESIGN, INC.!!!!!

My dad was a newscaster for WWJ TV and Radio when I was growing up in the Midwest during the 1950’s and 1960’s and photography was his hobby. A few months ago I was looking at our family photos, which consist of approximately 1,200 slides, and decided to start designing vintage photo greeting cards. In these slides, there are photos of my dad on the set with Clark Gable and Yvonne Dicarlo filming Band of Angels in 1957 (which are really interesting because of the old cameras they used), but most of them are of my family. My first idea was to design, print, and sell the cards myself which proved to be too expensive. Therefore, the plan transitioned into attempting to license the photos individually to greeting card companies. I was successful in licensing one image to Design Design, Inc. (I wrote the verse and they designed the card, which is a picture of me when I was four.)

During the past week I have realized, however, that my dad’s photos truly depict a pictorial essay of a typical 1950’s/1960’s childhood that captures an era in time. I am convinced that these photos should remain together. My father was a great photographer and the pictures tell the story and convey the essence of the era. Therefore, I've decided that I will try to manufacture the cards myself and license the images to other companies...so, if anyone out there is interested, email me at prittiehartpress@gmail.com .

I'VE DECIDED IT'S NOT THE "BIG PEOPLE" OF THE WORLD THAT MATTER...

it's the "little people" that really make a difference in our lives. It's the stranger off the internet that gave me just enough encouragement to just keep plodding along when I was feeling discouraged. It's the grandfather who gave my daughter a Red Robin gift card last week for being nice to his grandson where she works. It's my family who gives me constant encouragement even though some of them don't quite have a clue what I'm doing. It's the woman who gave my daughter a Starbucks gift card just because she let her copy pages from her textbook because she hadn't received hers yet. It's my friend who spent three days at my house providing honest input on my photos/greeting cards. It's the woman who owns the consignment shop who actually let me put up signs in her window advertising my greeting cards even though she's probably going to go out of business in two months. Come to think of it, maybe that's why she let me put up the signs :)

Anyway, I want to thank all the "little people" who are really the "big people" in my life and who understand my vision and support me.