Weekly Design Recap 4

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Things I’m working on

• At last I finished my passport project. I personally have not heard any strong opinions on the Mexican passport design so I think coming up with new ideas to improve on the current document should not only be welcomed, but enticed. I’m not a big fan of clutter and complex imagery that is so common on passports for the sake of security, so I stuck with simplicity while drawing from Aztec and Olmec influences. I’m proud of the final result.
• My housekeeping start-up of sorts is slowly taking shape. I’ve settled for a name; it’ll be called Limpio and it should be easy for French speakers to sound out and remember. What I need now is a logo.

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Things I’ve enjoyed

• How To Get Away With Murder is too frantic a show with cliffhangers on every episode and still I can’t stop watching. It’s exhausting and my mind races when I think of how the writers manage to achieve it. Netflix can’t keep up with releasing episodes and they’re two seasons short, so I’m running out of things to watch.
• As a gamer for most of my life, I appreciate the craft of chiptune music and nostalgia hits hard when I hear a classic piece. My love for this underappreciated art has become stronger after (re)watching Diggin’ in the Carts, a documentary produced by Red Bull Music Academy and split in a handful of episodes, interviewing the origins of a musical genre created by the Japanese video game industry. They focus on big names like Nobuo Uematsu but they do miss out on interviewing Koji Kondo —of Super Mario & Zelda fame—, Kenji Yamamoto —Metroid— and my absolute fave Yoko Shimomura; Super Mario RPG has one of the most vibrant soundtracks the 16-bit era ever produced.

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Things I’m struggling with

• Sad Words Journal is very slowly, but surely, growing in followers. Or at least it seems to be. What I have trouble with is having sad thoughts that I can actually share but it’s a good habit to have and beat writer’s block, even if it’s just for a paragraph or two.

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Things I’ve learned

• When I moved to Strasbourg, I wasn’t aware there are two seats of the EU Parliament; one here and another in Brussels. Seems like an unnecessary complication to me and local residents don’t really know why. The reasons are, apparently, historical and have to do with France —and the city— not wanting to give away such a powerful political influence. Also, Strasbourg’s economy heavily depends on it. There’s a Quora thread that explains it to some extent but doesn’t necessarily quote any sources; I still find it’s a nice bit of trivia to know.

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Things I’m listening to

Thanks to Side Hustle School I’ve become more focused on the things I do and how to monetise them. That’s why I started the Radiographista Weekly newsletter and the reason behind my renewed entrepreneurial drive to try new stuff. He also has a book I love called The $100 Startup and I know creating a new business is no small feat and definitely not for everybody, but I can’t help but feeling encouraged with all the material he’s been putting out.[/text-with-icon]