Yin and yang

I'm sure my fellow bloggers, Tannenbaum, Gelberg, Eaker, all not coincidentally of Hebraic Seasonings, have had the experience of wondering what they're going to write about for their next post. I'm equally positive that they're simply overjoyed when a topic/subject/musing just gets dropped in their laps.

This is one of those occasions.

Last week I got an email from Brian Burch, one of two Brian Burchs' that I know from the business. He had sent me some photos that he found while cleaning out his files. Perhaps from the grey hair, but I'm assuming this Brian was doing a little Swedish Death Cleaning. 

The pictures were taken from a syllabus for a Copywriting Master Class taught by a fellow tradesman, Rodd Chant. He and I have never met, but since he is using our work for his benefit, I'm going to use his name (just for the sake of accuracy) and for mine.

As you can see from the photo above, the cited work is from ABC. Here are the other pics...

Brian asked if any money had exchanged hands for the use of some of this old -- really old, like 28 year old -- work. I told him no. But, that I was honored to be mentioned alongside work from David Abbott and Wieden + Kennedy. 

On the other hand it's a little, OK, a lot, long in the tooth. 

I'm not saying this as a humblebrag, but in some ways it's like an aged-out comedian being asked to repeat his one catchphrase. Even more humbling because it's advertising. And my perspective on it has changed even more than the industry I once knew.

For instance, I've been away from it for so long, I'm not even sure agencies still do outdoor, print or even brand manifestos. At one point I was doing one of these semi-poetic, corporate jerk-offs a week. Or one a day. I'm currently taking industrial strength pain reliever for my cartilage-free hip, I can't even remember. 

I do know that in retrospect, the TV is Good anthem, was one of my weakest. Not seeking any validation from my 8 regular readers. Just being brutally honest. I suppose that's the way the universe works, as some of the best stuff I've written (at least in my opinion) NEVER got produced. 

I'm looking at you Chivas Regal.

The same forces, the yin and yang of quality, are clearly at work and gave us Pete Hegseth, Tulsi Gabbard,  and  RFK Jr as the new Secretary of Health and Human Services and not the other 3, 841,923 real health care professionals in the country that are monumentally more qualified. 

"Come on kids, take your heroin."