baptism by fire [redux]

before i get started on this post i would like to say, i love my career, if i had to do over again, i`d make a lot of the same choices.

that said, advertising is not a 9 to 5 industry, well maybe for some of the staff, but once you`re a member of the creative department, your hours tend to be longer particularly during the peak period. last night was my first late night at my new job, i doubt it will be my last.

i`ve been in this industry a while and in the beginning late hours were part and parcel of my life. in the closing moments of my first marriage i was working 20 hours days. once you start down that path, it becomes the norm rather than the odd occasion.

advertising is  a soul sucking business, particularly if you let it. i think we`re at the bottom of the food chain, even lower than lawyers. with lawyers you know what to expect, with advertising, it`s all smoke and mirrors. there is no matrix, there is only advertising.

but nothing beats the buzz of working in an agency. yes, i bitched about my last job, but that was because i was really unhappy there. this job is reminiscent of my first agency environment. there is a sense of camaraderie, the art-room is loud and boisterous at times, it has character.

i`ll be the first to admit advertising has made me more cynical, but i am a not my job and i learned after the first time i left this industry, it`s not my life either. that`s why i enjoy george carlin`s advertising lullabye and mr. snaffleburger. it reminds me that not everyone swallows the bullshit we dispense.

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