Tonight - 7pm | Terralever's reception for the PHXDW gallery they've been hosting this week. More info: http://phxdw.com/schedule

Tomorrow - 5pm | Keane's Happy Hour/Typophile Film Fest Pre-Party - Free drinks until we hit $100. More info: http://ow.ly/w1O3

Tomorrow - 7pm | Typophile Film Festival - MADCAP Theater's on Mill Ave. More info: http://phxdw.com/schedule

Saturday - 9am | Phoenix Design Week! Get your tickets at http://phxdw.eventbrite.com

Saturday - 10:45am | Russ Perry moderates a panel with agency execs. More info: http://phxdw.com/topics.php#evolution-of-agency

Saturday - 3:15pm | Russ Perry presents at PHXDW. More info: http://phxdw.com/topics.php#talk-to-your-client

Saturday - 7pm | Phoenix Design Week reception party at the Clarendon downtown.

Sunday - 9am | Phoenix Design Week Day 2!

About three months ago, a few of us stumbled back into the office from an impulsive, 3-hour odyssey into a tragically forsaken building on Mill Avenue. Thus was born a newfound interest in urban exploration – a clandestine hobby, I learned, that was quite active throughout certain circles. I was surprised to find maps, online boards and other close-knit crowds out there, all sharing experiences, tips and organizing outings.

This past Sunday, a small Keane cadre set out for a second trip. With the wisdom of Google Maps and the helpful pointers of those who'd tread before us, we were able to wander through at least a half-dozen sites, including a wasted airstrip and historic downtown building. Lots of surreptitious sneaking, tight squeezes and dirty knees. And bird shit. Heaps.

Though skirting security and passers-by is an amusing necessity, this isn't so much about the "thrill" of potentially being caught. That kind of rush is too transient to impress. For me, the allure is in understanding our city's backstory and reconciling the fact that rich and ruined often share an alleyway with one another. And, of course, there's definitely the tingling sensation of exploring places not many people go to. Like the kid who dreams of following clues to a lost treasure, the feeling is both ambient and tangible at the same time.

Names/locations purposefully omitted, though the slick gumshoe (or native Phoenician) may not find it difficult to reconstruct our path. Expect more treasure-hunt field reports in the future.

             

Click here to download:

Halcyon_Days_1.zip (2220 KB)

Check it out.

Remember to stick with the winning team, that's Keane.

October 21st through October 25th is Design Week.

Info and tickets at http://www.phxdw.com

Great read to kick off your Monday from Alex Bogusky's Posterous blog on success and working in the ad industry.

Here's an excerpt:

Wait. How am I supposed to be successful without a job?

I hate to answer a question with a question but what is you definition of success? A first job can be one of two things. A step toward success or a step away from success. But have you sat down to search your soul for the answer to what would be success for you? Your personal definition. A unique answer. We all get caught up with other people’s definition of success and societies definition of success that we lose our own. This is not good.

Why do I need to define success?

Because there is really only one definition that is put forward by society at large. Money. Ass loads of money. Don’t get me wrong here i think money is great. I like it a lot. But if you have the same definition as everybody else then you’re competting directly against everybody else. If you begin to refine you definition of success you suddenly begin to compete in a smaller category. So if you define success as living in Hawaii doing wordl class work for international surf brands you suddenly have two very important advantages to success. First, you aren’t competing with 99.9 percent pof the advertsing world out there. Second, it is instantly so much easier to measure you progress. My definition of success was to live in Miami and work with people I loved doing work I was proud of. And that’s all it’s ever been. So I felt successful pretty early on in my career.