First off, the obvious: sock-sock-shoe-shoe won in a landslide. 90% of poll respondents (and 100% of Facebookers) get dressed that way. The message is clear: Tara is insane.
She’s also a great sport about it and admits she’s the nutty one here.
Things are a little more interesting when looking at the order. A lot of you go right to left. I’m the opposite. Maybe because I’m an avid reader and my eyes naturally scan the page left to right? Regardless, I was satisfied with the responses and ready to put the whole thing behind me when a text from my brother threw me for a loop.
I’m curious if you shoe tie shoe tie or shoe shoe tie tie.
My head almost exploded at that point.
I had to think about that one for a minute before concluding I’m a shoe-tie-shoe-tie guy. But don’t worry, I’m not going to beat a dead horse.
Way back when I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life, I had to cross off a few things. Dragon slayer was the first to go when I realized The Hobbit was pure fantasy. I’ve long been fascinated with weather and briefly debated a career in meteorology, but one introductory college course was enough to make me realize it wasn’t for me. Too much calculus and physics when all I wanted to do was gaze at clouds.
I finally settled on writing. I was leaning toward journalism, but my dad talked me into advertising instead. The life of a copywriter seemed glamorous enough. I’m sure it is, but the ad business is very cutthroat and I realized by my junior year that Madison Avenue was not for me. Rather than start over from scratch and declare a new major, I figured the piece of paper was more important than what was printed on it. So, I graduated with a B.A. in advertising, but never even tried to find a job in the industry. I wound up in manufacturing and then healthcare, for crying out loud.
Which makes the three Silver ADDY awards I won last week feel all the more incredible.
In case you’ve never watched Mad Men (why haven’t you?!), ADDYs (American Advertising Awards) are the advertising industry’s largest competition, designed to recognize and reward the creative spirit of excellence in the art of advertising. I’m a member of the American Advertising Federation’s Black Hills chapter, so these awards were presented on the local level. Winners go on to compete in district and national competitions.
For the record, the ADDYs aren’t just in my name. They were a CenturyCo team effort and we all get to bask in the glory. And, if you’ve ever heard Jerry Seinfeld’s take on Silver awards, it’s brutal.
You win the gold, you feel good…But if you win that silver, that’s like, ‘Congratulations, you almost won.’ Of all the losers, you came in first of that group. You’re the No. 1 loser. No one lost ahead of you.
Jerry Seinfeld
Despite that, these are no less rewarding. Just when I thought advertising was a pipe dream, something I’d never do in my career, here I am, working on ad campaigns.
And I find I really like the work. I’m still a storyteller at heart, but advertising gives me a chance to really flex my creative muscles. Short, snappy, clever copy—heavy on puns and wordplay—that dazzles ’em with the unexpected is right up my alley. Guess those college courses paid off, after all…even though it took a damn long time.
Sorry if this is long and rambly. I’m a pretty humble guy most of the time, but I’m awfully proud of this achievement. My career path has been unconventional to say the least, so I’m a-gonna bask in the glory for a few minutes if that’s okay with you.
Mark My Words 
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