This is my third comeback to this blog. The last time I posted about my life was in 2018, nearly 5 years ago! Wow, time flies.
Well. Here I am. Still single, by choice. Living alone, with my dog, by choice. One of my best friends passed away in 2014 and it eye-opening, to say the least. What's worse is that he probably didn't have to die. If his doctors and nurses at Cedars-Sinai didn't cut his head open and did a screening for a bacterial infection first, he might still be alive today.
The other big loss for me was the loss of my mom in 2021. We had a sometimes wonderful, sometimes tumultuous relationship my entire life. There's a lot of story there but it would take way too long to explain it. Let's just say that my poor mom had Aspergers and no one knew it. We just thought she was annoying and too honest for her own good. She would voice her opinions in ways that were not helpful to anyone, including herself. Let's say that my childhood was not normal. But I persevered.
I live in a wonderful little neighborhood at the east end of the valley and I Love it! It's clean. The people are nice and there are lots of dogs, kids and parks in my hood. I got a new dog, yay!! I love her and she has helped to change my life in a big way. She gets me out of the house on a regular basis. She helps to quiet my brain in these loud and noisy times, and helps me to be less anxious. My anxiety levels have always been high but since Covid they have been off the charts.
YESTERDAY
The Universe brought steady work for me in the form of NBCUniversal where I freelanced as a contractor for over 3 years this time around. I was there for a year in 2007-2008 at what was then called, 'The NBC Agency,' that was all print and rarely any digital. I love working at NBCUniversal! The offices where we worked were clear across the lot from where we had to park but it was so great to walk through the lot every morning to see and hear all the hustle and bustle of a film studio. Picture an old black and white film where someone is entering or on the lot with people moving all around; that's what it was like.
When I would arrive in the parking in the mornings, the sky would be bright blue, the lot would be bustling and everyone you knew from seeing everyday would say 'good morning!'
Everyone I knew at NBCU was very nice and friendly. I even made a great group of friends while I was there. We all had a job to do but it felt like you were family. I never thought to myself, 'Geez, I don't want to go to work today.' I was always excited to get to work, see my friends and do my job. The work was fun and the environment was unlike any other I have ever worked in. I would work back there in a heartbeat -- that's how much I enjoyed it.
TODAY
Today, I work for
Paramount (previously CBS Interactive; previously ViacomCBS) on the Paramount Plus apps where I get to work on all things digital. Before Covid, when our team was going in to work every day, it was so great being at the office and getting to brainstorm and collaborate with other artists who are now your friends. Since Covid, we have all been working from home and our group has grown exponentially which makes it more difficult to get to know all the people you have never met in person. Fortunately, almost everyone at work is so great to work with and that's on top of all the great brands we get work on. From the directors to the production designers and freelance artists, our internal team is so strong, both personally and creatively, that it's a pleasure to work with these professionals on a daily basis. Even if it is just over zoom! I love my job and I am so proud to be working for Paramount Plus. Our app is by far one of the best, all around entertainment apps for your money. Between all the great brands under the Paramount umbrella and all of the great movies from the Paramount library, the P+ app has it all. If you haven't downloaded it yet, you should. Go to https://www.paramountplus.com/ for more info and to sign up. I rarely promote apps on my blog as I feel like they are more work to have than to not have but in my personal opinion the P+ app is a must-have!
Thank you for taking the time to read my little blog. I enjoy writing and especially sharing my opinion on things so a personal blog is just the place to do it. Just when I was thinking, "does anyone actually read my blog?" low and behold I received an email from someone who read my post regarding
Key Art titled, "Key Art: The Art of the Process" and sent me an email letting me know how much my post inspired them and now they are working at a major agency here in Los Angeles. I asked if my post was still relevant and their response was positive. This inspired me to keep writing so I am writing again. I hope you will come back for more.
To view my work, please visit my portfolio website at: www.josephrey.us
