When You Have a Death Wish, It's Best to Use the Right Materials

Let me put on my best Charles Bronson for this post.

Not only is the movie a classic- I mean, who doesn’t love that mustache- but I also love the coffee. Given to me by my sister as a birthday present, along with a super cool t-shirt and Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Death Wish Coffee sounded to me like it could be a gimmick. But… it is not. Not in the least.

After a large mug of the stuff a few days ago, with my brain buzzing from the elevated levels of caffeine, I was sitting in front of my computer thinking, “could I do my job without modern technology?”. The answer is, “of course”, but it would mean going ‘analog’ to a great extent, or using different tools. When I think further on it, though, I still use said analog tools- pencils, trace and cold press watercolor paper, parallel bar, triangles, and, and, and… though I use them in conjunction with apps and software- AutoCAD, Revit, Rhino, PhotoShop, and, and, and… to which I’ve become accustomed over the years.

There is so much to learn about architectural representation, including production and visualization, that sometimes I think that I do have a death wish for wanting to learn so much about so much in such a short period of time. Will my brain- even with its happy status from the Scandinavia-themed black gold of Valhalla Java- explode from my pursuit of knowledge and training myself continuously on how to use not only old but emerging technology?

Probably not.

Using the proper materials, or, knowing which tools to use more importantly, is essential for me whether I am designing a project, taking a photo, baking a loaf of bread, watching a(n action) movie, or drinking a cup of coffee. (Ha!)

*SPOILER ALERT- Bronson plays an architect in the movie.