There have been many times in my career where the satisfaction of making the impossible, possible, has induced an overload of endorphins! Even if others didn’t say thank you, and ten more jobs were dropped on my desk without any acknowledgment of the miracle pulled off, I knew for that moment I was a ROCK STAR and it felt great.
That got me thinking about all of us, and some of the signs that CMYK rehab might be in our futures! The good news… if any of these apply you are in the right profession, and have a LOT of company! Just come to #PrintChat on Wednesdays to meet your fellow addicts! (See the replay of our “Print Junkie” #printchat here!) I‘m sure you also have more “signs” to add to this list and I can’t wait to read them, so please share… here we go!
Ten Sure Signs You Are a Print Junkie!
10. You have no less than three rulers at your disposal. Extra bonus junkie points if any of them measure picas, are made by Schaedler, or from your first job.
9. You consider your Sharpie a significant other. Bonus junkie points if right now there are at least two on your desk, or on you!
8. You sniff print! And when you do it, you close your eyes and savor the sniff! Bonus junkie points if you do this in public, extra if anyone asks what you are doing and you don’t even realize you are doing it.
7. You speak “print” to regular people, and then need to clarify. For example… “Get an off-the-shelf A7 envelope for the holiday cards.” Bonus junkie points if the regular people around you now understand print terms from your repetitive use.
6. Thanks to print pusher Trish Witkowski you can name at least five ways to fold things. Bonus junkie points if you ever “fold-along” with her videos!
5. You have had an argument over color with at least one pressperson. Super extra bonus junkie points if they acknowledged your “suggestion” made the piece look better after they pumped up, or toned down.
4. You use your fingers as a paper stock weight gauge. Bonus junkie points if you can also detect the specific finish on coated paper.
3. You see the world as a giant print sample closet. Bonus junkie points if you have “borrowed” a piece of print without permission, or bought something to re-create it.
2. You plan your week around #PrintChat. Bonus junkie points if you already join us, extra bonus junkie points if you join us after reading this post! Here’s how.
And the number one Sure Sign You Are A Print Junkie…
1. YOU ARE STILL HERE!
Addiction comes in many forms, but staying true to your drug despite slow times and digital marketing intervention attempts proves you are a die-hard Print Junkie! This is a fabulous time to be in print, part of the communications evolution, and we are the group that is making it happen! JUNKIES UNITE!
Speaking of which… I once again have the honor to work with GASC and create The PrinterverseTM at GRAPH EXPO! Our space is dedicated to all the dreamers, doers and junkies out there! Come visit us in booth 4267 and meet our Intergalactic Alliance – and if you cant make it we will be broadcasting LIVE from the show floor! Visit our dedicated site and follow PMC socially for all the details as they are shared.
42 Responses
Ha ha – I have 4 Sharpies (all black) and 2 rulers. The ruler is from a typesetter though, and has agate line and point indicators. Always use the fingers for stock weight, too! Cheers, everyone!
Today’s question: If female print junkies get PMS, do male print junkies get CMYK? (If you laughed at that joke, you are truly a print junkie. If you didn’t get it, you’re not a print junkie. If you got the joke and didn’t laugh, you’re a print junkie despite not having the twisted sense of humor that is usually part of being a print junkie.)
D Eadward Tree PLEASE don’t quit your secret day job for a life in comedy… that would be a tragedy, and not just for the audience 😉
How about cursing when you realized that the upcoming 3 day weekend gave you 1 less day to make that tight schedule. Extra credit if it involved Christmas, Easter or July 4th.
tkenny What about MISSING a holiday??? Or a WEEKEND!!! We are all SICK!!! lol
#8 is me. My wife thinks I’m nuts when I sniff the magazines at the grocery store. The books at Barnes&Noble are even better. I like to proofread pizza menus, too.
jeffmacharyas YOU have a serious problem! LOVE IT!!
DeborahCorn tkenny I once had one of my printer’s start the press at 11PM on New Year’s Day, so we could make our delivery date for a meeting.
Also adding my comment re: Exacto knife and tin of blades.
Cindy Walas DeborahCorn tkenny THAT is too messed up for words!!! You rock 🙂
I still have a Gaebel pica pole, a Paragon loupe, a folding “bone” and a Pocket Pal book from my first job.
DonnaGreiner You got me… what is a folding bone???
DeborahCorn DonnaGreiner It is a bone folder for paper to help you crease. I used to use it WAY back in the days of making a saddle-stitch Dylux (blueline proof). And jeez I’m really dating myself to be saying a “blueline” proof.
http://www.origami-resource-center.com/folding-bones.html
Cindy Walas My *preferred* Olfa knife and X-Acto have been going with me to every job since 1992!
jeffmacharyas Reminds me of the “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” scene when all the kids sniffed their mimeographed tests (remember mimeograph copying?). But seriously I do the same thing when I get my print jobs back from the printer.
You know you are a true Print Junkie when it bothers you that the colors in the syringes (pens) at the top of this article are Blue, Green, Red and Yellow and not Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black. That’s been buggin’ me all day!
I would like to add #11 – If you miss the smell of the pressroom
chemicals from back in the days before the EPA, OSHA and the AQMD made
us change them for health and safety reasons!
Another telltale sign? You can’t walk into ANY place of business without poring over all their brochures, sell sheets and other printed pieces. You notice the poor registration, the ink that comes off on your hands, the lo-res images, and diagnose every issue to anyone within earshot, along with corrective measures the company should take next time.
I know. It’s a sickness… 🙂
You also go through the same process every time the mail arrives.
Mary Beth Smith Yep, been there, done that, and continue to do so!!
Mary Beth Smith LOL… I’m loving that you troubleshoot AND suggest corrections. Im sure your local drug store/car dealer/florist/pizzeria is THRILLED when they see you coming!
I’m a fellow print junkie and ink sniffer too and make no apologies. No intervention has been successful to date! I look forward to press checks, even during the night shift! And I know what a bone folder is. Yikes!
Not only do I use my fingers as a paper weight gauge, I keep a micrometer on my desk to confirm my guesstimate.
Andre Palko You have a severe issue Andre. welcome to the club 🙂
DonnaGreiner DeborahCorn Don’t feel bad. Dylux, color keys and hand-developing plates are in my history!
who else still has an ancient PMS swatch book in their desk drawer with perfed skeletons of long torn out popular colors?
I still have a typography book that I designed in 1982, numerous pantone charts, paper samples, and of course that trusty old burnishing stick. The rubylith days were actually alot of fun. Plus I have an eye for high yellow on the press, thanks to a heck of a pressman.
Andre Palko Me too, Andre. In fact, I have been known on one occasion to ask a client (over the phone) to “flick” the paper so I can hear it and possibly determine to weight. There is no rehab on earth that could get me to recover from being a print junkie. Love the stuff.
Mary Beth Smith I’m with ya, sister.
Ok so here’s one … i still have two transparencies for font sizes and a screen gauge … the smell of ink in the morning, i used to take my kids to press approvals and they both know that smell and love it cause it reminds them of DAD.
Deborah – THANK YOU, I loved reading all the comments. As an employee of a American paper manufacturer, I really want to thank you for keeping the print conversation going…. my two cents – I still miss the marked up tissue on a mechanical. They were works of arts unto themselves. YOU ROCK! See you soon in Chicago.
mollyrosenthal Tissue mark-ups could be amazing! I worked with a creative director who was a master at them!!
mollyrosenthal OMG I totally forgot about TISSUES!!!!! And yeah, works of art “aka layouts” used to come to me in many forms – cocktail napkins especially! When genius strikes right! Your additional comment goes right back to you! If it wasn’t for Mohawk and others who help me by sponsoring PMC and sharing great information about print and paper to our community, I wouldn’t be here! ~~~~Can, you feeeeel the looooooveeeeeeeee… Hakuna Matata and see you in Chicago!!!
Grant Musselman You had me at transparencies. Never change 😉
KatHamm I posted a pic of a burnisher for Throwback Thurs a few Thurs ago… Junkie minds think alike!
I love this – it’s hilarious, as are all of the comments. A must-share! Thanks, Deborah.
Lynne Gullo I actually just tossed two PMS books from the 90’s!!!! Still had swatches taped to the inside covers! You never threw them out!!! Especially the metallics!!! Good one Lynne.
msienicki eventually all the Junkies will find there way to where the Print Party is 😉
DonnaGreiner DeborahCorn I still use my folding bone (they use to be made out of real bone) and you take me way back talking about bluelines. Let me add “photostat” or “velox” to the list of lost terms.
chall1 I loved the smell of bluelines and I miss color keys. I always thought of color keys as pieces of art.
jakethejeep DonnaGreiner DeborahCorn Dylux’s always smelled good too!
chall1 DonnaGreiner DeborahCorn Mine is real bone. An old “stripper” gave it to me when I started out in prepress.
Guess I’m not a real print junkie; #8 is only my 2nd
biggest regret about losing my sense of smell, behind a really good single malt
…
D Eadward Tree In the UK it’s called PMT, and I still remember the odd looks when I went into the darkroom to “pull a PMT”.