The daily lives of Brett, Julia & Data
My father, Francis (Frank) James Bolton, passed away on Friday.
At some point I know I will have the strength to make a post (or two or ten) about the magnificent person who was my father, but at the moment it seems impossible to translate my feelings into words. He was an incredibly kind and dignified man with undeniable presence and infectious optimism. I will miss him every day of my life, but feel truly blessed to have been able to call him my father and my friend.
<3 J
Data was entered in the New Brunswick Kennel Club dog show in Edison, N.J. this weekend, so Julia, my mom, and I went down to watch him perform. He took second in his class.
Here are some photos of him (one at the show and a few of him playing at home with his mother, Joey). Click “there’s more to…” to see them all or visit my SmugMug.
What I wanted to do (prototype, final version would have undoubtedly had some changes):
What I ended up doing:
Click on the images to see PDFs.
There are pros and cons to each, of course. The first has three bumping headlines (how big of a deal that is depends on who you ask, but this excellent Poynter Online piece debunks the severity of that issue), no dominant photo, and very little color. The second has a bad, blatantly staged photo of a guy with little mention in the story. The first has an instantly-recognizable, unique quality that tells the story far better and faster than the second. The second has a face and some color above the fold.
I don’t feel slighted or angry that the first didn’t run – it would have been a leap, and I can understand why it was turned down, but I do wish we didn’t feel obligated to play it safe every day.
What do you think?