Christine Castro at work in her studio

Darling Designer, Christine Castro, is in the process of interviewing people for her new website, Brunch. Thanks to the magic of iChat, I got to interrupt her work in progress with an interview of my own! Full disclosure: The artist is my wife. Yes, I might be biased. No, she wasn’t as excited about the interview as I was.

What did you do today?

I got to sleep in this morning, thanks to, uh, you! I thought I’d have a leisurely breakfast, but after a quick check of my email remembered that I had a phone meeting in 15 minutes. It was a potential new client call, short and sweet. After that call, I dove into work. I felt very On Task today, which is not always the case.

Did you do all of this in your pyjamas?

That’s none of your beeswax!

For the one or two people on the internet who don’t know who you are, will you please clue them in? Who is Christine Castro? And why is she a renowned weblebrity?

This is no time to be modest, showboat.

Ooookay, I am a graphic designer, artist, writer, mother, wife, klutz.
I have been chronicling my life online for over 10 years. I started on a free webspace for teens called gurlpages. A few months later, I started my own personal site, maganda.org.

I just wanted to write more. But I became fond of the medium, of the visual nature and connectedness of it.

This is back before blogs, right? When dinosaurs ruled the internet?

Haha, Yes.
In 2000, I got nominated for a Webby award, which I guess was a big deal. This was before the bubble burst, so the awards ceremony was likened to the Oscars, with a red carpet and everything!

Did you bring a date?

Yes. And my parents.

Ha ha. Okay, you’re off the hook. Please continue.

Well, my site became kind of popular after that, and so did I.

The funny thing about the Webbys, I have to tell you, is that personal websites were not very common. So, people were coming up to me asking me why I was nominated and what my website was about. When I said “It’s about me,” they looked at me like I was from Mars.

But now, everyone has a blog! And suddenly I feel like a grandma, marveling at the olden days.

The first fish with legs. (And readers, she DOES have legs.)

So, when you were being interviewed on the red carpet ten years ago, is THIS how you imagined your future?

No. I was just going along for this ridiculous ride.

What were you doing for a living at that time?

I was working for a magazine company, producing its websites. I guess I imagined that I’d eventually find my way back into editorial, where I first began, maybe become a magazine editor.

You began in editorial?! Do tell.

Yes, AS YOU KNOW, I went to journalism school. After graduating, I got a job as a reporter for the LA Times.

Christine’s typewriter and her first True*Stories print

Some of my favorite stories from this parallel life of yours come from your days as a tough-as-nails editor for your college paper, the Daily Titan. Can you share one story from those days that illustrates the difference between that Christine and my Darling one?

Let’s see…

Did you ever make someone cry, for example?

We got all the Reporting 101 students for our staff. Most of them had never written a story before. Well, there was a kid named Wesley Sheep who always stressed me out. He was really timid and kind of awkward.

All names have been changed to protect Wesley Sheep.

One day, I remember waiting for him to turn in a story he owed us, when I got a call from him. He told me that he got lost and couldn’t find the venue for the event he was covering, so he didn’t get the story.

When I asked him where he was right then, he answered, “Downstairs.” He was calling from the hallway phone a couple floors down! I demanded he come upstairs that instant.

He finally came up, and I gave him a talkin’ to. “Do you want to be a reporter?!” I asked. He nodded. “You have to talk to people!” I told him. “You can’t be afraid to ask for directions!”

I know that is a silly example, but I can be tough when the situation demands it. And running a daily newspaper constantly demanded it.

Point taken, Rambo. Fast forward five years, where were you and what were you doing?

Didn’t we already talk about that?

You ended up at a high paying desk job, yes? And the highlight of your day was…?

Yes, but it didn’t start out high paying. I worked my way up from a production assistant to a producer over a span of 6 years.

The highlight of my day? Going out to lunch with my friends. I worked with some really great people.

So, here is the magic trick that nobody can figure out:
You were a journalist turning down promotions and raises from a not-so-great job when VERY SUDDENLY you transformed yourself into a freelance designer. A successful one!

Is that a question?

Christine’s client Heather Heron created this Darling tote as a gift.

You transitioned, with acrobatic grace, from a hum-drum desk job to a flourishing freelance career. People show a lot of interest in how you pulled that off! I’m not going to ask you about that here, because you really got into it during your interview with Danny Gregory, but maybe you can offer our readers a quick synopsis, or some career tips?
In Haiku format.

dream big, but also
plan ahead. do your research.
make lists. check them twice.

make yourself a nest
egg. it will cushion your fall
when you make the leap.

don’t be afraid to
ask for help. we all started
somewhere. now’s your turn.

“You can’t be afraid to ask for directions, Wesley Sheep!”

So, here you are FEET UP, living the dream.
Does the reality jive with your fantasy?

I am tempted to say “yes,” but I think the answer is really “no.” I used to imagine an easy breezy life filled with leisurely lunches and sketchbook sessions.

But you really have to work hard when you’re your own boss. Yes, you can take a long lunch, but usually that means making up for it later that night because you have a deadline the next day. And that’s a deadline you’ll want to make because you need to get paid!

There are no semi-weekly paychecks being deposited directly into my account. Boy, do I miss those.

But because I’ve been doing this for so long I know the reality and I am okay with it. I am still happier than I was at that cubicle desk.

That reminds me of something! You and Penelope shared a great idea a few months ago. An educational one. Will you give me the course description of The Bitch Sessions?

It wasn’t a course but more of a roundtable discussion that I wanted to host. We wanted to create a place for other working artists to talk about our struggles, hardships and dilemmas. So many freelancers feel isolated. They don’t get to talk these things out with anyone else, much less others who completely understand.

Is that one of the things that you miss about your desk job?

Yes. I loved being able to turn around and holler a question to the person in the next cubicle or walk down the hall and chat someone up in the kitchen. Those small everyday encounters. I miss those. Now I chat up the lady at the supermarket, whether she wants me to or not!

Have you been able to recreate that sense of community with your fellow artists?

Actually, Twitter has become that water cooler for me. Plus, I am so lucky to have a couple of freelance friends who live nearby.

Have you ever wanted to quit being an artist?

No.

So, do you plan on being a designer for the rest of your life?

No.

No? What does the future have in store for us?

I honestly don’t know.

I love my job, and I feel so grateful to be able to make a living this way.

But it is still a job. I do think my job will change over the next 10, 20 years. Maybe I’ll do more writing. Maybe I’ll open a shop. Maybe I’ll start another business, ahem, with you. No matter what, though, I plan on making things until I can’t anymore.

Alright. Fast forward. When you’re a rickety old crone looking back on our long and productive life -your artwork, your books, your shop, our business, our family- how do you hope to feel?

I hope to feel happy. I want to know that I made something beautiful and that I inspired others to do the same. And relaxed.

I want to have forgotten what a knot in my shoulder even feels like. And I probably will, because I won’t have taken my ginko biloba.

Ha ha. I think you’re getting sleepy. We better forget about old age.

Let’s talk about your youth. You went to Catholic School right?

Yes…

Will you describe your uniform please?

Shut up!

Just kidding. (Not really!) Seriously though, what is the earliest work of art that you can remember creating?

I’m so bad at these earliest memory games.

The first thing that comes to mind is a card I made for my mom’s birthday. I don’t know how old I was, but the message said “How’s work? Can I please have $5 so I can buy you a gift?”

My follow up question suddenly makes perfect sense: “Does your artwork then relate at all to what you do now?”

I guess it does!

Way back then, did you want to be an artist when you grew up?

Yes, it was one of many careers I considered.

Christine’s inspiration wall.

As a teacher, I often wonder about my students “What will this kid bring to the world? What is unique about him?” What is unique about you, Christine? What do you want to give to the world?

That is a really tough question.

I will tell you what I think if you tell me what you think.

It’s one thing to say what’s good about yourself, but it’s something else entirely to say what makes you really stand out.

There is a thread of compassion, joy and wonder that connects everything I do.

That IS a tough question. It’s probably hard for anyone to look at himself in that way.

It is. You should try it sometime.

Save it for my interview.
Do you want to know what I think is unique about you?

Sure.

It’s your super power, Christine. You look to the bright side. You catalog good things. You don’t just notice beauty; You hunt for it.

Are you crying yet?

Thank you. Thank you so much.
I don’t know what else to say but that.

I have one more question before I let you off the hook?

Shoot.

Every artist I know has at least half a dozen pet projects on the back burner. Will you share one of yours with us?

Up until very recently, that project was Brunch.

Oh, wait, I know. It’s a redesign for Darling. It’s about time.

Christine’s collection of art supplies, design books, and clocks

Okay, I lied. One more question.
It does relate to undone projects though…

Yes?

You pull off a lot of things that some people can’t fathom: You are a devoted mom, a working artist, a writer, a traveler, an active daughter and friend and blogger, and a wife who makes dinner for her husband every night. I know you’ve been asked this before but how DO you do it?

I don’t make dinner for you every night!

That’s off the record.

Yes, I *do* get asked that a lot.
And I finally came up with a good answer: Slowly.

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