I ran 1:20:53 in New Orleans.
Twenty-fourth overall. Not a PR, but a good solid half marathon and a very fun reason for Amanda and me to get out of New York for a weekend.
We picked up our bibs in front of a giant Mardi Gras float. Mine said C-FIZZLE because apparently that felt like the correct thing to put on a race bib. Sunday morning we raced. Later we got on a boat, stood in the sun, and took a bunch of nearly identical photos with the city behind us.
Then Monday happened.
Apply went straight back to work. Every new physical product created a list of things somebody had to finish.
The Keith Haring work included a studio shoot, digital assets, and a proposed launch. It was big, colorful, and ambitious.
At the same time, we were turning art into actual things somebody could buy. A Whitney line sheet had to explain the difference between a sticker sheet and a pack. LACMA product copy had to fit the artwork, the museum, the packaging, and our own weird belief that blank is boring. Production files for Haring and Warhol were moving around the Drive all week.
And then there was the licensing reporting.
I got a note asking for the rest of the reports before a meeting. My entire reply was: “Yep sure thing. Will send in advance.”
My inbox was less glamorous. One tab had Keith Haring concepts. Another had a payments report. Etsy had put the shop into vacation mode and needed updated company information. Orders kept arriving. The daily marketing report kept arriving. None of it stopped because I had run a race.
Friday was an Apply strategy day at WeWork in Brooklyn. We had products in production, museum conversations moving, and an ecommerce operation that needed attention every day.
The half marathon took an hour and twenty minutes.
The stickers took everything after.