Things I am Thankful for.

When you're a famous--internationally famous, that is--blogger like I am, it seems that many of your posts fall, gently waft, into the negative category. We complain about the state of our industry, the late nights, the lack of pay increases, and more.

I thought, with Thanksgiving about to come crashing down upon us, it would make sense to write a little something about those many, often overlooked, things I am thankful for.

First, I'd like to thank my agency for allowing me to write this blog with about all the honesty I can muster. It takes a strong agency to put up with my often inflammatory antics and opinions. Not once has anyone wielding the hammer of power said anything negative to me, or coaxed me to "cool it."

While I'm at it, I'd like to thank my client for many of the same reasons. They have been accepting of my opinions and my occasional ill-temper.

I'd like to thank, also, both my agency and my client for allowing me to do some of the best work of my career. The briefs keep coming and we keep making work. At a time in our industry where it seems everyone has been bitten by the impecunious bug, we keep doing work that is interesting, intelligent and cool. Work I am proud of.

Also deserving of thanks are the legions of talented people I am blessed to work with. To a woman, or to a man, they are unfailingly smart, dedicated, driven and more often than not, they challenge me to go above and beyond--simply because I strive to keep up with them.

I am thankful that I was born with the gift of laughter and a sense that the world was mad. Like Sabatini's Scaramouche, I hold onto my laughter like a shield. It keeps me going on my worstest days.

I am thankful for my partners who have made my work better. My planners have made my work better. My producers have made my work better. My account people have made my work better. My clients have made my work better.

At a time when many people my age are beginning to think of lacing up their cleats for their final inning, the aforementioned are keeping me alive and happy--and probably more vital as a creative than I've been for a good 15 years.

Finally, I am thankful that the Old One gave me the will, and the stubbornness to write in this space more than once a day for nearly 10 and a half years. 

I am thankful for you, too, my readers. For dealing with my hypocrisies, my biases, my anger, my points of view, and my myriad typos. Thank you for reading.

I'd be remiss here if I didn't say that I was thankful for Gary Vaynerchuk. Thank god I didn't turn out like he did.

Have a happy Thanksgiving, fellow Americans. I hope it's filled with laughter, love and joy--and is a thorough respite from a world that seems too often mad.