The mention of “Book Week” can either drive parents into a cold sweat or rush to dig out the glue gun and measuring tape.
I was somewhere in the middle. π
Our just turned 8yo isn’t super keen on dressing up, but we asked him if he’d like to participate in the voluntary mandatory school Book Parade.
After agreeing and carefully considering book characters, he asked to dress up as the pigeon from one of his favourite book series, specifically “Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!”.
After my son chose the pigeon character, I realised I had unwittingly volunteered for more than just some elementary school nostalgia. I had committed to a crash course in Project Management 101 and Creative Engineering.
Picture this: We’re talking about an 8-year-old’s Book Week parade and a looming client rollout, competing for the same slices of my daily 24-hour pie. There’s no room for fluff here; go big or go home. And let’s be honest, nobody wants to be the parent of the kid with the last-minute, store-bought costume – not when there’s a glue gun in the house! π€£
So, I had to strategise between DNS updates and diving into the great unknown of pigeon anatomy (yep, you read that right). I was juggling server migrations on one hand and cardboard wings on the other, with my trusty glue gun as my sidearm.
This wasn’t just about surviving Book Week; it was about acing the ultimate test of my creativity and time management skills. Let me tell you – when the rubber met the road, or more accurately, when the hot glue met the cardboard, things got real!
In this edition, join me on the wild ride that is Book Week – a journey that led to surprising discoveries about creativity, timing, and the things that really matter.
Spoiler alert: No buses or pigeons were harmed in the making of this newsletter.
T-Minus 5 Days – Deep Research
I’m good with a keyboard but not so hot on craft, so it was time to research how to create a “pigeon” costume. I had no idea!
“Hey Google!”
It turns out there are quite a few visual examples online about end-product bird-like kid’s costumes. That was a start.
I’m a geek, so what is my next step?
That’s correct: creating a ChatGPT Prompt! π€£
Here it is: “My son is 8 years old. He wants me to create a costume to attend the school book week parade. He wants to go as the pigeon from the book “Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!”.Β Suggest 5 easy-to-create-at-home ideas for a pigeon costume.Β Outline the components required and assembly steps for each idea.”
Good.Β Not sold on the T-shirt, though.Β The pigeon character is light blue, and that’s not one of our son’s favourite colours.Β Wings, thoughβ¦ π€
Yeah, Nah. I asked for easy, but a beak mask is a bit lame. If I create a costume that others will see and my son will wear, I want it to look like I put a little effort into it.
T-Minus 4 Days – Client Work amp; Procrastination
Timing is everything. Book Week coincides with a client project rollout.
Here’s the breakdown of my focus and attention that day.
- 70% client rollout: Server migration. DNS updates. Database imports/exports. Problem solving. Dealing with things the web host should have already done.
- 25% pigeon costume: Carboard wings – shape, colour, assembly and attachment. Mask/head covering – shape, location (front/back or side profile?), design, components, weight, attachment points, assembly sequence. Mental note: Factor in paint drying time.
- 4%: School pick-up. Karate tip testing. Dinner planning. School homework planning. Ideas for tomorrow’s lunch box. Look around for cheap petrol (!).
- 1%: Procrastination. Β―\_(γ)_/Β―
T-Minus 3 Days – Black Hole Day
I have no idea where this day went. I assume a micro-black hole consumed it and wiped my memory.
T-Minus 2 Days – Meditation, Pomodoro amp; Office Works
Panic is starting to set in as I haven’t started the costume.Β I still need to formulate what type of mask/head covering to wear.
Meditation and Pomodoro to the rescue.
I’ve been practising meditation for the past few months to see how it can improve my clarity of thought and productivity.
Fifteen minutes of meditation later and a full cup of T2 Sydney Breakfast βI click on the Pomodoro timer and brainstorm ideas.
Outcome 1: Cardboard wings with paper hoops to slide arm through and hold onto.
Outcome 2: Head covering – side profile pigeon face using paper dinner plates.
Outcome 3: Sign saying, “Can I drive the bus?”.
Ok – now I have the idea, I can gather the components. Officeworks road trip!
Light blue 300 gsm paper – check. Acrylic paint – check. Wooden ruler – check.
I decided to make the head covering first, as I knew it would require several coats of paint and take a while to dry.
T-Minus 11 Hours
It’s now 9 pm. My boy is in bed, and there are only 11 hours left until we head off on the school run to Book Week Parade!!!!
I need to finish the head and create the head covering assembly – a fancy name for a cardboard ring and two Β½ loo roll tubes glue-gunned to the ring and the face!
But disaster stikes!!! π€―
I made both heads the same orientation, which wouldn’t work when worn on either side of the head.
Thirty minutes later, and more hot glue (most of which is on my fingers), they are in the correct position.
I finished the entire costume at 11:30 p.m.
D-Day – Book Week Parade
Family-first is one of my core values.
It took me 8 hours, considerable stress and three burnt fingers to create a cardboard pigeon head and wings.
And while the Book Week Parade may have only lasted 1 hour tops, the actual parading part for my boy from sitting on the hall floor up to the stage and back again lasted 2 minutes. To see my boy’s eyes light up when he put on the costume and wave to us from the stage was totally worth it – unmeasurable ROI.
Final Thoughts and Takeaways
I tell myself I’m not very creative, but sometimes I am, especially when under the pump or in the spotlight.
That’s also true when working on client projects. Sometimes, there are considerable hurdles to overcome and limited time.
A big hug from my boy and my wife after the event – she was cheering me on from the sofa the whole week and quite rightly staying well away from that ghastly glue gun – made everything successful. It’s better than a paycheque.
Send me an email or message and let me know what recent obstacles required your creative thoughts to overcome. π¨
Until next time, keep thriving.
Wil.
