[frustrated graphic designer rant]
I'm in browser-safe color/Arial hell right now. Little did I know when I took this job that Word would become my primary layout program, and the very act of changing the web font to verdana would unleash the snarling hounds of hell. This is the exact quote I was told when I was hired: "Kris, we're bringing you on to improve the look of everything that leaves this building." [or something pretty darn close to that anyway, it was 6 months ago...] And everytime I try to do something to improve the look, BAM! I get the fucking beat down. "No, we don't want to change that, leave that the same, here, change it back." And I have everyone in this place telling me what looks good. While I don't mind getting feedback, in fact I like it, but there's feedback and there's just fucking stubborness. And I'm not talking big huge change, I'm talking little subtle changes that no one is going to even notice but me. Ok, I've been a designer for 7-8 years now and I think I might've learned one or two things. Don't fucking treat me like I don't know what I'm talking about. You know how many people are here with any sort of graphic background? None! Not one of them. And when I try to calmly and rationally explain why arial sucks, or why it's not cool to put 87 different colors on the web page, I get the look that I don't know what I'm talking about. Everything we do looks awful. It's to the point where I don't want to tell people where I work or what I do because the quality of stuff we put out here is embarrassing. Appartently there won't be any portfolio pieces from this job.
[/frustrated graphic designer rant]

Whew. I feel much better now. I just need to keep repeating to myself... It's a paycheck... It's a paycheck... It's a paycheck... But it's a small paycheck... shut up Krissie, remember it's more than unemployment was... It's a paycheck...