Gracias Por Todo.

This is the year I almost died. My life has not been one of shelter or privilege, so close calls are certainly no stranger. I drive a super-tuned Corvette at speeds significantly above that which the law allows. I find myself in neighborhoods your mama told you not to visit after dark and I'm still 30 lbs over weight. But still the thought of facing one's own mortality does give a person a reason for giving thanks for each day that dawns.

The current AXE commercial shows an army of slacker studs giving thanks to all of the girls they boffed over the past year.   I'm thankful that I have a lot more to be thankful for than that.

The people that have worked for me over the past year have been a constant source of joy, pride and inspiration and I sincerely thank you. I only wish I could have been a better boss.

The clients I worked for certainly are deserving of many thanks. I enjoyed spending every dime you paid me and I sincerely hope there is more where that came from. Thank you Jim, Moe, Lannon, David, Dennis, Martha and Rebecca. And many thanks to those clients who cannot be mentioned because of the NDA's I've had to sign to protect the innocent.

But the people I am most thankful for are the people who crossed my mind as I contemplated the thought of my time on Earth finally having run its course.

Thank you Mr. Gordy for teaching me as a lad of 19 that it was "what's in the grooves that counts." The product of your labor and efforts; the expression of your talents, skills and inspiration; the result of your applied genius, this is the only thing that matters. The end result. The thing that makes them tap their toe, shake their ass, get up out that chair and dance. That's what matters most.

Thank you Helmut Krone. Thank you for teaching me that, "the only thing that counts is new." Thank you for showing me what it means to be an Art Director and have the power in your hands to create the means of attracting millions upon millions of image overloaded, viewers, readers and users to pay attention to your single moment of contact. A moment that can launch tens of thousands of container trains across the nation to market.

Thank you Mary Wells Lawrence for inviting me into your world and showing me first hand what it means to rule with style and grace. Thank you for teaching me that women are far more intelligent than men and men are only as smart as they need to be to keep up.

Thank you Adam Clayton Powell for explaining the meaning of power and the importance of never forgetting the people who give it to you and the never letting the ones who can take it away out of your sight. Thank you for demonstrating the importance of making your own way in the world, yet never forgetting the shortest way back home.

Thank you Martin Luther King Jr. for introducing me to Brioni and the fact that a Baptist Preacher can out-dress the President of the United States yet still be out-classed by the Kennedy mystique.

Thank you Dan Cracchiolo for teaching me how you made the Matrix a mythology and reminding me how important it is to be willing to "bleed" for the work. But damn you for riding your Ducatti without a helmet and leaving us way too soon.

Thank you Monica and Jasmine for giving me a reason to be glad I'm still alive.

Thank you Joel and Kevin for being the best friends to a person who hates the idea of having "best friends". Thank you for opening the doors to Hollywood and closing the doors behind me so I couldn't run screaming from the room.

Thank you Jerry for convincing Andy to give me $12 million to play with. I promise not to leave the country with it.

Thank all of you reading this for coming back week after week and making it worth while to pound it out every Tuesday...or Wednesday...or sometimes Thursday.

And finally, Thank you Ag for being my voice of reason through thick and thin. I hope I can be a better partner in the future than I have been in the past.

Stay strong.

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