stick with what you know

the best thing about working where i do is all the free advice i get from seasoned graphic designers. wait, did i say "graphic designers"? i meant seasoned "pains in my neck".
hehe...
he.
just kidding.
i meant seasoned "people who put candy in 10 ounce bags".

i get a lot of "that's ugly." and "why are you putting those colors together? that's ugly." and "why does this santa look like it's on crack? he's ugly."
and a lot of "i don't like that"s.
not exactly constructive, but that's fine. go ahead and speak your piece.
and then please go away.
i would like to respond to one semi-valid piece of advice, "why do all your icons look so tired and sad? you should make them smile."
my response is no, no i should not force my icons to smile because when i cave in and try and cater to the "smiley" demographic, i end up with this...
smiley.