Idioms: An idiom is a phrase where the words together have a meaning that is different from the dictionary definitions of the individual words. You always come across little odd sayings that we all know what they mean, but many wonder how we got them. This is my first entry in what I hope will become a long-standing series of entries. “Kicking The Bucket” Kick the bucket means to die. The idiom kicking the bucket comes from a particular technique of suicide long ago... || Continue Reading →

I am not sure why this flew under my radar last year, but when NASA hit is golden anniversary, it contracted with Crabtree + Company, a Virginia marketing agency, to develop and design their commemorative logo and materials. Having designed a few anniversary logos myself, I really appreciated their fresh approach to designing the “50″ in such a way as to incorporate the Hubble Space Telescope image of the “grand design” spiral galaxy M81 located 11.6 million light.. || Continue Reading →

Movies and logos… what could be better. I came across this post on Neatorama and thought I would share it. Paramount Pictures Corporation was founded in 1912 as Famous Players Film Company by Adolph Zukor, and the theater moguls the Frohman brothers, Daniel and Charles. The Paramount “Majestic Mountain” logo was first drawn as a doodle by W.W. Hodkinson during a meeting with Zukor, based on the Ben Lomond Mountain from his childhood in Utah (the live action logo.. || Continue Reading →

It is that time of the year when we reach up high in garage, poke our head in the attic, or hunt through the basement to drag out the seasonal holiday decorations and nicknacks. In my house, that also includes the small gathering of Christmas videos, DVDs, and CDs. I dusting off my music collection, I revisited one in particular that really struck my eye in its graphic design execution. I marveled at it’s simplicity and its concept. This would be the alternative-rock.. || Continue Reading →

This is NOT a Photoshop hoax. And no, this is not a twist on one of my favorite dishes – Coconut Shrimp. This bizarre creature is called a coconut crab and it is native to Guam and other Pacific Rim islands. It gets it’s name from its ability to split coconuts with one swipe of its claws. Thankfully, they are pretty slow on the ground, so they don’t really pose a threat to humans. (initial link)