June 13, 2011 In art, creativity, design, drawing, illustration, imagination, inspiration By Patricia Saxton

A Plethora of P's / #25: Pigs That Fly

proactively punctuating life with the plausible, powerful possibilities of positive thought presented through a plethora of “P’s”.

– ♥ –

Why not? Can’t you just imagine them huddling in their pens, planning some nighttime fun? Their wings (invisible during the day to avoid alarming the humans) coming alive, carrying them effortlessly through the air under a shiny new moon; pigs and piglets soaring above field and fencepost, performing weightless pirouettes over the barn, their squeals of delight breaking midnight’s stillness as they tickle treetops and wreak havoc in the hen house.

Ah, if pigs could fly…  Maybe they’d teach us to lighten up, be a ham, play in the mud sometimes ~ and every now and then, perhaps, to enjoy our own small acre from a loftier, unexpected, improbable, fantastical and quite extraordinary point of view.

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June 9, 2011 In animation, art, branding, creativity, design By Patricia Saxton

Google Plays Les Paul

Didn’t expect to write two posts today, but more coolness came along that I couldn’t resist. Today’s Google Doodle is just too fun.

In honor of (what would have been) guitar legend Les Paul‘s 96th birthday, you can actually “strum” the strings. Of course, you won’t be able to play that Leo Kottke song like my brother did a few posts back, or recreate a Les Paul lick, but what a cute bit of ingenuity!

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June 9, 2011 In architecture, business, communication, creativity, design, leadership By Patricia Saxton

Apple's (Very Cool) Architectural Plans

“The word spectacular would be an understatement.”

These were the words of Cupertino Councilman Orrin Mahoney after hearing Steve Jobs’ presentation about plans for a new Apple Headquarters.

As an appreciator of everything Apple, this is exciting news. But regardless of your own personal relationship with “everything Apple”, this will be a stunning architectural feat in its own right.

For example, by moving the parking underground, the grounds will lose the asphalt and double the number of trees, including the addition of an apricot orchard. The campus will be efficient, beautiful and of course, state-of-the-art.

Another example of coolness-meets-practicality. Gotta love that!

 

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June 7, 2011 In advertising, branding, design, graphic design By Patricia Saxton

A More "Refined" Jack Daniel's… But Why?

Brand makeovers are all the rage. And as a designer, I often see the value. But honestly, in this case I’m missing the point.

You wonder sometimes what drives a change like this,” when it ain’t broke”… unless it is. Or somebody with clout says it needs to happen, and it becomes more about what’s on the cover than what’s inside. Hmmm.

Not that the new label isn’t a good one. Thankfully it doesn’t kill the brand by overly modernizing, and I admit the cleaner look is attractive.  I just don’t know why they bothered. The old label was just … so … Jack Daniels. Classic JD, forever, the way it was…. until now. Cleaned up and  more refined. (Only Jack Daniel’s isn’t supposed to be refined, as I recall?)

new

old

I have to admit though, that reading some of the articles about it were pretty interesting. For example, I never knew that Jack is brewed in a dry county. That’s a little crazy.

As for the label, they got rid of a lot of the text, including fun details like the population count of 361 (so what if it wasn’t accurate? ~ it was an interesting historical tidbit). Gone is the folksy description of how they achieve the rich flavor. They’ve also removed the claim that Jack Daniel’s is America’s oldest distillery, and they took off the name of Lem Motlow.

Now as I’ve learned, Motlow inherited the distillery when his Uncle Jack died in 1911. Motlow promptly put his name on the bottle and kept the company alive throughout the dark days of prohibition and through the controversy arising after he drunkenly shot a man dead while riding aboard a train in 1924.

This is great stuff. But maybe legends are passe’ now.

Even Jack Daniel’s portrait boasts a new name: apparently his real name was Jasper Newton. Okay, that’s cool to know, but since he’s been called Jack since 1866, I wonder what he’d have to say about that.

Oh well, the deed is done, but the vote is out. The label is still very black, and I assume the whiskey is still quality Tennessee sour mash, and at the end of the day, no one will really care that the label got a facelift. Of course, they wouldn’t have cared if it hadn’t, either.

…………………….

Afterthought: If no one cares either way, and the company isn’t suffering, maybe they did it … under the guise of updating and being more “honest” (ie, population, possibility that JD might not be the oldest distillery, etc.)…  but really and simply, just for the heck of it? 

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June 2, 2011 In appreciation, design, inspiration By Patricia Saxton

Time Out: Have I Mentioned How Much I Like Peonies?

Actually, I love them. Adore them.

Complex, soft, immaculately designed ~ and so free-spirited! A living work of art, and all I have to do is admire them. Aren’t they just exquisite?

“Spring unlocks the flowers to paint the laughing soil.”
~ Bishop Reginald Heber

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May 30, 2011 In appreciation, art, creativity, design By Patricia Saxton

A Plethora of P's / #23: Principles

proactively punctuating life with the plausible, powerful possibilities of positive thought presented through a plethora of “P’s”.

– ♥ –

Thank you ~ for your bravery, your love, your principled, unselfish courage ~ from the wells of our hearts, with a gratitude that knows no bounds.

“Who kept the faith and fought the fight; The glory theirs, the duty ours.”  ~Wallace Bruce

…………………………
Memorial Day, 2011
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May 23, 2011 In art, design, graphic design, words and language By Patricia Saxton

A Plethora of P's / #22: Pasta

proactively punctuating life with the plausible, powerful possibilities of positive thought presented through a plethora of “P’s”.

– ♥ –

Here’s an easy one to get your noodle around. Because, seriously, doesn’t everyone in the world like pasta? When you think about it (though it actually doesn’t take much thought…), a steaming bowl of spaghetti with sauce and parmesan, a green garden salad and some fresh, piping hot garlic bread has to be one of the best meals ever invented.

The thing about pasta is that it’s simple. There’s nothing convoluted about it, and there’s nothing “bad” about it. It’s easy, yummy and comes in all kinds of clever shapes. Which is really the hardest part: choosing between fettuccine, vermicelli, linguini, cappellini, cavatini, farfalle, fusilli, gemelli, manicotti, rigatoni, penne, ziti, rotelle, lasagne, tortellini, macaroni, etc. (Of course, I’ve learned from Italian friends that all pastas are called macaroni.)

In the end, it doesn’t matter which you pick. They’re all tasty, all satisfying, and they’re all in the “comfort food” department … which in my book is all positive.

Buon appetito!

ps: for the fact-minded, scientific health benefits of pasta can be found here and here.

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May 18, 2011 In design, imagination, words and language By Patricia Saxton

Lotta Rain

There’s been a lot of east coast rain lately. We’re yearning for warmth and sunshine; we’re ready for barefooted, sun-kissed, blueberry-pickin’, toss-a-frisbee weather.

Of course, some of you are beyond the “oh, gee, I sure wish it would stop raining” phase, and more in the “get the damn water out of my basement” category. But the way I see it, since there’s nothing we can do about the weather, why get our shorts in a twist?

Good things about rain: It makes things greener. (And hey, you can pretend you’re living in Scotland, surrounded by hills of heather.) It lets you get more work done without the temptation to go outside and play. It’s soothing for sleep. You can dance in it. You can sing too, and splash things, and watch water droplets make shapes on windows.

But if you’re still not convinced, here are a few quotes that (since you can’t change the rain) might change your mood.

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Let the rain kiss you. Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops. Let the rain sing you a lullaby.  ~ Langston Hughes

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Don’t threaten me with love, baby. Let’s just go walking in the rain.  ~ Billie Holiday

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It always rains on tents. Rainstorms will travel thousands of miles, against prevailing winds for the opportunity to rain on a tent.  ~ Dave Barry

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Don’t knock the weather; nine-tenths of the people couldn’t start a conversation if it didn’t change once in a while.  ~ Kin Hubbard

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Some people walk in the rain, others just get wet.  ~ Roger Miller

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And of course:

And when it rains on your parade, look up rather than down. Without the rain, there would be no rainbow.  ~ Gilbert K. Chesterton


………………

It’s not so bad, the rain.

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May 16, 2011 In art, communication, creativity, design, drawing, illustration, inspiration, words and language By Patricia Saxton

A Plethora of P's / #21: Perspective

proactively punctuating life with the plausible, powerful possibilities of positive thought presented through a plethora of “P’s”.

– ♥ –

“People who look through keyholes are apt to get the idea that most things are keyhole shaped.”  ~ Author Unknown

So much of life is about our point of view. Are you so close to something that you miss the bigger picture? Or do you soar above, taking in a broad view, missing the details?

Is your view softened by “rose-colored glasses” or do you see only the hard, harsh angles? When you walk, do you look up, look down, look straight ahead?

Are you near-sighted? Far-sighted? Do you look back, look forward? Do you see what’s right in front of you? Do you consider situations from all sides?

Our perspectives change, of course. But like all thought, we can direct that perspective towards the best possible light.

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May 9, 2011 In art, creativity, design, inspiration, words and language By Patricia Saxton

A Plethora of P's / #20: Power

proactively punctuating life with the plausible, powerful possibilities of positive thought presented through a plethora of “P’s”.

– ♥ –

I know, not the image you might expect… Power often connotes masculinity; a certain brawniness. It also gets mixed up with things like control and willfulness. Or conjures up motors and engines, watts and voltage.

But the essence of power is energy. It’s that energy that creates the ability to do great things. It’s a force that inspires and sustains. And it’s a force that’s strongest when it comes from the heart. Uncontrived and elevated.

Power is neither masculine nor feminine, and doesn’t care if you’re rich or poor, fat or thin, black, brown, white, red, yellow, green, purple….  We all have power within ~ power to give, to heal, to love.  We have power to generate, and accomplish, the stuff of dreams.

(Tell that to your mind.)

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