Hawaii :: the end

So it has taken me a ridiculous long time to finish up with the Hawaii photo edits / posting.  But I saved the best for last, well maybe not photographically speaking, but fun!  I shot a little video of the fire dancer at the Paradise Cove Luau - he rocked!  

luau.mov
Watch on Posterous

I bothered Bethany all week to sneak in a Luau and with the crap weather of the week, we didn't know if it would be worth it.  We went ahead and scheduled it for my last night in Hawaii and completely lucked out!!  The weather was PERFECT!  

And we even got Garrett in his Hawaiian shirt - he had originally protested, most likely because Mom wanted him to wear it ... everything is better when it's his own idea!  Kids crack me up!!

We arrived and received lei's - shells since we were in the cheap seats - got our photo taken with some of the luau dancers and received mai tai's.  They move you from activity to activity by sounding the conch shell, though it took us a couple of events to catch onto this.  We had our photos taken with birds - Garrett even had a bird on his head!! He LOVED that and it was the cutest picture too.  Then won more leis by playing ring toss games and such.  They have lots of stations where you can make  your own headbands, bracelets and all sorts of things.  I had an orchid bracelet made by this adorable woman, which didn't cost anything but a tip!  She was super sweet.  I had to grab the camera to try to capture it and was totally surprised at how good the pics came out given that I shot left handed and upside down!  

The dancers were amazing (and super HOT!!) and it was the perfect end to my Hawaii trip.  Perfectly touristy and full of photo worthy moments.   Aloha!

Cupcakes from a van?

Yes!

I have been following Flirty Cupcakes updates on Twitter, hoping they would make it to E-Town on a day that I could actually catch them... Thursday was a horrible day for me.  So when I saw they were headed my way that evening I thought I'd never make it... it was cold and wet and I was all snuggled in for the night.  But... then I thought what the heck.  I bundled up like it was the middle of winter and ventured out.  So glad I did!  I was surprised by the line... 10 people in front of me and 10 behind and everyone bought 4 or more cupcakes.  I'm thinking woah, these must be really good...  And to my delight, they are!  The cake is moist (even chocolate) and the frosting flavors sophisticated, light and airy, and just the right amount.  Bon Appétit! 

Wayfinding symbols with OpenType magic | Ralf Herrmann: Wayfinding & Typography

The beta testers of our Wayfinding Sans typeface kept asking us about support for signage pictograms. So we finally gave in. Here is a quick video preview of where we are today.

Wayfinding Sans Symbols (Preview) from Ralf Herrmann on Vimeo.

I would be happy receive feedback about it. A general symbol set can never work for each and every signage project, but I would be interested to hear more about your experience. Are there certain symbols you often need, which are not available in the usual sets? What kind of additional functionality would you need? Do you usually use fixed-width symbols or freestanding versions for inline placement? What about signs for different cultural backgrounds? What about subjective reading directions for signs like stairs?

We plan to make this symbol font a free release on fonts.info. You can also follow the development of Wayfinding Sans on our new facebook page.

via opentype.info

Fabulous news! While I might not be keen on the exact symbols they use, the concept behind this idea is superb! As he points out in the video, currently we have to use individual symbols with independent lines of type - it's difficult to ensure alignment and such. It's impossible to make global changes, so a font like this would be useful beyond imagination for a wayfinding consultant like myself.

10 on 10 :: April 2011 :: Diptych

I am participating in the 10 on 10 challenge again this month - one photo per hour for ten hours to document my day.  I was so excited that the 10th finally fell on a weekend day, but a little sad I did not have more planned for my day... it seems my life is all or nothing.  Last weekend was birthday brunches and shopping and next weekend will be spent with the girls too.  So, you get to see what the typical lazy Sunday looks like for a single 30 something .. enjoy!

9 ::  Made my favorite oatmeal pancakes (recipe here) with a little bit of bacon on the side.  This is my favorite weekend meal because it will last me the whole day.  The pancakes are so filling, and actually healthy (minus the syrup!)

10 :: Brewing...  I typically brew tea fresh every morning, but thought maybe I could be a little more efficient with things and brew a batch in advance (picked up the glass bottle at IKEA yesterday).  This should last me three or four days.  Yeah!

11 :: Logging a little computer time while the kitties enjoy the 80 degree temps with the windows open.  P. S. Aren't kitty yawns the best??  

12 :: Finally picked up the floating shelf I had wanted for my desk area last weekend and decided to break out the tools and install it this weekend.  Now I have my little shrine to KU all in one place!  Rock Chalk!

1 :: I still love cards and care packages in the mail... online stuff just isn't the same.  I spent a little time writing notes to family and packing goodies.  (Mom, be on the look out!)

2 :: I know I said it before, but it was 80 degrees today - a good 30 degrees higher than usual for our Spring.  I wandered out to get a little sun, exercise and snap a pic or two.  I love seeing all the buds on the trees!!  Oh and found this adorable note on the sidewalk ... 

3 :: Still walking around the neighborhood finding all sorts of Spring flowers.  It sure takes me longer to walk when I have my camera.  : )

4 :: Took a little time to rejuve - hydrate, stretch and have a little snack.  These are pretzel grahams from Salted Caramel - thanks Selika and Alex !!

5 :: Time to finish laundry and clean this place up.... Do you find that by mid-day on Sunday your house is a mess?  I always end up cleaning on Sunday afternoons.  How does one woman generate so much laundry and clutter in a week?

6 :: Pizza for dinner on the balcony while watching the sun set.  I love that I get the afternoon sun, it fills my home with the most beautiful amber light.  It's my favorite time of day.

Well that's it for a lazy Sunday.  Here's hoping yours was as relaxing as mine!  

yffoto.com :: orchid

via blog.yffoto.com

I was given this beautiful orchid for my birthday ... it's got loads of flowers right now. Fingers crossed I can keep it alive!!

new obsession

So yeah... I used to use my blog as a place to save all the cool stuff I see online, but now that I've discovered Pinterest... I simply cannot stop pinning!  It's super fantastic in terms of organizing everything - food, home decor, art, style, etc.  And I have even started using it for work.  I was looking for inspiration online and have been able to keep everything in one happy little place.  Forget bookmarking - PIN IT!!  

The only negative... slightly less blogging these days.  Sorry 'bout that!  Will try to do better!  

do you 'brunch?'

http://www.flickr.com/photos/a06987/4005711481/

As I was waiting (an hour and ten minutes) to have brunch at m.henry, I was wondering why it's such a popular thing to do on the weekend.  Why do we 'brunch?'  And is it more prevalent in the city vs. the suburbs or smaller towns?  

Growing up in a small Kansas town, I don't remember this being 'the' thing to do on the weekend.  Maybe it was just because my parents weren't big on eating out, but I don't even remember my friends doing this with their families.  I have done brunch in KS with friends in recent years, but wonder if this is something that is just more popular now or is it all about geography and exposure?  

That said... we had a great meal.  The wait at m.henry is long because the food is pretty darn good.  We wandered into the pastry shop across the street - the one that I've driven by a thousand times, but have never stopped to go in.  They had doughnuts the size of my head - seriously!!  And even had time to pop into Gethsemane.  Selika had never been and was so into it I had to practically push her out the door so we didn't miss our brunch call!  

Spent the rest of the day in the loop.  Finally took in the Vivian Maier photography exhibit at the Cultural Center.  Nothing like last minute - this was the last weekend!  I really enjoyed her work.  Couldn't help but to think that she would likely be a photoblogger today.  Telling the story of her life in pictures.  She captured life beautifully.  I'm so glad I made it to see the exhibit, though the blog of her images is quite good as well. 

Topped off the day with a little shopping and mini cupcakes from Sugar Bliss.  Lemon Coconut, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Peppermint Chocolate and Orange Creamsicle.  YUMMY!

better with cake

Yesterday was my birthday. Thirty eight. It was your average Wednesday... with a little bit of chocolate.

Birthday's are funny... I've never been a big birthday person. I don't plan elaborate parties or feel the need to do something crazy and over the top. Only for the big birthdays do I feel like I need do something 'memorable.' I love planning parties for other people, but don't want to plan my own... or even want people to plan anything big for me. Simply wish me 'happy birthday' or jot me a note (or even better, a card!) ... that's all that I need. Just knowing you remembered is enough. Well.... that and CAKE! Thanks to Barbara for bringing me two of the most delicious little flourless chocolate cakes! Here's hoping for a fabulous new year ahead!

Oh and I had to share the cutest birthday greeting from little Bella Boo.

3-30-11_1031_AM_Voicemail_from_Holly_Pittman.mp4
Listen on Posterous

island video

Playing with the 8mm iPhone app (and adding music via iPhoto = bad) while sunburning at the edge of the water with the ocean waves lapping at my feet... Ahhh!

Mar_6,_2011-Large.m4v
Watch on Posterous

P.S.  This song is Bethany's ringtone and this video was shot at her favorite little beach.  You can see why it's a favorite.  One could really get used to this...

the road ends here

via www2.kusports.com

This has been one hack of a season. Originally thought to be a bit of a rebuilding year, the Jayhawks kept winning. They won their way to finishing #2 in the country and to a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament. Sadly, they fell a bit short of the expectations of media and fans and of their potential. They grew into a fantastic team and it was extremely sad to see them end their season with such a horrible loss. VCU was the better team and deserved that win. I will continue to love my Jayhawks and be happy that they provided a damn good season. Rock Chalk!