Kristen: Prepare for the VMA’s by watching recaps of the most classic VMA moments- as reenacted by some special actors.

Gary G.: Having spent a week on the road surviving east coast earthquakes, avoiding oncoming hurricanes and (shudder) focus groups, Spike likes being back on terra firma among family and friends in the Great Pacific Northwest. His heart goes out to those about to feel the brunt of Irene.

Tiffany: So, I’m a big NASA nerd and I have been following the Mars rover’s for years. RIP Spirit

Willem: After testing their highlining skills up in the Mont Blanc massif, crazy french dudes highlined the highest twin towers in Paris.

Rachel: This bridesmaid was unable to make it to her friend’s wedding, but with an iPad and FaceTime, she was able to attend, digitally.

Natasha: Excited for my camping adventure at Blue Lake in Eastern Washington this weekend!

Erin: Nothing could make me more excited about heading into the weekend than seeing this:

Gina: Sad, but touching story that shows just how powerful the bond between people and animals can be.

Tim: Tim likes Steve Jobs. Or more accurately, he likes his contribution to technology.

As Steve Jobs steps down from Apple this week, it really does mark the end of an era. I was in Pioneer Square in the mid-eighties when a designer friend showed me his Apple computer, either an SE or a Plus, don’t remember. It was incredibly crude by today’s standards of course. But it allowed one to do graphics on a computer. Not very well at that time, but it was a beginning. I remember poking fun at it, but that changed soon. Then just around the corner, literally, a company called Aldus introduced PageMaker, and desktop publishing was born. Almost overnight, typesetters started to disappear — an industry that has been around since Gutenberg (over 500 years!). Within a year I had my first Mac. It was a IICX, and it was the most amazing thing I could imagine. Having just got out of art school and learned the traditional way of creating art, the timing couldn’t have been better for me. Adobe entered the picture  with Illustrator and Photoshop, and gave unbelievable creative life to the Mac.

We’ve stuck with Macs through thick and thin, even when the company was supposed to die in the late 90′s. It was Steve Jobs who came back, after being unceremoniously shoved out in 1984, and literally saved the company. One of the first signs of his resuscitating the company was the introduction of the cute and colorful iMacs. The iPod then revolutionized the music industry in spite of aggressive attempts to dethrone it (remember Microsoft’s Zune, the “iPod Killer”?). The iPhone reinvented the smartphone industry, and the latest smashing success is the iPad, which I absolutely love. (My wife thinks I love my iPad more than her. I don’t.)

This is of course a super-abbreviated version of the story. And even accounting for all the attention and adulation Steve Jobs has gotten in the business and entertainment communities, I don’t think history has even begun to really register the profound impact this visionary has had on the world. And for me, it’s been exhilarating and rewarding to personally experience it.

Though Summer has yet to fully arrive here in Seattle, the Spikesters are sitting here, wishfully thinking about their favorite summer things. All in hopes that one of these days, we will break the 70 degree barrier.

Gary G.: Who do the Hoodoos? I do!

Lea: An afternoon sitting on the banks of the Seine in Ile St-Louis in Paris. Picnic, book, and champagne. And a box of strawberry macaroons from Laduree.

Chris: When the sun refuses to shine in Seattle, I like to head east to Lake Chelan where you’re guaranteed at least a little warmer weather. Canon Beach is great in late summer, and the San Juan’s can be spectacular. Here’s a picture of my daughter trying to catch some summer rays…literally.

Willem: The Solstice Parade and Fremont Fair welcome summer with a big, Fremont-style party. A local favorite since 1972, the fair celebrates the summer solstice and the quirky spirit of Fremont, the self-proclaimed “center of the universe.”

Rachel: Summertime dinners out on the deck, with all of our family and friends. Gives me an excuse to make my favorite Watermelon Salad. To make it more of a meal, I add arugula for a perfect summertime lunch. Also, for those who don’t like Feta- Parmesan is a great alternative.

Tim Hodgson: An interesting, and very unusual, place to visit this summer.  Assuming you like snakes.

Gary Meyers:
1. Shorts, t-shirts, and flip flops for (hopefully) 3 months.
2. Raucous birds in the backyard at 4:30 AM.
3. Grilling!

Andrew: This week, I’m donating one of my ugliest pictures in the name of summer fun. My favorite place to go, when the weather gets hot around here, is Lake Chelan. My friends and I bring the Boat and Sea-doos, and partake in some Chelanigans.

Natasha: My favorite thing about this summer is that I am finally graduated from college!

Gina: Summer makes me think of Nefarious Vineyards in Chelan and sipping my favorite summertime wine, Consequence.

Charlie: A classic look at summer in Seattle, courtesy of Almost Live!

Kristen: My favorite summer activity is walking to beautiful, historic downtown Snohomish and getting a bite to eat on a sunny day. My favorite places to visit are: The Crepe Escape for breakfast, Fred’s Rivertown Alehouse for Lunch, The Repp for Dinner and Bite Me Cupcakes for dessert!

 

Kristen: I’m very excited to join the Hodgson/Meyers team and I can’t wait to get started!

Andrew: This weekend I’ll be sporting the shorts and flip-flops as Seattle finally gets above 75ºF for the first time this year!

Rachel: I may be one of the few people around here who likes country music, but this song, Honey Bee by Blake Shelton is my current favorite. It is the perfect summer song.

Charlie: The good ol’ days of packaging are back (for a limited time).

Sharan: This kitten video is quite adorable.

Chris: The new mobile marketing gold rush is under way in the form of branded mobile codes. Instead of securing the latest website address, you can get your very own mobile vanity code that allows your customers to more easily interact with you on their mobile devices. Have you reserved your code yet? If not, you better hurry…they’re going fast. Find out if your company’s name is available at http://www.zoove.com/ But be prepared to open up your wallet.

Gina: This is hilarious. I see a bright future for this kid. Maybe politics? Motivational speaker?

Willem: Delicious HD eye candy at Vimeo.

Summer is here bringing the season of food festivals, outdoor movie screenings and farmer’s markets into full swing.  So here’s to a happy Friday, cheers to good weather (fingers crossed) and enjoy!

Jason Frummett: I like that for the first time since April, the oil leak in the Gulf has been successfully capped.

Robert Coats: 8-bit Cities. City maps for old school gamers.

Gary Graf: For lyrical virtuosity, and a darn good time, catch bare naked ladies. The band. I’m talking about the Canadian band. Who were you thinking of?

Lea Loya: OK Go’s marching band version of ‘This Too Shall Pass.’ Props again to these viral video darlings. Read lead singer’s brilliant NYT Op-ed piece from last February on the utilization and creativity of viral videos in the current stifling recording industry environment.

Jamie Bakun: Old Spice’s video tweet responses. This is quickly becoming my favorite ad campaign! Sadly, the video below is the last video tweet. To see the whole engagement go to http://twitter.com/oldspice. Be sure to read this article as well as watch the videos.

Willem Buys: A full-CGI animated piece by Alex Roman that illustrates architecture art across a photographic point of view where main subjects are already-built spaces.

Sharan Ochsner: Transformer owl!

To say Hodgson/Meyers’ account manager Gina Auffant is a quick study is just the half of it. Or to be more accurate, just the halfathon of it.

Sure, Gina got quickly up to speed on the Fluke clamp meter, calibration and network accounts, not to mention Douglass Interior Products and Webasto truck parts. But she also fast tracked the Seattle Rock and Roll Halfathon, helping to benefit the American Cancer Society in the process.

Competing against more than 17,500 other runners, Gina clocked a rapid 1:32:32 over the 13.1-mile course, good enough for 44th place among all women finishers, and 192nd overall.

Gina first found her stride playing soccer at Lewis & Clark High School (Spokane, WA) as an outside midfielder. Seeing her speed down the sidelines, the school’s track coach recruited her for his girl’s team. Smart move. By the time Gina was a senior she regularly qualified for the state track meet in the 400 meters. And more than 10 years later, still holds a number of the school’s top marks in the 400 and 4×100, 4×200 and 4×400 relays.

“I just love to run,” says the trim 5’6” Auffant. “My competitive juices get going and I just can’t help trying to pass the runners ahead of me one by one.”

After passing thousands of runners in Seattle, Gina was so encouraged by the experience that she’s planning to run the Girlfriends’ Half in Vancouver WA later this year to support breast caner awareness. Seems not only is Ms. Auffant a quick study, she’s quick to support worthy causes, too.

We found another item for our holiday wishlist. Seattle designers (like us) will love this map of Seattle neighborhoods from Ork. Clever design and typography, guys.

They also have posters for Boston, Chicago, L.A., New York, D.C., Portland, San Francisco, and more.

Order online or pick one up in Ballard.

Thanks to Seattle Magazine for spotting this one.

Tim Hodgson
Principal/Creative Director