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!

Do you dig woodpeckers? Of course you do.

Get your FREE stick-on tattoo of Spike, our Chairman of the Board and Aviary Magazine’s 2009 “Sexiest Woodpecker Alive.”

Tattoos fully guaranteed for an entire week, unless you bathe. Or sweat.

Send us a photo of you with your new tattoo and we’ll post our favorites here.

Gary Meyers
President

How do you hang onto sides of trees?
I have special feet. They have sharp claws of course. But I also have two toes that go forward and two that go back. It’s like having a couple of thumbs to help me grip with. My tail feathers help me too. They are very stiff, and I lean on them for support, like a tripod.

How do you find food?
When I hear an insect under tree bark I peck a hole into the bark with my beak, which being long, straight, and pointy is good for making holes. My tongue is extremely long and sticky and sharp, perfect for impaling bugs, grabbing ants, and licking sap. Because my bill is straight, it is also good for collecting nuts and berries.

How fast is your beak moving when you’re drumming?
Typically between 14.5-16.8 beats per second.

Doesn’t all that hard pecking give you a headache?
I have an extra-thick skull, so it doesn’t hurt.

What’s your favorite food?
From trees – beetles and carpenter ants. From birdfeeders – peanut butter. Love that stuff!

Questions for Spike? Ask here.

Gary Meyers
President

We get asked all the time, “What’s with your logo?”

Our logo mascot is the Pileated woodpecker, the largest woodpecker in North America.

These are visually striking creatures, with zebra-striped head and neck, long bill, and distinctive red crest.

They’re noisy; their call is a wild laugh, and their hammering and drumming are audible at long distances.

Woodpeckers are powerful; the holes they make can cause dead trees to split in two.

All characteristics of good marketing, don’t you think? By the way, our woodpecker is named Spike, and he’s federally protected, so you can’t shoot him.

Gary Meyers
President