Apropos of nothing, really, here’s a little something from the journal of Princess Alexandrina Victoria Hanover, dated June 20, 1837:

“I was awoke at six o’clock by Mamma, who told me that the Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Conyngham were here, and wished to see me. I got out of bed and went into my sitting-room (only in my dressing-gown), and alone, and saw them. Lord Conyngham then acquainted me that my poor uncle the King, was no more, and had expired at twelve minutes past two this morning, and consequently that I am Queen….

“Since it has pleased Providence to place me in this station, I shall do my utmost to fulfil my duty towards my country; I am very young and perhaps in many, though not in all things, inexperienced, but I am sure, that very few have more real good will and more real desire to do what is fit and right than I have.”

Victoria was 18 at the time of her accession to Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1876, she added “Empress of India” to her business card, and ruled until her death in 1901.

posted by: Aaron Bragg  |  category: random thoughts  |  make a comment

Been spending a lot of time in Pomeroy, a little town on Highway 12 midway between Dayton and Clarkston. Like countless other farming communities scattered across southeastern Washington, Pomeroy is a microcosm of rural America; a place where hard work is its own reward, where just about everyone is related in some way, and where the commandment to love your neighbor is taken as seriously as it ought to be. It’s also where I went to high school.

In the summer of 1983, Wilbur Gingerich, who farmed in the Falling Springs area just outside of town, hired me to drive truck for that year’s harvest. This is the road we drivers—there were three of us—took on the way to Central Ferry, the Snake River grain elevators where we dumped tens of thousands of pounds of wheat and barley every day. Apart from the anomalous windmills off in the distance, this photo could very well have been taken that summer.

Driving New York Gulch Road again 31 years later, it’s easy to imagine that some things in this world will never change. But just as you’re about to believe in the possibility, you round a corner and you see those damn windmills. And you’re reminded that, in fact, it’s too late: everything has already changed.

Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. 

posted by: Aaron Bragg  |  category: random thoughts  |  comments(1)

Remember a while back when I linked to a story about the Dyatlov Pass incident? Mystery solved!

Confessions of a TV ghost-hunter.

Tokyo’s “oldest man” died—30 years ago. In related news, the New York City medical examiner’s office lost a body.

The Kraken has apparently been released. No? Maybe it was this, then.

…and on the other side of the shaman was a bag of 2,700-year-old Doritos.

posted by: Aaron Bragg  |  category: random thoughts  |  make a comment

It’s Cole Porter’s birthday today, which I’m totally using as an excuse to dig into my Esquivel! collection.

From 1962’s More of Other Worlds, Other Sounds, here’s the King of Space-Age Pop performing his rendition of Porter’s “I Get a Kick out of You.”

posted by: Aaron Bragg  |  category: random thoughts  |  make a comment

Big news in the world of typography: Apple has dropped Lucida Grande—its font of choice in every operating system since 1999—like a bad habit. What’s replacing it? Why, it’s Helvetica Neue.

Naturally, there’s been a great hue and cry from the design community. Erik Spiekermann calls Helvetica “the McDonalds of type.” Tobias Frere-Jones* worries that it won’t work in small sizes. Scott Anderson says that Helvetica Neue is as “predictable and disappointing” as Lucida Grande.

Shrug. It’s hard to argue with Apple’s success in the realm of design. I’m pretty sure they’ve thought this through.

*Alex Walker, who calls Apple’s decision “tin-eared,” refers to Frere-Jones as the “Paul McCartney of rockstar type designers.” So I guess that makes him another vastly overrated hack whose best work was done forty-five years ago.

posted by: Aaron Bragg  |  category: the design life  |  make a comment

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4msNKgRQDc

Apple’s bloom has faded for me over the last couple of years, in part because it seems they can no longer handle the simple stuff. (Both the iPhone music app and iTunes Match are notoriously glitchy and almost counterintuitive.)

But I have to hand it to them: this is a great ad. It’s nice to see “classical” music taken seriously and portrayed without the usual stereotypes. And it’s particularly ballsy to feature a contemporary piece like Salonen’s remarkable violin concerto.

Well done.

posted by: Aaron Bragg  |  category: random thoughts  |  make a comment

helveticka will be hosting an open house on Friday, June 27. An official invitation will be arriving soon. Over a year ago we began planning, remodeling, and building out our new office space. Come see what a 1930s building can look like with a little thoughtful design. That, plus food, spirits, and some talented musicians, will help us celebrate this milestone.

photo by Charles A. Libby, 1941

posted by: CK Anderson  |  category: staff  |  make a comment

Before you ask, no, I won’t be going out tonight to quaff a dozen tequila shots in honor of a minor Mexican holiday that, in the U.S. anyway, is little more than St. Patrick’s Day with a side of nachos. (And no, I’m not trying to be morally superior, either. I, um…don’t like tequila.)

So instead, I’ll be celebrating the 201st birthday of Søren Kierkegaard with a bottle of Heering and a dog-eared copy of Fear and Trembling. Who’s with me?

posted by: Aaron Bragg  |  category: random thoughts  |  make a comment