13 Shakespeare Posters

I spent the past weekend hanging with my lovely aunt Karen, who is super-interesting for many reasons. One of those is the fact that, ever since I've known her, she has been working to see staged performances of every single play written by William Shakespeare. (And if you know anything about Shakespeare, you know that he wrote 37 of them--give or take--and that not all of them are performed that often, particularly the histories.)

I just love this little tidbit about her--and she's only got 11 more to go (an amazing feat!). Are you working your way through anything fun? Lemme know--I am always looking for great lists to tackle...

Othello (two-sided poster) for the Denver Center Theater Company

Much Ado About Nothing by Jen Hamilton

Set of Shakespeare Posters by Yann Legendre

Shakespeare in the Park poster (2003) by Pentagram

Shakespeare in the Park poster (2008) by Pentagram

Macbeth by Alex Leonard Design

The Winter's Tale by Kyra Porada Design

The Tempest by Bill Martin

Here's a 14th! Found it recently from Obvious State:

Images linked to their sources

Pussy willows, or “here come the readers looking for something other than flowers”

Aside from the obvious, one of the interesting things I am learning about while bloggin' on the regular is the search terms people have used to find me here at M-Dashing. Now, as I get to know more about Search Engine Optimization and all that razzle-dazzle, I certainly try to use words (particularly in headlines and tags) that would best describe what I am writing about and also appeal to someone who would dig a blog like mine.

But, this blog is a blog, and I am someone who writes very much the way I talk. And that means that I sometimes sneak in terms (words like "cool-ass," or "bad-ass" or--okay, I guess just lots of "ass") that aren't as search-engine compatible to what this blog is all about.

That said, for the past few months, I've been keeping a running list of funny word combos that people have used to find me while Google-ing. The top term? Strangely enough, "NYC subway map." (Side note: WHY would you click on a link called "mdashing.wordpress.com" to find a subway map? Tourists!). Here is a list of a few of my faves:

• Marilyn Manson smells like children


• snowmen comedy


• sexy pickles


• letters out of teeth


• things that i found in my garbage


• baby hand tattoo designs


• waiting hand cream germany


• get down sassy


• hot-ass teens


• Kate Beckinsale bangs


• jar of jawbreakers


• helium balloon filling services


• witches teat

So anyway, the whole point is this: I found the flowers for this week’s One-Bouquet-a-Week Challenge at my local farmer's market. And those flowers are pussy willows. They are lovely, and interesting, and different than anything I've bought since I started this challenge (the "catkins," or the actual flower of this plant, are so cat-fur soft that I could spend hours petting them). But again, it's made of pussy willows. And "pussy willows" is made of the words "pussy" and "willows." And the more I repeat the word "pussy" in this post about pussy willows, the more people searching for that particular term will possibly find it.

I am fully expecting search-term hilarity to ensue. If it ends up being ridiculous-funny, I'll let you know. If not, just consider this a small lesson in SEO before your weekend gets started.

Happy Friday, pussy willows!



SPACE

Pussy willow photos © Amy Feezor, 2010

Book Inspiration: “The Heart of the Matter”

My Book Club's latest book pick was The Heart of the Matter by Graham Greene. It's another British one, this time set in a West African coastal town during World War II. And I usually dig a war novel in a colonial setting. But this time, I ended up a bit bored and frustrated with its immature main character--an aging, cowardly police officer drowning in Catholic guilt who is really only guilty of being an extreme people-pleaser.

So, okay, I can't whole-heartedly recommend it (I'd give it a 6 out of 10). Nevertheless, I am glad I read it--Greene is a lovely writer (he also wrote The End of the Affair) and some of his imagery has definitely stayed with me. Here's a few that stuck out--hoping you like them a little more than I liked the book!

"He thought of a home, a permanent home: the gay artistic curtains, the bookshelves full of Louise's books...."

Slim book rack by Marianne van Ooij

"Although they could touch each other it was as if the whole coastline of a continent was already between them; their words were like the stilted sentences of a bad letter-writer."Large Initials Personalized Modern Stationery Flat Card by Red Stamp

"Scobie went out into the dripping darkness holding his big striped umbrella: a mackintosh was too hot to wear."

Ladies' Maglia Umbrella at manufactum.com

"What had happened in the mauve and orange room had been too important to become part of the enormous equal past."

Untitled (Mauve and Orange) 1961 by Mark Rothko, reproduction at soho-art.com

"She put her lips to the bandage and left a little smear of orange lipstick."

SEVEN January No.03 print from irisschwarz at etsy.com

Images linked to their sources

5 Songs You Didn't Know You Loved

Or maybe you did. But I didn't. I found these five through a series I've been doing for Herman Miller's blog, Lifework.

I've been a contributing writer for Lifework (lead by the fabulous Cerentha Harris--she is doing such a bang-up job with the joint!) for almost six weeks now, and it's a blast. I am not only meeting amazing people, but I'm learning a lot. Once a week, I'm doing product roundups (file folders, calculators, paper clips, staplers, laptop cases, tape dispensers, and the like). And on Wednesdays, I post "The Playlist." It's a series about how music plays a part in the work people create--and I tell ya, my iTunes account is starting to burn up with all the new music I've been buying using the recommendations from the people I've been interviewing. Here's a few of my favorites:

1. Walkabout by Atlas Sound from The Playlist: Jenna Park of Whimsy & Spice

I dare you to try not to bob your head back and forth to this little ditty recommended by Jenna from whimsey & spice. It's the perfect song for the beginning of spring. (P.S. That's a pic of her workspace above.)

2. Brandenburg by Black Violin from The Playlist: Markos Moulitsas of Daily Kos

This playlist has received the fastest response thus far--which, if you follow Markos' political blog at all, should be no surprise. Take a listen at this song until about 47 seconds in, when it shifts from classical to hip hop. It's really cool.

3. Cut Chemist Suite by Ozomatli from The Playlist: Nichole Robertson of Little Brown Pen

Nichole--always such a source of inspiration for me--was nice enough to be my very first interview. And she made it easy with her cool music suggestions. I'm glad to have discovered Ozomatli...they make me dance around the apartment (always a good sign).

4. Help, I’m Alive by Metric from The Playlist: Emily Hamma Martin of Orange Beautiful

I am a fan of Emily's work over at Orange Beautiful and dig the slow, sort of could-be-in-an-Apple-commercial quirkiness that comes out in this song. (Look out for playlist from Emily's long-time blogging partner, Laura, in an upcoming post.)

5. Starring by Freelance Whales from The Playlist: Andre Andreev and G. Dan Covert of Dress Code

Summer-y goodness from Andre and Dan of the very-hot design studio (and today's post) Dress Code. Music is a big deal with these former MTV-ers--and it totally shows. (This particular pick is from Dan's playlist; Andre's is just as fun...)

SPACE

I've got lots more great interviews and playlists lined up for Lifework--stay tuned! Hope you dig it as much as I do.

Photograph by Jenna Park