Reflections Printing

Do you love fonts?  I do. I really, really do.  I have hundreds, maybe thousands to choose from in my font file.  There are lots of wonderfully creative free fonts available on the internet.  I was searching today for a font to use in a poster I was designing for a haunted house.  I can across some great ones that I thought I would share with you.  The first is called “Zombie” it can be downloaded free here. The finished poster shown here was designed with the Zombie font. (www.dafont.com)

Another one is called “Monster Party” it can be downloaded free here. This font is not letters per se – it consists of black line art of various monsters, mostly from the movies – like Jack Nicholas from “The Shining”.  The picture here shows a few.  These would be perfect to use if you need to design an inexpensive Halloween flyer, because this kind of artwork is excellent for photocopying.

And last,  www.sinisterfonts.com has some really fantastic scary and gothic fonts, in fact, the whole page is a little scary!  You can get some free horror style wallpaper here too if you want to customize your computer screen for Halloween.

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Have you ever heard the expression “If it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, its a duck?”

It has taken me longer in my life to learn that lesson that it probably should have.  That applies to my business life as well.  It is very important to listen closely when your intuition tells you something.

Recently, I had a client for printing and graphic design, that I just had a bad feeling about.  However, I talked myself out of doing anything about it, after all, it was just a “feeling” and, I told myself, maybe he is just not my kind of person, doesn’t mean he isn’t a good person, just not my style.  Which is not all that bad of a rationalization really, because I don’t think you should base you actions ONLY on intuition – just listen carefully and act accordingly.  What I should have done was taken some reasonable steps to protect myself – which I could have done.  Instead I talked myself out of doing anything, because deep down, I really want to believe that everybody is nice, keeps their promises, pays their bills and if I treat them with integrity, they in turn will treat me the same way.

Alas, I have found to my very great disappointment that this is not true.  This particular lesson cost me $1600 and a lot of frustration – ouch!  I will be more careful in the future.

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Why don’t they make more movies like this?  There was no car chase, no removal of heads or other body parts with accompanying copious blood flow, no evil plot to destroy the world (Well, I do have to admit a couple of lobsters did meet their maker).  I absolutely loved it.

Why?  Okay.  First of all, I love butter, I mean, I really really do.  Both heroines of this movie love butter.  That is almost enough reason alone for me to love this movie – but there’s more.  This movie is about two women who had a dream, set a goal, and followed through despite difficulties, set-backs and naysayers.  They each also had people – actually these people were MEN (can you believe that!), actually these people were their husbands (seriously!) who supported them, encouraged them, and rejoiced with them as they each reached their goal and found even more success than their wildest dreams.

I left this based on true events movie feeling not only entertained, but uplifted. I just wish there were more movies available to see like this. Okay, it was kinda a chick flick but I have seen enough car chases to last me 10 lifetimes.

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(The title of this entry comes from the unforgettable 1984 movie “Ghostbusters,” which maybe a few of you out there are old enough – like me – to remember.)

A few weeks ago I had the privilege of being present at an event which was the culmination of several years of very hard work and dedication; the ceremonial ribbon cutting of the brand new facility in Ivins, Utah, The Ivins Animal Shelter. This effort was the brainchild of two beloved clients and friends of mine, Linda Elwell and Lesley Mendenhall, who dreamed one day in 2004 of a “No Kill” shelter in Southern Utah, rolled up their sleeves, and got to work and a kill shelter became a “No Kill” shelter where animals began being saved and placed in loving homes or placed in facilities which best handled their special needs. The building they had for the shelter itself, however, was old and inadequate to meet the burgeoning needs of the homeless, frightened, sick or injured pets which desperately needed a safe haven.

Linda Elwell, is a tiny woman with an enormous heart for not only homeless pets, but also for her family, sick or crisis stricken neighbors, and seemingly anyone who crosses her path that needs a helping hand. I have had the opportunity to see first hand the much dedication Linda brings to each project as she has graciously chosen to include me in many of them over the past several years as their printer and graphic artist. I first met Linda in 2002 when I worked with her on designing invitations and an auction book for a fund raiser for a young mother with cancer. Over the past several years I have worked with her in a similar capacity on flood relief efforts, honoring returning veterans and their families, honoring particular individuals who have served outstandingly in the Ivins community, and fund raising for a teenager stricken with cancer, just to name a few, but, The Friends of Ivins Animal Shelter, has always been Linda’s “pet” project. (Pun absolutely intended!) I was involved from close to the beginning, with my first project being designing a logo for the shelter, then over time, brochures, invitations, posters, etc. Consequently, I have seen the countless hours Linda has dedicated to fund raising for the shelter, lobbying at council meetings, organizing volunteers and networking with other animal rescue groups.

On July 24th, 2009 through Linda’s efforts, and many, many other volunteers and donors too numerous to mention here, the dream of a brand new building equipped with everything needed to best accommodate the needs of homeless pets officially became a reality. The Friends of Ivins Animal Shelter is a wonderful example of what vision, dedication and community effort can produce. It has been an absolute inspiration to me to see it unfold over time, with as it’s crowning touch, this wonderful new facility staffed with committed volunteers who will make a tremendous difference in the health, safety, and quality of life in the animals entrusted to their care.

If you are interested in volunteering or making a donation to the Friends of Ivins Animal Shelter, please click here for more information:

http://tinyurl.com/friendsofivins

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