I did a whole bunch of touristy things this past week; my mom had come to the bay area to visit from NY for basically the first time. I’d really wanted to show her how different it is here — mind you I wanted her to like it here, but only so much. Not so much that she’d even consider moving here. So we went to Muir Woods, Sonoma wine-tasting, Hearst Castle and we took an amazing drive back up the coast home. Everywhere we went I visited the gift shops, and bought knick-knacks etc.

I couldn’t help but notice the various design elements, and how varied the quality was, especially the typography. My favorite schwag were the 3d magnets that use curved bold type with images inside, replicating the look of postcards. Sweet.

Because foggy monday mornings are hard.

Today my whole team is doing some sort of user testing — for three different projects. There’s a RITE study testing a specific (and complex) interaction. Another project is testing navigation, using paper prototypes that simulate the user’s path for a number of different scenarios. And lastly, we’re doing some concept testing, using a more finished look and feel. Its just awesome to have this kind of user feedback influence our design directions. It makes me feel privileged to work here. Now if I could only prioritize my own work…