Laughing With Him

Hey all! So, a couple weeks ago, upon leaving work, I picked up the paper. Since leaving away out of state, I miss the paper from back home (near where I work). So I'm reading the paper (or more like glancing it over) and I just miracously happened to notice that there was a "bloggers night" for bloggers of my area that night! Woo!! So I cancelled all my plans and went.

At this blog night, I met so many new wonderful people! Editors (of that local paper I love), publishers, writers, and.....obviously, bloggers!! It was very exciting and I was so glad I gathered up the courage to go!

Here is a list of bloggers that came, if you wish to check out bloggers local to me. I owe many of them a huge favor as they have linked over to my blog and gathered me quite a bit of incoming traffic (yay!) over the past couple weeks, so I owe them the traffic back.

• http://savethekales.wordpress.com/  (Healthy eating, love)
• http://lehighvalleywithlove.com/   (very funny!)
• http://lehighvalleyramblings.blogspot.com/  (informational, interesting, political)
• http://johnnysized.com/ (new blogger, determined to lose weight- great blog)
• http://cornerseatblog.wordpress.com/
• http://www.neighborsofeaston.com/wordpress/
• http://noisenation.wordpress.com/
• http://molovinskyonallentown.blogspot.com/
• http://wmdonovan.wordpress.com/
• http://lvpoliblog.blogspot.com/
• http://noroomforseconds.com/
• http://rememberlv.wordpress.com/
• http://www.bloggleverse.com/
• http://fromherenow.wordpress.com/
• http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/tony-rhodin/
• http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/joe-owens/
• http://blog.lehighvalleylive.com/parenthood/

I am missing one blog out of that list, because I am including it right now because it deserves extra attention. I met this blogger that night and was immediately interested in his case. Shane Burcaw is the sweetest, nicest, logical and strongest person I've met in my life thus far. Diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy, which will eventually kill him all too soon, he has this contagious unique way of laughing and always looking at the glass half full. How many of us have way less problems and look at the glass empty? We should all be taking a huge lesson from Shane.


Visit Shane's blog, "Laughing at my Nightmare", at Laughing At My Nightmare.

Anyway, Shane-with the help of his cousins- is starting a Nonprofit Organization, sharing his blog name, "Laughing at my Nightmare", in order to raise awareness for Spinal Muscular Atrophy , and to generate the general theme of laughing at your problems with optimism. I think this is a wonderful organization just starting out and I was immediately interested. As soon as I got home from the bloggers night, I went to his blog first. It was then I saw they were looking for a logo for the new NPO....So I thought, well- It would be cool to make one but I've never done graphic design or any logo before. But, after giving it some thought for a couple days, I thought- what have I got to lose? I definitely wanted to do my best to be a part of the organization lifting off the ground, even if it was just to donate a design.

So, out of the last three days, I generated two logos I like:

The Start, letters stenciled.

Adding colors.

Coloring in

End product.


When creating the vision in my head, I didn't just want to create a simple string of letters. I wanted it to be symbolic for the cause he was trying to generate. So I made the "Nightmare" look like hell (which I can only imagine Shane feels like he's going through at times), coupled with the moon lower right. Then "Laughing" was designed with different font to look more jovial and playful, as laughing usually is, (and how Shane appears to be).

 However, upon finishing and looking at it for awhile, I realized, again- that I knew nothing about graphic design. So I tried to think of other famous logos out there. What can I gather from them? They are simple. They get the message across. They are easy to replicate in a jiffy. They represent the company. So I tried to think simpler (word?).

Result:

Overall I think I like this one a lot better, as it still represents the "fire" of his nightmare, but still incorporates the playful morals the company represents with my little stick figure.  Its simple, smaller.

I like them both, but again, I know nothing about graphic design. Nothing. No classes, ever. So this is all going by knowledge gathered by watching other companies.


So I just submitted them today. Even if they aren't picked up, I won't be sad because I know it was my first try at a logo. I like it, and thats what matters. Regardless of whatever logo they end up picking, LAMN has WNB's neverending, fullfledged support and I wish him the best. Be sure to go check out his blog and watch his hilarious videos, they will make you smile- I promise.


~A Writer in a Nurse's Body


PS-

Again, the link: (in case you missed it)

Laughing at my Nightmare





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