Give a Hand to Wild Life (a favorite from the archives)

{Give a Hand to Wild Life}

Have you ever seen this ad? This morning I was browsing twitter and saw this link that listed ideas that changed graphic design. I scrolled through the article and was reminded of one of my favorite PSAs of all time - the World Wildlife Fund's "Give a Hand to Wile Life" campaign (2008) by Saatchi & Saatchi Simko agency in Geneva.

Body painter Guido Daniele transformed hands into recognizable animals playing into the literal and figurative meaning of the slogan. This ad campaign hits extremely close to home not only because I am obsessed with tigers, but also because it hits the perfect balance between artistry and sentiment. There are so many animals from our lifetime that will not exist to see another generation (I mean, we already lost the black rhino).

What are your favorite ad campaigns of all time? The best ones are the campaigns that don't even make you realize that it's an ad campaign (like this one).

Friday Favorites: Cuteness Overdose Edition

{Hooray for Friday}

After a hard week of adjusting back to real life after my weekend of Coachella miracles and a visit to the Justice set at Club Nokia, this weekend could not have come faster. I plan on a relaxed weekend in and catching up on sleep - thrilling, huh? After my last two weekends filled with Beer Fest and Coachella, a relaxing weekend in sounds just perfect. Maybe I'll even head out to Topanga Canyon for their annual Earth Day Festival (but only if I need another excuse to pretend that I'm a hippie).

Here's a little dose of cuteness for you to start your weekend. It's a perfect way to get through your Friday and push into the weekend. Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy my friends. I promise I'll have much better posts next week with more delicious recipes and interesting non-Coachella related things.

However, I have to admit that I'm envious that I'm not there for Coachella weekend two...

{I'm utterly obsessed with tiger hugs}

{Husky kisses are the best kisses}

Tiger Hugs (and other animal love)

{All I want is a tiger hug}

Who needs a bear hug when you can get a tiger hug? I am honestly obsessed with tigers (my dream is to meet a tiger - could be cub, could be a grown adult, but I really need to meet a tiger before I die).

You can say that animals are my obsession in general. I love meeting exotic animals, and can't remember a time when I didn't have a pet. At one point I had a dog, a bunny, a guinea pig, a rat, two finches, and a fish tank. Only about 10 animals at once (I don't know how my mom did it). Growing up with animals gives you an appreciation and understanding of them (kind of like speaking another language gives you an appreciation of another culture).

What interesting animals have you met? I've met giraffes, dolphins, elephants, camels, porcupines, snakes... and the list goes on. I've even pet Shamu at Sea World, and at my (male) cousin's birthday party I was the only girl who wanted to hold the boa constrictor. I love animals! Here's a collection of some of my wonderful animal friends that I've met throughout my life.

{Stanley the Giraffe - age 23}

{Nicki the dolphin - age 14}

{El Gato the horse (in Mexico) - age 4}

{At the petting zoo - age 3}

{Riding a camel - age 2}

{Riding an elephant with Dad - age 2}

It's Friday, Be Happy

{Baby elephant discovers the ocean}

It's an understatement to say Fridays for me tend to be daunting and exciting at the same time - I'm exhausted from my long week of work, and the weekend is so close (and yet so far).

So, I try to focus on little things that make me smile in order to make the day go a little bit more quickly: a friendly stranger holding the door open for you, a great blog article that you read with your morning coffee, painting the office walls a tangerine orange, or even unbearably cute animal photos. This baby elephant is so cute, and I imagine it is so happy playing in the waves (I want to teleport myself to splash with it).

It's the little things that make every day special. This weekend I'm heading down to San Diego for a weekend of fun, food, and old friends. Other than my impending dental work that I need to get done on Monday, I'm extremely thrilled for this weekend to come.