My book is featured on a German site: „Professional Web Typography“: Ratgeber für die perfekte Webtypografie. Thanks to Denis Potschien for covering it.

Mấy tuần vừa qua ngày nào lái xe đi làm và về sao giờ làm cũng thấy một bà da trắng khoảng 40 đứng ở đèn xanh đèn đỏ xin tiền vì lý do không nhà. Nhìn bà ăn bận lịch sự không giống như những người rách rưới không nhà. Bà ấy đứng ngoài trời nóng (90 độ F) hơn 8 tiếng đồng hồ mỗi ngày không biết xin được bao nhiêu tiền. Không biết người đẹp có nhiều cơ hội lấy lòng người hơn hay không? Có lẻ cũng có ăn nên ngày nào cũng thấy bà ấy xuất hiện ở đó.

Two weeks ago we went to Sears to buy a dishwasher. Less than half an hour we closed the deal. The salesman asked me for my email so that Sears could provide the status of the delivery and installation. I gave him my email, but emphasized that I did not want any email promotion and he agreed.

When we got home that day, I checked the old dishwasher and for some odd reasons it worked again. I went back to Sears to cancel my order. Everything went fine, except now I am stuck with endless sale promotions.

The first promotion from Sears read: “Get $10 off $20. Jump online today!” No, thanks. Unsubscribed. The next day, another one read: “Jump on it! Get $10 off your $20 online purchase.” No, thanks. Unsubscribed again. A few minutes later, another one came in: “;-) Seriously, you made the list! Since we think you’re awesome… Enjoy Super Summer Savings!” No seriously. Don’t wink at me. I don’t want to be on the list. Unsubscribed again. The next day, another one came in: “[SURPRISE!] You’re seriously going to love this: Cyber Monday NOW :-).” No seriously, I am not going to love it. I was surprised indeed that I had unsubscribed three times with the confirmation that I had been successfully unsubscribed and yet I was still getting promotional emails.

With frustration, I tweeted at Sears and its social media team were on it immediately, which was good. After providing my name and email, they confirmed that my email had been removed from all the mailing lists, which sounded great except today I got another one from Sears: “We’re not lying! ▷▷ You’ve officially hit it big: find tools & equipment by trusted brands.” No, you fucking lied. I sent a message to the social media team that I was still getting promotional newsletter from Sears and their response was: “Donny, it can take 7-10 business days for the messaging to stop. If after that time you are still receiving messages, please let us know.” What? It takes 7-10 business days to be removed from a fucking online newsletter? They have to go and track down the physical database or something? This is ridiculous. My only solution now is to filter anything coming from Sears straight into my junk box.

As much as I love listening to podcasts, I don’t have much time; therefore, I am very selective. Here are a few shows that I listen to these days on my commute:

DesignEDU Today: A fairly new podcast on design education hosted by Gary Rozanc. I am not quite feeling it yet because most of the guests are familiar, but looking forward to the next episode with Bob Gillespie, my classmate from La Salle University.

Fresh Air: I learn something new almost everyday listening to Terry Gross talking to all kind of experts.

Microphone Check: Keep me up-to-date on new hip-hop artists. The shows I like the most are the conversations among Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Frannie Kelley, and the rappers.

Real Time With Bill Maher: I always enjoy political humors on this show. I lost count how many time Maher made fun of Chris Christie’s weight.

Through Process: Hosted by Joshua Namdev Hardisty and Mitch Goldstein, this podcast gives me insightful tips on teaching design. I started listening to this podcast last year, but then I stopped. Just resubscribed a few weeks ago and caught up all the episodes.

Unfinished Business: I really like the new format the host Andrew Clarke has set up. In pairing up two guests with similar background and expertise, he recorded some of the most engaging conversations on web design.

The Web Ahead: Updates have been sporadic, but the episodes are top-notch. Jen Simmons is a fantastic host who carries the conversations on code and design with ease and clarity.

Not sure if I will get through every book, but here’s the list:

• Aesthetics by Nicolai Hartmann
• Design: The Groundbreaking Moments by Nina Kozel
• Design, When Everybody Designs: An Introduction to Design for Social Innovation by Ezio Manzini
• Designing Here/Now: A Global Selection of Objects, Concepts and Spaces for the Future edited by Allan Chochinov and Eric Ludlum
• Designing Multi-Device Experiences: An Ecosystem Approach to Creating User Experiences Across Devices by Michal Levin
• Founding Grammars: How Early America’s War Over Words Shaped Today’s Language by Rosemarie Ostler
• Frame Innovation: Create New Thinking by Design by Kees Dorst
• Refining Design for Business: Using Analytics, Marketing, and Technology to Inform Customer-Centric Design by Michael Krypel
• User-Centered Design: A Developer’s Guide to Building User-Friendly Applications by Travis Lowdermilk

Mệt trong đời sống. Mệt trong công việc. Mệt trong đầu óc. Như Trịnh Công Sơn viết:“Mệt quá đôi chân này, tìm đến chiếc ghế nghỉ ngơi. Mệt quá thân ta này, nằm xuống với đất muôn đời.”

In the fall I will be completing my MA in Graphic Design with a final project on Vietnamese Typography. With a passion for typography and a love for my native language, this project is near and dear to my heart. My goal is to help designers in the field of type, web, and graphic understand the nuances of Vietnamese typography. I secured Vietnamesetypography.com and put up a teaser page. I can’t wait to share it with the world this winter. Stay tuned!

I just published a new chapter on Professional Web Typography called “Using SVG as Type.” Enjoy reading and have a great Memorial weekend.

Fresh Air has become my daily listen for years. Because Terry Gross covers such a wide range of topics and she always asks the appropriate questions to get her guests to talk, I have always learn something new from the program. Her voice is fantastic too. Despite listening to her everyday, I hardly get to know her personal life; therefore, I am so glad that Marc Maron gets to interview her. He is such a great host himself. Take a listen.

Một vài hình ảnh tưởng niệm bốn mươi năm người dân Việt Nam chia đôi:

• Biển Nhớ
• Giờ Này Anh Ở Đâu
• Một Chút Quà Cho Quê Hương