A fascinating debate between Wim Crouwel and Jan Van Toorn—two graphic design legends defending their view on design. Crouwel takes the rational approach and Van Toorn takes the personal approach. Crouwel believes that the designers should not stand between the message and its audience. In contrast, Van Toorn believes that the designers should engage their audience. In The Debate: The Legendary Contest of Two Giants of Graphic Design, each designer makes compelling arguments in his design approach and they proved in their work that design is diverse. The designers need to find a method that works for them and continue to develop and refine their design.

Thank you for taking great care of my mom during her stay in the Lancaster General Hospital. Your patience and kindness gave her comfort and helped her get past the difficult times in the past two days. Despite the long hours (3AM to 7PM), you went above and beyond for your patients. You have my deepest respect for the works that you do for people and for my mom in particular. Although you probably never get to read this, I still want show my appreciation and gratitude. Please continue to do what you do because you make this world a better place to live.

Thanks to the graphic design students in AVT 498 for the lovely card and the gift card. I am glad that the web site for the Senior Show worked out. You did all the work. I only helped out just a bit. Nevertheless, I appreciate your gift and will put it to good use on books over the holidays. Congratulations on final project. Looking forward to seeing your work at the closing reception.

Last night we wrapped the last day for Web Design & Usability. Students presented their portfolio web sites. Some of their codes are still rough, but they have until next Friday to fine tune their site. They seem to have the foundation down. My hope is that they will continue to work on it beyond the class. The only way to learn to is keep working and refining their site. I have been working on my own site for fifteen years and still making changes to it.

Overall, I am pleased with the students’ performance. They put in their share of work. My TA was also great. He helped out by providing good feedback to the students. As for me, this could be my last teaching. I am taking next semester off to spend time with my family, especially the newborn. I am not sure if I will return after that. Regardless, having taught three classes—Introduction to Web Design, Web Design & Usability, and Advanced Web Design—gave me a good experience. I am happy that I did it, especially seeing students improved their design and a bit of coding.

After ten days, we took down our 4×4 exhibition. My part took the quickest to de-install because it is minimal comparing to my cohorts. Even though the printed books were supposed to be read in the gallery only, eight of my copies had left the building. I am actually glad that visitors found some interest in my book.

I had a chance to read through the guestbook and the following entry made my day:

Love it!
Donny—thanks for touching on an issue a lot of type designers ignore. Keep it up! You’ll change the world.

Great show
Thank you

I couldn’t figure out the guest’s signature, but I am really appreciate the compliment. Thanks to the person who had written it. It means a lot to me.

A concise yet insightful read on the making of Miles Davis’s bold and beautiful Bitches Brew. From the events leading up to the recording sessions to the process of crafting an experience for the album to the impacts it has on listeners and critics, Svorinich’s clear and balanced analysis makes Listen to This informative and engaging. Having read this book makes me wanting to revisit Bitches Brew again and again.

2015 marks a productive year for Bích Vân. After releasing her superb solo, Kiếp Nào Có Yêu Nhau, to her Vietnamese audience, she branches out with two collaborative projects: Simply Love with her “best friend and best love” Sean Buhr and Seasons of Love with an Australian-Vietnamese pianist and arranger Nguyễn Vân Anh.

Simply Love celebrates the romantic relationship between Vân and Sean. Right off the opening track, the two lovebirds fly to the moon in unison with the straightforward swinging accompaniment: pianist Daniel Vũ, guitarist Will Brahm (who also provides a savory solo), bassist Jordan Richards, and drummer Jimmy Trần. Once landed to the moon, they slow down with a heartfelt duet on the classic ballad “My Funny Valentine.” Sean’s charming baritone and Vân’s sensational soprano are a match made in heaven and in life. The companies remain the same, but with the addition of the heart-rending sawing strings from cellist Leah McIntire-Barnett.

After the Latin-flavor “Sway” and the swinging “Cheek to Cheek,” the album turns toward romantic pop. “Renewed,” an original ballad from Sean, recounts their intimate relationship: “I always saw you as a friendly friend of mine / Never thought that you would be the one I hold at night.” The affectionate covers of “Love Me Tender,” “Lovesong,” “Careless Whisper,” and “All the Way,” are too poppy for my taste, but I can hear they being played at weddings.

Seasons of Love, on the other hand, is an excellent album to be experienced in its entirety. With songs from Miss Saigon to The Wizard of Oz to Les Misérables to Wicked, Vân Anh and Bích Vân has crafted a musical journey that gives listeners a taste of broadway. By keeping the arrangements simple and contemporary, Vân Anh makes the tunes more approachable beyond the broadway aficionados. Her master of understatement could be heard on “Habanera/El Choclo” (from Carmen). Because the rhythm section—consists of guitarist Daniel Maher, drummer Pat Madden, and bassist Johnny Lucas—is already strong and infectious, Vân Anh only plays a few high keys to complement Bích Vân’s soprano. Both Deniel’s and Vân Anh’s solo are hypnotizing, particularly when she plays her classical chops.

“My Favorite Things” is an outstanding rework of the show tune from The Sound of Music. The modern backbeat is groovy and Vân Anh’s solo is exhilarating. The track that puts the female duo power on display, however, is from My Fair Lady’s “I Could Have Danced All Night.” They both are in their classical elements and they feed off each other’s vibes note for note. As the album reaches its closing, “Time to Say Goodbye,” it is hard to let go of the experience.

If you’re looking for some tunes to get into the holiday mood, don’t miss out this Seasons of Love. You won’t be disappointed.

Vietnamese Typography is now only $12 for a paperback copy and only $5 for the PDF copy. If you need a stimulating gift for someone special for the holidays, pick up a copy. I also would like to thank those who had purchased and supported the book.

Update: Thanks to Anh Hùng for ordering 10 paperback copies.

This morning I took Đán to preschool, but forgot that it is closed today. When the guy at the front desk told us that, Đán’s face lid up. I said to him, “Let’s go back home.” He replied, “Yes, I am so proud of you, daddy.”

At dinner time last night, Đán went to the restroom and went back out. I told him to wash his hand before he eat. He argued back, “I didn’t touch my cu (penis).”

On Monday, I took him to the pediatrician for his four-year checkup. He did everything the doctor told him to do such as hopping and balancing with one foot, reading the shapes on the board for his eyes test, and answering a few questions. He took three shots on his arms, cried a little, and went for some donuts.

I am indeed very proud of him. I enjoy spending time with them now more than before. We can actually go places without all of the extra baggage. It will be tough with another one on the way.

Our Đán is a dinosaur lover; therefore, I took the boys to screen it on Thanksgiving day at noon. Khôi, Đán’s cousin walked out of the theater mid way through, but both Đán and Đạo stayed in for the entire film despite a few frightening moments. As with most of Pixar’s films, The Good Dinosaur is visually stunning complemented with heartfelt story. I personally enjoyed it. The boys liked it as well.