Confessions of a Graphic Designer

It’s been said, “Life’s a beach,” and in our case, it’s true! Eleven months ago, my husband, “Kahuna Dave” and I launched our store, Alki Surf Shop on Alki Beach in West Seattle. It took extraordinary effort and thinking to create such a unique place. It’s not just the fact that the “physical plant” is fun and adorable, but we go further to make sure our customers have a positive experience in every way we can. As Kahuna Dave says, Alki Beach is Seattle’s playground, and when you’re there, you’re having fun. It starts with the music we pipe out onto the sidewalk. We actually see people outside on the sidewalk dancing before they enter our store. We have an incredible UE Boom bluetooth speaker, which acts like a pied piper, drawing them up into our space. And when a customer leaves, we often give them something extra to remember. Our stock-in-trade is genuine Alki-branded tees, hoodies, and tank tops, but we sell all manner of beach essentials: sunglasses, sunscre...

I'm a long-time consumer of new technology, which is unusual since I'm old enough to be the mom of a huge percentage of people on social media! Many of my peers are befuddled by technology and social media. Some have joined Facebook and Twitter and now blog, and some are now using tablets, smart phones and e-readers. I have been often asked for help and advice. This year I've had the opportunity to access new products, from portable drives to smart phones, back up batteries and gadgets. Some have been amazing and great; others have been okay, and yet others have been disappointing. I'm writing this recap of some products I've either purchased, funded, or have been given to test this year. I hope you find some of my opinions useful! Smart phones: I'm a long-time iPhone user (currently using the iPhone5), but recently was given the chance to use the Samsung Galaxy S4 . It was my first encounter with the Android operating system. Those alread...