Block Parents Look to Make a Comeback

What ever happened to block parents?

Well, they still are around ... but a lot less of them. According to an organizer who was interviewed on television, in the past decade, the number of households involved with this program has dropped by half. In 1968, the Block Parent program began in London, Ontario (who knew!)

People involved with the Block Parent programs (according to its website) could help children who are:

• bullied
  
• lost, hurt or ill
  
• caught in severe weather
  
• frightened by a stranger

In this age where it seems more people are out to harm kids (sexual predators, kidnappers, for instance), it seems there would be more need for this community-based program. The sense of being connected to neighbourhoods and communities is rare these days.

Mad about Maps and Google Lands Blogger a Dream Job!

Last night, I was watching the local news when I came across this story about this guy who is gaga over Google ... so much he created a blog featuring Google maps. Google got wind of this gig and got this guy on board with their company. In this blog, you can access maps that display the coffeeshops nearby in your neighbourhood and even illegal billboards in Toronto.

Font-focused feature film

After seeing the Hot Docs film Helvetica, I now notice how frequently this font is used around the city, like subway signs. It's so common, it's like air, says one of the graphic aesigners interviewed in the documentary. Throughout the film, city montages of street signs illustrate how so many companies use Helvetica.



In this 90-minute documentary, the film traces the origin (birthplace, if you will) and development the font Helvetica. Graphic designers who have designed other fonts are featured in this film, with their take on the featured font and the impact of Helvetica in the graphic design world and their explanation of why this font is so popular. The documentary was a delight to watch. It was definitely worth standing in line for more than an hour in the rush lineup. Ironically, a person was handing out flyers about a book that was "anti-Helvetica" or "pro-indie" fonts about to be released to people in the line for this film.



After the film was completed, the filmmaker made an appearance to answer questions. He also said the movie will be in Toronto theatres sometime in the future (before fall) for about a week. Also, there will be a DVD available of the film possibly in the fall.



Note: Ironically, I don't have Helvetica font on my computer at all! So I've used arial, which is a copycat font.