For the last 76 months — that would be 6 years and 3 months — we have been uploading what has amassed to more than 5,400 Word Its by more than 1,800 individuals. It has been both an arduous and enjoyable task. On behalf of everyone that has participated we humbly and proudly bring Word It to a close, thanking everyone that made it possible.

We hope you keep finding outlets, online and offline, for your creativity. Our archives will remain active for as long as the UnderConsideration network stays afloat.

All the best,
Bryony Gomez-Palacio + Armin Vit

After more than six years, more than 4,500 submissions, and more than 5,000 tags through 75 different words, the time to bring Word It to an end has come. This is not a decision that comes lightly for us, and we realize that we are removing an outlet of creativity for all the participants over the years, but we hope that the encouragement that Word It brought in staying creatively alert is something you can all continue on your own.

We feel we have all jointly taken Word It as far as it can go and we have a hard time picturing its next evolution, so as we planned our efforts for 2010 a few months ago, we felt that our limited resources — as Word It requires daily and thorough maintenance — would be put to best use in other UnderConsideration ventures.

Your time, creativity and support over the years has fueled Word It and we profusely thank you for it.

The End is the word for January.

January is the month of resolutions. December is the month in which we ponder upon these future resolutions. A month in which we look at ourselves and the areas in our lives and persons that we need to improve upon. Goals that will help us draft our resolutions as we seek to improve for us or for those we love (who often urge us to improve).

Improve is the Word It for December.

November is a funny month. The colder weather usually means we are happy and content staying at work, quietly working away while drinking a hot triple-something-or-other. It is also a month in which many clients slow down as the end of the year nears and new budgets are worked out to match the dreams of employees with grand plans that most likely need to be scaled down. A slower pace, a brisker weather and a desire to stay warm result in longer hours at work—not a bad end to the year.

Work is the Word It for November.

Command + period!
Command + period!
Command + period!
Command + period!
Command + period!
Command + period!
Command + period!
Command + period!
Command + period!
Command + period!
please…

Cancel is the Word It for October.

Schools regain their students, New York is repopulated by non-tourists who fled the heat, businesses re-buckle after the summer, breezes slowly replace the oppressive weather, and the Word It masters take to their creations with renewed energy.

For September is the month of coming back.

Back is the Word It for September.

Beauty is a very attractive quality, and so is the disgusting. We are often attracted to both in ways that lead to hairy situations, some that we can leave unscratched and others not so much. But what is hairy? That which is a hairy situation to you, might not be so much for me, and that which I consider to be hairy, you might consider to be beautiful. So we leave it up to you know to help us define that which is hairy.

Hairy is the Word It for August.

It seems that with every passing day, every passing month and year we fly more and more. We fly in airplanes—something Debbie Millman (and new AIGA president) get to do way to often—that take us to meetings and vacations, to family and new adventures. We fly at our desks, mouse a-clicking and key commands chasing each other. We fly in our heads when we want to get away or when we wish to find. We fly to each other when we need the one. All in all, I see that we are constantly in flight—be it in the thousands of miles, or in a single thought.

Fly is the Word It for July.

At some point or another we have all experienced some sort of drought. Be it an extensive hot summer without rain, a long hike with little water, a long year with minimal work, or time passed without the love we hope to find. In each case we can quickly identify the source of the problem, yet finding the solution often falls out of our hands. Beyond our immediate control, requiring more that ourselves, needing various pieces to come together in just a way that will make the drought go away, as easier times settle into place.

Where there is drought, there should be hope. Where there is hope, change is bound to find its way.

Drought is the Word It for June.

We are here, yet we are not. We are living in a sort of limbo where everything we own is in transition, and everything that we have been is in a metamorphic stage. We are here, and with every passing day we are more here than there.

Here is the Word It for May.

Go with it.
Run with it.
Grab it by the ****s and make it yours.

For in these rocky times, least we lose our minds, going with the flow seems to be the better option.

Go with it.
Run with it.
Own it.

Flow is the Word It for April.

Life will hand you lemons, and what you do with those is up to you. Lemonade? Perhaps. Mold? A possibility. A gift? Also an option.

Whatever the outcome there is a period of transition, a before and after of sorts — sometimes it is huge and others so miniscule you miss it altogether. So how to go about transitions? My only word of advice here would be to acknowledge them and let them take you for a ride. The less we mess with them the easier the ride will be. Don’t fight them, embrace them and make them you own. Surely the sum of your transitions, and the quality of each ride, is equal to the length of your smile.

Transition is the Word It for March.

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Short is the Word It for February.

Late. Obviously.

Late is the Word It for January.

A place is just a place, or so you might think. Be it a city, a mountain, a coffee shop, your favorite store or the trendiest entertainment spot, a place is just a place until you decide to upgrade it into a destination. So go ahead, and think twice before you head out the door on your next outing and think about where you are going. Place? Destination?

Destination is the Word It for December.

Gone is the warmth
Of the sun
Gone is the sweetness
Of sleeping in
Gone is the pleasure
Of outdoor dining
Gone is the voice
Of one we love
Gone is the order
Of a childless home
Gone is the space
Of the new bookcase
Gone is the silence
Of an empty home
Gone is the green
From the backyard tree
Gone is the touch
Of a beloved pet
Gone is the light
Of an ended day
Gone is the ballot
Of hopeful change
Gone is the dream
Of things past

Gone is the Word It for November.

Vote.

Vote is the Word It for October.

In order to celebrate the labor of the people, a day has been assigned in which labor is to be avoided. A day in which the labor no longer revolves around the water cooler, but around the grill, where instead of meetings we have gatherings, a day where instead of commuting we travel. Funny way to celebrate labor.

Labor is the Word It for September.

We have all experienced such behavior, we might of even partaken in it—even if we don’t care to admit it. You know the kind, the one you dread will sit behind you during your next flight.

Obnoxious behavior is hard to tolerate. As a parent, you can understand it when coming from a child even if you can’t stand it. As a college student you can relate to certain teenagers, even if you have risen above their actions. We all talk about it under our breath when we see it happening, as we not so secretly wish we could make it go away.

Obnoxious is the Word It for August.

In public, or within your family, with quick, hot, regret and extreme pain that time and a bit of joy can help heal. Down the middle or in your home, as a prank or simply for pleasure, which ever which way, your name might fall flat, unless your inspiration goes beyond the expectations.

You can’t hide it in a box, nor toss it in the garbage. This might be an oops you can’t wiggle your way out of, so beware of what you do with it and use your star studded doom wisely, and don’t let a cut of any kind mess with your xanadu. Be ready, deal with the power, wonder at the mix of circumstances that led to a yell, and don’t let it get wet.

Keep it clean to avoid the slime.

Just don’t let it become a giant nightmare.

Cut is the Word It for July.

Neither here nor there, yet no less in the count. A matter of placement, and nothing more. In some cases to its determent, and in others inconsequential —simply a matter of perspective and experience. For the middle is a lovely spot for some, while others wish to avoid it at whatever cost.

Middle is the Word It for June.

I see you. I see you not. I see you. I see you not. I see…

Transparency is the Word It for May.

I dislike harmony. I don’t care for its ability to impact my work, my playtime, my marriage, my conversations, my activities, my walks, my everything. Harmony is not gracious, leaving in a second, yet taking her sweet time in finding her perfect spot in which to snuggle—circling the area like a dog seeks his nap.

With harmony snuggled tightly around me I am able to complete what in her absence seems impossible, times when harmony has surely left the building—gone on vacation far, far away from me. I need harmony. I depend on harmony in the same way I need my morning coffee and my ever present to-do list. I hate harmony. I love harmony.

Oh harmony. Will I ever learn to accept you for who you are?

Harmony is the Word It for April.

Led by faith and passion and inspired by pain and insatisfaction (among many others), all it takes is a single individual brave enough to tackle the odds. One that will be joined by others, be it a handful or by thousands, all it takes is the one. For a revolution is often started in a heated conversation, where one mind sets its course and a heart chooses to follow, a moment that will likely repeat itself with various characters as circumstances change and evolve, usually for the worse. Word by word, action by action, individual by individual.

Revolution is the Word It for March.

We like to hide things here. We might do it on purpose, we might not notice that we are doing so—with a smile, a smirk, a guilty look or total indifference. It is here that we find the hole in the sock, the ugly t-shirt, the dust bunnies, the rumpled skin, the bed hair, the unread magazines, the shameful books, the guilty pleasures, the new chocolates, the to-do lists, the messes we make, the untold stories, the magic kingdoms, the secret lairs, the cozy spots, the forgotten teddy bears, our favorite books, journals, sketch books, cherished pens, off-tune voices, lovers, loved ones…

That which is hidden is to be found under the covers, under the clothes, under the cardboard box, under the largest book, under the bookshelf, under the rug, under the appearances, under the pretense, under the sofa, under the sheet, under the stars, under your gaze. And under so much more.

Under is the Word It for February.

It wasn’t so long ago that I found myself sitting on the terrace, muddy knees and tangled hair wondering about the future — panting wet dog under my tiny sneakers. I used to have long conversations with my brothers about what life would be like once we changed millenniums, what the world would be like, how our lives would change with technology and what exactly we would be doing. Our crazy thinking was usually 20 years out.

We had a baby in the house — my fourth brother. We had dogs and cats, there was horseback riding and sunsets with tea. There was no phone or television (in the country house my parents built a few years after they married), but we had LPs and billiards.

Not much has changed, yet everything has. Now we have a baby in the house‐our daughter. There are dogs and cats, there is horseback riding and sunsets with tea. There is a phone, a TV, DVD, VCR, CD player, personal computers, a tower computer, wireless internet and billiards.

Life is as crazy as I dreamed it would be back then, yet crazier than I ever thought it would be. And I love every moment of it.

The more crazy life has in store for me, the more crazy in love I am with life.

Crazy is the Word It for January.

I hereby promise to honor thee
change you as time progresses
modifying your status accordingly
with or without notice

I hereby promise to cherish thee
holding you dear in mind and heart
keeping you on my hard drive
and also on DVD

I hereby promise to pass you on
To a younger generation
That will mold you accordingly
For updates are constantly required

Dear tradition
I hereby promise you
My lifelong companionship

Tradition is the Word It for December.

Many of us have been there. We mentioned it, we debated about it, we found ourselves over it. But really, did we?

For that which is based on the past, the befores that constantly inform what shall be. That which is next can never happen without the yesterdays and todays. And so it is today, that I seek to know — in the same way thousands of designers did a couple of weeks ago — what is next?

Next is the Word It for November.

I find myself decompressing and catching up at the office after a four-day weekend in Toronto visiting family. A gathering of sorts spanning three generations and three countries led to a chaotic, loud, bumpy and funny group of hours day after day.

It was our youngest nephew who managed to make us laugh as he discovers the world and seeks you to share in the findings. Smiling broadly, index finger stiff in excitement and a glimmer in his eye leading to an adorable: Look It!

And you smile (laugh) and slightly acknowledge the situation…Yet that is not enough. Look It! Loooook It! Look Iiiiit! will surely follow until you stop your own moment in life to share the experience with him. Once this happens, he will happily walk away in search of the next thing.

As I type I realize I have a strong desire to Look at the world anew. With the eyes of wonder and the excitement that ensues when a discovery is made. In the meantime, I can only say Look It! A bunch of new Word Its are about to be published.

Look is the Word It for October.

There is a very small space in New York, where if you are patient enough, and have between two to four hours to spare, you can enjoy. After waiting in line for your turn, you are directed to a table where you can enjoy a delicious hot chocolate or the latest coffee in vogue.

After such predetermined steps, I find it conflicts with the very nature of its name. For there is nothing serendipitous about standing in line for hours in order to drink a cup of joe at Serendipity.

Serendipity is the Word It for September.

There are stereotypes and there are preferences. Expectations and perceptions are also big players even in the benders. For nobody is exempt, yet for some it is a non-issue.

Some are true to their nature, some hide from their destiny, while other flaunt their discovery and yet another group—albeit a smaller one—is mesmerized by it. Where do you belong? Does it matter? Is it relevant? Should it even be questioned? Maybe only if you are interested in getting closer. Do you need to know the truth in order to step in? What makes you privy of such confidential information?

For gender might be apparent at first glance, yet a closer look might cause a surprise. Are you up for it? In? Out? Up? Down? Under a rock? Or high up in the sky? Where do you find you?

Gender is the Word It for August.

You might have state of the art appliances, you might have the best knives standing by. It is possible that your kitchen is the envy of your friends, and a source of intimidation for others. It is also possible that all of the above is the furthest from reality that I can describe.

Either way, what you put on the plate is what matters. It is all in the ingredients and in how they come together. The elements, the spices, the details and the embellishments. The mixture of these will determine your success.

So next time you are in the kitchen, remember to mix with care, with love, with those that will share your table in mind. For a superb culinary, yet ordinary, culinary experience is based not on the tools, but in the perfect mix.

Mix is the Word It for July.

Few moments and situations in life can have something in common. Least of all a specific element that is clearly understood by every culture in the world — no matter the habitat, the population, their age, their education…

To name a few: a morning shower, the minutes prior to an interview, a hot summer day, running a marathon or changing a diaper. They can all have something in common, or nothing at all. Have you figured it out? Or are you sweating the answer? If the latest, then you are on to something for all of the above (and many more) can have you feeling wet. That’s right. In one form or another, by chance or by design, just a bit or a lot, many situations in life have water in common. A natural element that has naturally found its way into your life and mine, his, hers and theirs with a quiet calm that we have all accepted as part of every day life.

Wet is the Word It for June.

For a feeling that overcomes you. Fills you. Warms your soul. Stretches your grin muscles. Sweatens your palms. And races your heart. For Joy.

Friday, April 27*, 2007.
Welcome Maya Belle Vit.

* Yes, that’s World Graphic Design Day, thank you very much.

Joy is the Word It for May.

I’d much rather have it be natural, but artificial will often do. Particularly at night. Especially when you can have loads of fun in creating it, for moods can be changed, environments can be modified and energies can be transformed.

It is something that you can surely miss on entirely in places like New York, more so in the Financial District than by the park—unless of course, you are situated in a penthouse. Then the issue is usually resolved by the simple matter of height. And once indoors it can be impersonal and harsh, soft and subtle or designed with masterful precision.

What is this, you might ask? That can alter my mood, me energy and the space I choose to occupy? None other than Mother Nature’s food: light.

Light is the Word It for April.

I am sorry. I am open. I am impatient. I am strong. I am honest. I am anxious. I am fucked. I am me. I am liberated. I am happy. I am stressed. I am tired. I am hung over. I am giddy. I am afraid. I am hiding. I am saucy. I am crabby. I am hungry. I am flustered. I am overwhelmed. I am jolly. I am thoughtful. I am concerned. I am brave. I am dreamy. I am ecstatic. I am naughty. I am lost. I am forgetful. I am dizzy. I am close. I am dirty. I am loving. I am. I simply am.

I is the Word It for March.

No. Yes. I don’t care. Shut up. Go away. Leave me alone. Fuck you.

Go get it. Mom. But Dad. She did it. Hell no. What’s the point? You disgust me. I am out of here. Fido! Come back. Don’t leave me. You will regret this. I love you. Don’t go. You stink. This stinks. Don’t slam the door. Me? It’s not my fault. You crossed the line. It’s over. Cut! Don’t forget the…Taxi! Call me. Go to hell. Are you serious? Oh!

Between friends, brothers, sisters, families, relatives, strangers, peers, authorities, children, teachers, mothers, teenagers, fathers…always driven. Always loud.

Yell is the Word It for February.

It precedes the question mark and the exclamation point. That is, when not abused by emotional baggage of a common sort. It drives many quests be them on foot or in the intermingling of the intranets, among many others.

As children we encounter it on numerous occasions, sometimes within the same minute. As adults we strive to stumble upon it but cynicism and preconceptions often get in the way. Fear to admit “I don’t know”, or “this is new to me” are often culprits as well.

Yet I wonder at the wonderment of wonder as we wonder upon the wonderments of the world, life and the universe at large. And I wonder what my wonderment would be could I wonder every other minute without a care about my wonderment.

Wonder is the Word It for January.

Every night I work on it. Every day, I dream about it. With every passing minute, every passing day I am closer and closer to seeing it. I have no date, no idea of when that day shall come but that does not stop me from envisioning it.

Ah! My Xanadu.
What shall you be?
How shall you be?
When shall you be?
What will you be?
Ah! My Xanadu.

Xanadu is the Word It for December.

B is wrinkled and grey, scattered in her attention but focused on her smile.
You can usually find N in his own world, surrounded by his characters.

J is constantly searching for adventures, be it close to home or across the globe.
A, the early riser will never say no to you, or anyone for that matter, as long as yes gives you pleasure.
And AF is soft and strong in ways only a mother can balance.
P is a menace of energy.
And J the quiet observer.
While R has eyes for his one love and ears for her voice,
A’s laughter can always guide you.
My little B is all grown up, like a man who has lived a lifetime wandering the land, one who is barely legal to drink.
C will forever be in my heart.
My other A stands by my side, be it night or day, stormy or sunny.
And P will always start a conversation with a question,
While L will forever be searching for a debate.
I comes across as all business, but once inside he is cuddly as a bear.
And finally X whose story is just beginning.

And so it is that I am surrounded by my family, some close as some far. Some old, and some young. But every single one of them a part of who I am.

Family is the Word It for November.

Go. Go?
Who, me?

Yes, you. And you. And you.
Stop knocking your knees and stand up straight. ^$%#%! Come on!

Now, I can see your readiness to be ready as you ready yourselves to the readiness of the day. The week. The month. The year. Are you ready?

Ready is the Word It for October.

Reason #1: Paris Hilton.

Reason #23: Ann Coulter.

Reason #32: Female circumcision.

Reason #48: Lists.

Reason #123: Weapons of mass destruction that either do or don’t exist.

Reason #140: iPod slaves.

Reason #143: Bovine growth hormone.

Reason #186: Anus bleaching.

Reason #190: No one is paying attention.

Reason #229: Veneration of celebrities.

Reason #333: Puritanism, defined as the terrible fear that someone, somewhere might be having more fun than you. Grow up and mind your own business.

Reason #428: More and more people believe all the worlds problems are somehow related to George W. Bush.

Reason #441: Aurelio Biondi.

Reason #507: Unnecessary verbosity.

Reason #647: Acronyms for everything.

Reason #657: France.

Reason #763: The word “text” being used in the form a verb, “texting”

Reason #882: Halliburton.

Reason #987: Chinese guys who get girlfriends that they can’t marry.

Reason #1012: Laugh tracks.

Reason #1030: Two planes fly into a bunch of stuff in some other country and the rest of the world has to hear about it for the rest of their lives, in other news, 5000 people die from AIDS every day in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Reason #1144: Hispanics are celebrating St. Patrick’s day and white people are celebrating Cinco De Mayo.

Reason #1295: Lack of interest.

Reason #1360: People on crowded trains still refuse to remove their bags/crap from the seat next to them even though you can now get a fine for being this inconsiderate.

Reason #1421: Catholics have been banned from using condoms by the pope.

Reason #1439: Factory farming.

Reason #1600: The proliferation of narrowminded suffocating zealotry that masquerades as parenting in this country. (US)

Reason #1777: Mom jeans.

Reason #1880: Valentine’s Day.

Reason #1994: The ignored plight of New Orleans.

Reason #2013: Air “fresheners”.

Reason #2050: Cell phone use in public restrooms.

Reason #2110: Because the morons who are eagerly awaiting the Rapture don’t realize that it’s already happened and they’ve been left behind.

Doom is the Word It for September.

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Flat is the Word It for August.

A scream
Your hello
A scream
With which to claim

A number
Yours to allege
A number
With which to play

A place
You wish to conquer
A place
You shall own

Primal is the Word It for July.

He stepped outside and froze. He felt dizzy. He leaned against the wall and screamed.

The shimmer was mesmerizing, the reflections captivating. The texture horrifying and the feeling in the pit of his stomach reminded him of the day on the roller coaster. The one he rode on his 8th birthday.

He turned every which way and all he say was iridescent goo. Slime? The world was covered in slime. His toes could now feel it. Soon, it would all come to an end.

Slime is the Word It for June.

If only I could unwind the little arrows on my left wrist.

To when?

It all depends.

When did it all start? Do I wish to go back to that second in which a decision was reached that I now wish had gone to its counterpart? Or earlier, when the whole incident was truly started?

Many times in life we find ourselves cringing with what might be mild regret over an action, something said or an absence of that which should have been. Sometimes the feeling is not mild at all and it haunts us for months, years or a lifetime. It might be positive or negative, life-changing or inconsequential to all but us. In either case, regret is something we all feel at some point and we have to learn to deal with it.

By doing nothing.

By taking the necessary steps to fix it, so that we can forget.

Regret is the Word It for May.

AsEptIc. BAthE. BlAmElEss. BrIght. CAUtErIzE. ChAstE. ClArIfIEd. ClArIfy. ClEar-cUt. CrImElEss. DEcEnt. DEcOntAmInAtEd. DElIcAtE. DEOdOrIzE. DEpUrAtE. DEtErgE. DIsInfEctEd. DUst. EdUlcOrAtE. ErAsE. ExpUngE. ExpUrgAtE. FAUltlEss. FlAwlEss. FlUsh. GOOd. HOnOrAblE. HygIEnIc. ImmAcUlAtE. IncUlpAblE. InnOcEnt. LAUndEr. MOp. NAtUrAl. NEAt. OrdErly. PUrE. PUrIfIEd. REstOrE. RInsE. SAnItAry. ScOUr. ScrApE. SEEp. SInlEss. SOAk. SOAp. SpArklIng. SpIc-And-spAn. SpOtlEss. StAInlEss. StErIlE. SwAb. TAIntlEss. TIdy. TrIm. UnAdUltErAtEd. UnsoIlEd. UnsUllIEd. VAcUUm. VIrtUOUs. WAshEd. WEll-kEpt. WhItE. WhOlEsOmE. WIpE.

Clean is the Word It for April.

P-O-W-E-R. With a period.

Power. With Initial Cap.

power. as a word.

w-o-r-e-p. as a group or letters.

Power can be abused and abusive. It can be challenging and challenged. Stable and unstable. Respected and disrespectful. Controlling or controlled. Right or wrong. Political, apolitical. Straight and crocked. Intentional, unintentional. Pre-planned, some-what-planned or spontaneous. Personal, public. Open, closed. High, low. Grounded, unfounded. Believed, mistrusted. Far, near, next-door. Gargantuan or miniscule.

It all depends on where you stand in relation to it.

Power is the Word It for March.

What keeps you up at night?
What makes you smile?
What gives you shivers?
What elates you?
What causes storms in your head?
What makes you happy?
What makes you cringe?
What inspires your creative juices?
What gets you going?
What defines your choices?
What pushes you?
What makes you hit the roof?
What makes you sing?
What scares you?
What makes you to whisper?
What drives you?
What holds you back?

What is the Word It for February.

With or without a cause. It is up to us to take a stand and make a difference. In the petty, in life, in death, in the everyday, in the essential. For one or for many it is our responsibility to rebel against that which we disagree with.

It does not matter if we are 50-years-old, or 5, it does not matter if it is 1 or 500 individuals. It does not matter if we are rebelling against institutions, organizations, governments, educational curriculums, parties, individuals, the system, the unions, our parents, our siblings, a strangers words… as long as we stand for what we believe is right.

Rebel is the Word It for January.

If you are small as an ant, large as an elephant, rational as a human or as content as a golden retriever you have in common this luminosity with your fellow cavemen and Tyrannousaurus Rex.

Few things can be considered as universal and all encompassing as these tiny little gargantuan lights. Every living creature (with vision) has the ability to see them, to use them, to understand the world by them.

A few things you, or others, might use them for:
• to mark the seasons
• for location
• a marriage proposal
• navigation
• a birthday party
• a cheesy logo
• glitter
• wrapping paper
• celebrity
• priceless paintings
• cutlery
• child’s play
• CD cover
• to name a newspaper
• to discuss energy usage
• to bundle up airlines

Anyways, there are many current uses that were not previously explored, others that have been abandoned, and still some that shall forever be. One thing is for sure, we shall continue to wish upon a star, by closing our eyes and hoping real hard.

Star is the Word It for December.

Quick
Dick
Bring the brick
Quick
Rick
Empty the sink
Quick
Vic
Won’t you shriek?
Quick
Brit
Raise the stick
Quick
Dominick
Be a prick
Quick
Annick
Use the nonstick
Quick
Warrick
Take care of your nick
Quick
Nick
Are you going to be sick?
Quick
Patrick
Submit your pick

Quick.

Quick is the Word It for November.

Blah blah blah blah blah, blah blah. Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. Blah blah blah blah blah, blah blah blah blah blah BLAH BLAH BLAH.

Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah, blah blah blah blah. Blah blah blah! BLAH.

BLAH.

BLAH.

BLAH. Blah blah blah blah blah blah. Blah.

Blah blah blah blah blah. Blah blah blah blah blah, blah blah blah blah, blah blah, blah blah, blah blah, blah blah, blah blah, blah blah!

Blah:
1. Blah blah blah.
2. Blah blah blah blah, blah blah blah.
3. Blah blah blah blah.

Blah blah, blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. BLAH. Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah, blah blah blah blah, blah blah blah blah blah blah. BLAH.

Blah.

Blah is the Word It for October.

Talking to people early in the morning late at night hello hello you again what can I do for you this beautiful morning minutes passing time flies when you are having fun tick tock tick tock I’m not having fun tick tock tick tock the phone ring ring ringing and ringing every day Monday or Sunday not you not me not my neighbor and least of all a friend calling chatting nothing important who cares what’s up the usual coming and going home office office home dinner and something cinnamon my mouth and a a vanilla taste milkshake and friends walk around and around like a dog in a pen circle circle ride the merry-go-round popcorn and clowns fourth grade carnival yellow balloons lost in the house music playing learn to play the piano listening carefully pay attention on two one two one two up and down memory lane hand in hand falling off a bike swimming in the river sing along patty pats and mud pies pillow fights the birds and bees wonderment exploring testing how far you dare purple passion exit spinning door tip tap tip tap tip close your eyes breathe in breathe out let your body relax breathe in let your mind wander around and around like the merry-go-round.

Time is the Word It for September.

(In every sense of the word, of course)
Sizzling eggs
Burning pegs
Blistering soles
Searing floors
Scorching death
Stifling breath
Muggy room
Fiery doom
Intense horizon
Baking zonation
Fervent panting
Ardent hesitating
Smoldering perception
Warm inception
Hot worditers
Very very hot worditers

Hot is the Word It for August.

Beyond black and white. Further still from gray.

It is the point of no return that is exploited every single day by every media, and many an individual. Of course, that point of no return is beginning to turn rather ridiculous if you ask me, but who am I to say and define when the extreme becomes laughable, or mediocre, or plain stupid.

And so I turn to you, my dear readers to play with the word extreme as the Word It for July.

Extreme is the Word It for July.

Remember when you were, say, ten? That is what I was doing this weekend when my cousin was here for a visit. One day, who knows why we sought vengeance on my brothers and decided to take matters into our own hands.

We went into their room and managed to infuriate them by mixing everything that could be mixed. Tapes where placed in the wrong boxes, dirty laundry folded and placed in the closet, toothbrushes misplaced, pillows replaced, curtains flipped… you get the jist. Needless to say, our prank was not received graciously and our vengeance was (very) short lived.

Later that night as I lay in bed I recalled the mother of all pranks, and I was the receiver. I was living in Albuquerque at the time, and was doing something in the kitchen when my little brother and his cute skinny and awkward friend walked in with a sack. They told me they had found a kitten and after catching it were trying to figure out how to keep it (I am a sucker for cats). Wanting to see the kitten, they opened the sack so that I could take a look and go gaga for a few minutes. Screams and blows followed and two kids with a sack ran as fast as their sneakers could take them and as far away as possible. There was no kitten. There was a gargantuan boa constrictor (belonging to a cute skinny and awkward little kid). I am extremely terrified of snakes…

Prank is the Word It for June.

Adam. Eve. Apple. Serpent. Tree. Paradise. The First. Rib. Interpretation. Fresh. Punishment. Wife. Creation. Link. Origin. Passion. Earth. Knowledge. Good. Company. Evil. Companion. Side. Garden. Forbidden. Out. Sin. Bite. Curse. Sleep. Original. Name.

Name is the Word It for May.

From a speak up banter, or a child’s clatter.
From a rainy afternoon, or a full moon.
From a juicy orange, or a strange homage.
From a lover’s kiss, or pure bliss.
From a powerful machine, or a political theme.
From a short flight, or a serious fight.
From a single line, or a good red wine.
From a single touch, or a hunch.
From a pica, or chessy formica.
From a star, or a neighborhood bar.
From a click, or a low kick.
From a dead end, or an online friend.
It is from these treasures
That with certain measures
I build up my pleasures…

Pleasure is the Word It for April.

I wake up in the morning and I can’t help myself. I think about it. And so I decide to move on while tiptoeing around it, thinking I am not thinking about it, fooling myself into who knows what. But it is unavoidable I have discovered, for it follows me during the day, from meeting to meeting, from design session to design session, even daring to interrupt my lunch break (and my Speak Up reading). Why can’t it leave me alone? Why can’t it let me be?

The best conclusion I have developed has to do with personality. Completely at fault, seeking and waiting, figuring things out and planning ahead, trying to read the future and developing expectations.

Expectations is the Word It for March.

7 mines:

1. Mine: A mineral excavation in the earth. The excavation site.
2. Mine: An ore or mineral deposit on the earth.
3. Mine: An abundant supply or source of something valuable.
4. Mine: An explosive detonated by contact, proximity, or a time fuse.
5. Mine: A burrow or tunnel made by an insect
6. Mine: To delve into and exploit something.
7. Mine: Used to indicate the one or ones belonging to me

Mine is the Word It for February.

Lots of food, lots of cake and gifts and family visiting, bows and wrapping paper, nuts and dried fruits, chasing kids and catching decorations…

Everyone of you, and everyone I know is by now saturated and exhausted from last month. It is time to start your resolutions, catch-up at work, clean up the mess and work on your new word it.

Saturated is the Word It for January.

From there to here,
From here to there,
These things
Are everywhere.

One box
Two box
Red box
Blue box

Old box
New box
Yellow box
Green box

Big box
Small box
Orange box
Purple box

My box
Your box
Checkered box
Polka-dotted box

From there to here,
From here to there,
Sweet boxes
Are everywhere.

Box is the Word It for December.

Your laughter. Your jokes. Your sense of humor.
My passion. My obsession. My curiosity.
Their conversation. Your observation. Your opinion.
Your insight. Your observation. Your opinion.
My solution. My interest. My words.
Their path. Their journey. Their destination.
Your hand. Your pen. Your disclosure.
My thought. My interpretation. My gut.
Their silence. Their protest. Their anger.
Your feeling. My feeling. Their feeling.

Public is the Word It for November.

Accordante, anal, arriviste, average, Babbitt, Babbittish, Cockney, Everyman, John Smith, Middle American, Philistine, accordant, anal, anal character, arriviste, average, average man, big-city man, boor, bounder, burgess, burgher, cad, campy, capitalist, churl, city dweller, city man, city slicker, clown, common man, commoner, compulsive, compulsive character, concordant, conformer, conformist, conventional, conventionalist, corresponding, epicier, exurbanite, formalist, formalistic, free-enterprise, garden, garden-variety, general, greedy, groundling, guttersnipe, harmonious, high-camp, homely, homespun, hooligan, ill-bred fellow, in accord, in keeping, in line, in step, individualistic, kitschy, kosher, little fellow, little man, looby, lout, low fellow, low-camp, materialistic, methodologist, middle-class type, model child, money-hungry, mucker, no great shakes, nonsocialistic, normal, nouveau riche, oppidan, organization man, orthodox, parrot, parvenu, peasant, pedant, pedantic, perfectionist, philistine, plastic, plastic person, pleb, plebeian, pop, popular, precisian, precisianist, precisianistic, private-enterprise, proletarian, propertied, public, regular, ribald, roturier, rough, roughneck, rowdy, ruffian, run-of-mine, run-of-the-mill, sheep, square, straight, stuffy, suburban, suburbanite, teenybopper, townee, towner, townfolk, townfolks, townsman, townspeople, townswoman, traditionalist, trimmer, unexceptional, unnoteworthy, unremarkable, unspectacular, upstart, uptight, urbanite, usual, vernacular, villager, villageress, vulgarian, vulgarist, working-class, yes-man, yokel.

Bourgeois is the Word It for October.

You leave it on the curb, you drag it around your desktop, you might use a quick command, or ask somebody else to do it. Other times you will think you are surrounded by it, or that this is all that you can create.

You know what I’m talking about. Garbage. It surrounds our best ideas, it gathers in the corners of the most beautiful rooms, it clutters our folders and we love to send our kids out to the curb with it. It is a chore, it is a daily thing. Online, offline, whatever, garbage can be found on the ground, on a desk, on people’s mouths and on a few brains around town.

Garbage is the Word It for September.

With the end of summer fast approaching, I figured it was time to let our hair run wild, let go of our worries, ______ our toes and hang out with a load of kids.

For this is the time to charge up the batteries and the heat reserves. It is no moment to hold back or stay behind, as each laugh and ray of sun will keep you focused on the tasks ahead.

Not sure why, not sure how—but following my end of summer mantra, I figured it best to jump into the water, swim with the fishes and of course, ______ my behind in order to catch my young prince.

Wiggle is the Word It for August.

A trademark
or distinctive name
identifying a product
or a manufacturer.
A product line
so identified.
A distinctive category
a particular kind.
A mark indicating
identity or ownership,
burned on the hide of an animal
with a hot iron.
A mark burned
into the flesh of criminals.
A mark of
disgrace or notoriety;
a stigma.
To mark with
or as if with a hot iron.
To mark
to show ownership.
To mark
with disgrace
or infamy; stigmatize.
To impress firmly;
fix ineradicably
To put
an actual distinctive mark
upon in any other way,
as with a stencil,
to show quality of contents,
name of manufacture.
A name given
A recognizable kind
Identification mark.
To indicate ownership.

As if it were branded on my mind.

Brand(ing) is the Word It for July.

Darling,

I left the cat in the oven and the baby in the fridge.
I vacuumed the ceiling and watered the carpet.
I scheduled your haircut at the deli and the manicurist for delivery.
I rinsed the pillows and ironed the dishes.
I folded the dog and groomed your sweater.
I washed your computer and pwered up your slippers.

Don’t miss me too much while I am gone.
Love,
B.

Oops is the Word It for June.

Ah, the color of your eyes.

Like diving into the jungle, arms spread open, deep breaths in my lungs. Being swallowed by their intensity, by the mere strenght of their existence. I let myself be pulled, taken in and engulged in their sweetness. Mint and basil, kiwwi and apples. Challenged by their fire. Peppers and limes. Flirted with by their humor. Edamame and zucchini, artichoke and asparagus. Amused by their playfulness. Peas, olives and grapes.

Ah, the color of your eyes. Perfection, Just as Mother Nature intended them to be.

Green is the Word It for May.

That which does not exist nor is true nor real nor possible, yet has the possibility of actually being, making it funny or sad or encouraging, simply by the imposition of two (or three or four or more) differing things that are not meant to be together (or are they?) and live in perfect harmony as a fiction of our sometimes twisted imagination and the belief that these exaggerated paradoxes and similies and contrasts and what-ifs are merely that and nothing more other than exercises in stretching the realms of decency, taste and all that is good and noble and accepted, threatening to mangle what we know and understand in a complicated know of unbearable and delightful dualities through unapologetic irony and sarcasm and wit.

Parody is the Word It for April.

Abbott Miller and Ellen Lupton. Alan Dye. Alexander Isley. Alice Twemlow. Alvin Lustig. Ann Willoughy. April Greiman. Art Chantry. Barry Deck. Bill Grant. Bradbury Thompson. Brian Collins. Bruce Mau. Carin Goldberg. Carlos Segura. Charles and Ray Eames. Chip Kidd. Christopher Simmons. David Carson. Debbie Millman. DJ Stout. Ed Fella. Erik Spiekermann. Gail Anderson. Hillman Curtis. Hjalti Karlsson and Jan Wilker. James Victore. Jeffery Keedy. Jessica Helfand and William Drenttel. Jonathan Hoefler and Tobias Frere-Jones. Lester Beall. Lorraine Wild. Louise Fili and Steven Heller. Maira and Tibor Kalman. Marc English. Matthew Carter. Michael Bierut. Michael Ian Kaye. Milton Glaser. Neville Brody. Noreen Morioka and Sean Adams. Paul Rand. Paula Scher and Seymour Chwast. Peter Buchannan-Smith. Peter Saville. Rick Poynor. Rick Valicenti. Saul Bass. Scott Stowell. Stefan Sagmeister. Stephen Doyle. Woody Pirtle. Zuzana Licko and Rudy VanderLans. Little me.

Giant is the Word It for March.

He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. He loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, he loves me not. I love him, I love her not.

Tease is the Word It for February.

Soul
Heart
Brains
Personality
Affections
Opinions
Expectations
Love
Promises

Empty is the Word It for January.

Honesty and lies.
Kindness and cruelty.
Tenderness and silence.
Trust and betrayal.
Integrity and pride.
Grace and melodrama.
Engagement and disassociation.
Compassion and avarice.
Closeness and alienation.
Faith and desire.
Guilt and hatred.
Tolerance and impatience.
Generosity and disdain.
Optimism and remorse.

Virtue is the Word It for December.

An isolated smell down the street as you walk to the cleaners can take you there. A child’s voice in the park, an image in the paper, or a heavy rain. It is the everyday things that can, after years have gone by, take us to that one special place we call home. It might be the house you grew up in, your first property, or that place you dream about.

Home is more than an address—it is a state of mind, a cluster of memories. Home is literally where the heart is. Or where the heart likes to go when it feels lonely or when in search of something familiar.

Home is the Word It for November.

Mama!!!
Mama?
Ma!?

“It was happening again. I was sitting at my desk, my coffee was lukewarm, I was listening to Design Matters. I was working on this layout, InDesign was not cooperating… I could see every move of my mouse, every menu and action on the screen. Every dialog box and…”

“Shh… Darling, it’s OK. You are 4.3 miles from the office, and tomorrow is Saturday. You won’t be going to that place for a couple of days. Try to get some rest.”

“But I made all the copy changes, and it crashed. Did I make the changes? Was that just part of the dream? I need a hard copy, a PDF. It’s the only way I will know what is done, and what was darkness…”

Nightmare is the Word It for October.