Otterly Ridiculous

In the U.S.A. we tend to eat whatever is cheap, quick and tastes good. Ramen combines all three of these qualities. At 25 cents or less for prepackaged ramen, virtually anyone can purchase it. And in comparison to other prepackaged noodle dishes ramen is just as filling at a fraction of the price. Speed also is not an issue since the only steps are to boil a noodle block in water and add a flavor packet. The most enjoyable part of any food, however, is eating it. And even prepackaged ramen is tasty enough to cure any noodle craving. For many Americans prepackaged Ramen is all they know, but where did the dish come from? Ramen noodles originated in China, however, the ramen dish we all know today originated in Japan in the early 1900s. It is made of very simple elements which make it extremely versatile, a sort of “blank canvas” for chefs. This is cause for much creativity, even in it's early days. This caused it to become very popular and spread throughout Asia. The major ...

“Boy Meets World” is a show that originally ran on ABC on Friday nights from September of 1993 through May of 2000. While it was popular during the original run, it has developed a huge following through reruns. I vaguely remember watching it when I was very young, but I did not truly appreciate or understand it until my middle and high school years. Every weekday after I got off the bus I would watch a few episodes on ABC Family, I developed a love for the characters and the lessons they learned. Apparently, I was not the only one because Disney felt confident to make a revamp called “Girl Meets World” which ran for three seasons on the Disney Channel. Even though I have seen every episode at least five or six times, I knew there had to be some behind-the-scenes facts I did not know. So, I set out to find them. If you are a fan like me this may clear up a few discrepancies in the show. If you are not, why are you still here? Go watch some “Boy Meets World,” I left a one of my fav...

One of the most important elements of a brand identity is matching what the company or organization is about. Arguably the most vital parts of an identity is the logo. Organizations ebb and flow to meet the needs of their customers, which means their overall structure and goals may change over time. This can lead to rebrands, evaluations of the current identity and overhauls of visual messaging to better match where the business is and where it is heading. Rebrands can be extreme, such as the recent Ohio Northern University identity, or so subtle you barely notice. A large change is often necessary if visual communication has been neglected for too long or the organization changes direction. When a company just needs a small refresh, however, the goal is to make changes as subtle as possible. Here are three major company logo updates that you may not have noticed. Facebook This change happened back in 2015 and was a simple typeface change. Spotify Did you not...

Confidence is a real problem these days. I think everyone has some element of themselves that they are not confident in. Whether it be a physical, mental, or personality trait, people have an internal tendency to judge themselves harshly. I see it every day in myself and the people around me. I recently read a blog post by Mark Manson called “ The Confidence Conundrum .” In it he talks about where a lack of confidence comes from and why so many people suffer from it. He says, “ our confidence is rooted in  our perception of ourselves  regardless of any tangible external reality.” In other words, we form opinions of ourselves not based on what is real, but on what we are hardest on ourselves about. This blog post was a huge eyeopener, and it made me see myself in a new way. My favorite quote is  “… the solution to the confidence conundrum is not to feel as though you lack nothing and delude yourself into believing you already possess everything you could ever dre...

I have a real interest in the entertainment industry. More specifically, the stories behind children’s television networks. I think it is interesting to dig into the history of these companies and learn about what created the shows and experiences I had as a kid. It gives you a new appreciation for the work that went into the shows that helped shape your childhood, and there is a sense of nostalgia that makes you feel like you are living in that moment again. In a later blog post, I plan on digging into the story behind a show or a network, but today I wanted to do something a little less analytical. So, I present to you 12 of my favorite cartoon intros from childhood. I hope they bring back memories of lazy Saturdays and Dunkaroos for you too. DuckTales Doug* *This is the Disney version because that is what I remember more, but many people prefer the Nickelodeon version . Doug has an interesting past, if you want to know more about why it was on two competing net...

For about a month now I have been debating whether to start a small freelance design business. The problem is that I do not know where to start or if it would be worth my time. Especially because most of my evenings are taken up with meetings, class and activities. I am not complaining, I love my life at school, but I also want to make sure I give everything I do the attention it deserves. One of my invitation designs I love the idea of freelance designing in my career  after college. I could do it anywhere and as much as I wanted, which makes the idea of starting while in school appealing. Not only would it give me a financial boost (which every college student could use), but it would help me gain experience. What has stopped me is where to start. What would people be interested in? How big of projects do I realistically have time for? What should I charge? With so many unknowns it seems very overwhelming and a little impossible. I have had a couple of product idea...

I have an interest that very few people know about, and that is abandoned and failed businesses. It all started about four years ago when I saw a post on Instagram about River Country. River Country was a Disney water park that, while loved by many, eventually closed due to many unforeseen circumstances. What really drew me in was the fact that the remnants are still sitting on the Disney World property. It completely blew my mind that a company as renowned as Disney has an abandoned water park sitting in the middle of their amusement park, so I started to do some research to find out more about it. River Country then and now It was so interesting learning about the business, economic and tragic events that went into its closure. This research lead me to other abandoned, failed and cancelled Disney projects. Which lead to failed corporate businesses, malls and so on. Now I spend a good amount of my free time watching YouTube videos about places like these. Brig...

This week I would like to address a problem being overlooked all over the world, and that is pockets on women’s clothing. It may seem like a joke, but there is a legitimate argument to be made and I feel that it will be worth taking a few minutes to learn about why there is so much controversy surrounding something so simple. Shoutout to my RD Hailey for her exceedingly accurate reply. I have always been annoyed by the lack of decent pockets on my clothes. It seems really unfair that men have massive pockets big enough for a full size iPad while I am often given tiny pockets or none at all. The final straw came a couple of weeks ago when I discovered that my favorite pair of shorts did have pockets, but they were sewn shut and impossible for me to use. This sparked a Twitter rant to start. But more importantly, it got me thinking. Why do men have excess space while women are given next to nothing? I decided to find out. Long story short, women have never really had the l...

It is fine not to have a 4.0 When you are in high school your classes can be hard, but if you work hard enough you will come out with a good grade. This is not to say that education before college is not challenging, but it can be very discouraging when you get to the next level and even your best does not feel like it is good enough. You must push yourself beyond where you thought was possible. And it might be time to accept the fact that a GPA does not define you and if you are doing everything you can, lacking perfection is not a bad thing. You will make friends Leaving the place you have lived your whole life is terrifying. Not only are you leaving your home, but you are leaving the friends you have had since elementary school or longer. But the beauty of college is how different everyone is. It teaches you more about yourself and what you want to spend your time doing. You will connect with a great group of people who will help you grow. Friends become who you lean on...

Like most people, I enjoy a Starbucks drink every once in a while. I try not to make it a habit, however, because of the excessive amounts of sugar found in my favorite treats. If you do not believe me, just look at this diagram from Wake the Wolves . 4.2g of sugar=1tsp Men should have up to 9tsp a day Women should have up to 6tsp a day With two new coffee stands on campus, stopping between classes is hard to resist. Especially when coursework is tough and energy levels start to decline. So instead of depriving myself or derailing my attempt at healthy eating, I did some research to find healthy alternatives. Simple Substitutions The easiest thing to do is take what you normally get and "health it up." If you get coffee, add almond or coconut milk instead of whole. Try to cut back on the pumps of sugar and flavoring, once you cut back on your intake foods that were savory before will become more sweet and you will feel a lot better. The Classics Sta...

Anyone who lives in Ohio has most likely made or heard the following complaints at least once in their life.  "There's nothing to do here" "This weather makes no sense, Ohio is stupid" And, an Ohio Northern University favorite, "All we have is cornfields" While these may seem true at times, we all know that is not really the case. Ohio is actually a great place to live! So today I present to you the best things about Ohio. We have variety Do you like living in a city? Take your pick of any of our eight major cities. The country? We have plenty of that too. There are Amish communities, hippie towns and suburbs. There is a place for everyone. We are really good at ice cream If you ask me what my favorite ice cream place is I honestly do not have an answer, and that is because I have grown up in the land of deliciousness. My favorite places to note are Graeter's  and  Young's Dairy . But you cannot forget Deitch Brothers or, p...

In talking with one of my good friends this week I have learned something about the world. That is, many people want to produce good looking documents, but they do not know where to start. Although I am not a professional designer (yet), I feel that three years of design classes have brought me enough knowledge to share basic tips with confidence. These will not make you totally knowledgeable, but hopefully they will help you just a little bit more fearless when you must make your next flyer. Don't be afraid to be bold . We need to talk about type. Typography is both the easiest detail to fix and the element most people mess up the most. There are two basic kinds of typefaces: serif and san serif. A serif is one that has extra curves at the end of the letters, Times New Roman is a classic example. A san serif lacks those, such as Helvetica or Calibri. In one design, you should never mix two of one kind of typeface because they will clash and instantly make your project l...

Last week I told you about my biggest adventure of the summer, this week I want to tell you about what else I did. Like a lot of college students, I had both an internship and a job, and it was a great experience. A marketing piece I did for Comstor. My internship was through Comstor Outdoor, an advertising company in Huntsville, Ohio. It is owned by Jason Duff who also happens to be an Ohio Northern University alumni (go bears). The cool thing about my internship is that I could do it remotely. I would have weekly projects that I would work on at home, in a coffee shop, or wherever else I wanted. On Monday mornings, I would join in on their business meetings and share what I had done, get critiques and learn more about how the business worked. My projects included billboard mock ups, marketing materials and a few social media content updates. It was a great experience and it taught me about not only working with clients, but also how businesses run behind the scenes. My...

Hello! Welcome back to Otterly Ridiculous. If you followed my posts before, thank you! I hope you will stop back this semester to check out all my new content. In the spirit of education, I thought I would start with the most cliché topic for the beginning of every school year: what I did this summer. However, instead of telling you about my awesome job and amazing internship, I want to tell you about the most spontaneous thing I did. But do not worry, I will get to the job and internship stuff later. Most likely the highlight of my summer was my trip to Washington D.C. It was almost completely spontaneous and it was “otterly” cool. My boyfriend and I had been trying to figure out something cool to do for a few weeks. But, being college students with limited income and time off from our jobs, we could not find a solution no matter how much research we did. I had basically given up and accepted that our Fourth of July was going to be just like any other year. For some reason, I...