Happy Birthday Pr*tty Sh*tty

It’s hard to believe, but one year ago today, Pr*tty Sh*tty went officially live.

Mind you, I intended it to be a soft launch, but it quickly became, um, not soft, when I impetuously shared the URL with my former colleagues Michael Beirut and Armin Vit, who promptly linked to me from their blogs Design Observer and Quipsologies, respectively. Shortly after, blogger Michael Surtees included me in his Link Drop and the seed of my readership really took root. Nothing like a little attention to make something like this official, so there was no turning back. Couldn’t disappoint the readers after all. So thank you to those fellas (who continue to link/tweet to me), and to you dear readers.

Anyway, I thought I’d share some of the past year’s statistics with everyone. I personally find these sorts of numbers interesting, so maybe you will, too.

Number of blog posts: 240 (I took a few breaks, sue me.)

Number of visits: 212,000

Number of unique visitors: 155,000

Twitter followers: 1,000 as of last week

RSS subscribers: I have no idea. Let’s just say millions.

Most popular post: An Open Letter to James Cameron from Papyrus (of course!)

The post I expected most to have more traffic: For All the Nay Sayers (another dig at James Cameron)

Most comments on a post: 243 (also on the Open Letter)

Meanest comment:

“None of this is even remotely funny. In fact, I'm almost embarrassed for you since you apparently thought it was so funny that it should be shared with the world. Please don't procreate. You're dumb.” (Anonymous, of course!)

Nicest comment:

“I love and respect the idea behind this blog.” (thanks Laura Marie!)

Not bad for one year, if I do say so myself.

Thanks again to everyone who reads P*S* and to anyone who’s shared the site on their own blogs, or via Twitter, or an email, or Facebook, or whatever. An additional, special thanks to everyone who contributes images... here’s hoping more of you do!

And a very special thank you to my lovely wife, who’s not only tolerated the extra time I’ve poured into this endeavor, but whose keen wit and clever mind have helped to keep me, and my writing, my sharpest. You’re the best (everyone agrees!), and I love you.

An Open Letter to James Cameron From Papyrus

Dear Mr. Cameron,

A letter such as this can hardly do justice to the overwhelming gratitude I’m hoping to express herein. Your most recent film, Avatar, has finally legitimized my work in a way I’ve only ever dreamed of.

Goodness knows I’ve worked hard the past 26 years to make a name for myself. And it’s felt great coming to the aid of New Age spa owners, suburban party planners, and young couples looking to save money by making their own wedding invitations. But only now, by appearing in your movie, have I been given mainstream, high-level recognition as a serious typeface. And for that, I thank you.

Imagine my delight so many months ago at seeing the trailers and posters for this, your much anticipated return to science fiction movie making. To see the title AVATAR (all caps!) typeset in yours truly. Well, I practically wept. And to be rendered in such an artificial luminescent way... finally, in the hands of a true visionary such as yourself, my potential to look totally badass had been realized.

Little did I know that that was only the tip of the iceberg (no Titanic reference intended!). After seeing the finished film (in Imax 3D of course), I can easily say it is the greatest movie ever made! To think, among your many bold choices as a filmmaker—soldiers who fly helicopters despite mastering interstellar travel; inexplicable floating mountains; and humans still petty enough to commit genocide in order to acquire precious minerals such as the very cleverly named unobtainium—that I would be one of them. Kudos to you for not spending a single cent of your massive budget on an expensive, attractive font for the subtitles, and opting to put me to the task instead.

Shockingly, as if you hadn’t already done enough for me, when the title card appeared at the end of the picture, there I was again! Chills, I tell you, chills. I hardly have words, even now, to describe my sheer admiration for this final master stroke: glowing, green letters filling every inch of the screen. A lesser director man might have settled at filling the screen left to right, but not you. You saw me, in my humble proportions, and said No, not big enough. Undoubtedly, a few mouse-clicks later, your most talented technician had me soaring to new cap-heights. Let me never come back down.

Thank you Mr. Cameron, thank you!

Yours in friendship and wanton servitude,

Please note, Pr*tty Sh*tty was chosen as the forum for publication of this letter because of its long standing impartial, and unbiased stance on matters pertaining to design. The views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the views of the author of this blog. They are the views solely of the author of this letter.

An Open Letter to James Cameron: Special Edition

Dear Mr. Cameron,

A letter such as this can hardly do justice to the overwhelming gratitude I’m hoping to express herein. Your most recent film, Avatar, has finally legitimized my work in a way I’ve only ever dreamed of.

Goodness knows I’ve worked hard the past 26 years to make a name for myself. And it’s felt great coming to the aid of New Age spa owners, suburban party planners, and young couples looking to save money by making their own wedding invitations. But only now, by appearing in your movie, have I been given mainstream, high-level recognition as a serious typeface. And for that, I thank you.

Imagine my delight so many months ago at seeing the trailers and posters for this, your much anticipated return to science fiction movie making. To see the title AVATAR (all caps!) typeset in yours truly. Well, I practically wept. And to be rendered in such an artificial luminescent way... finally, in the hands of a true visionary such as yourself, my potential to look totally badass had been realized.

Little did I know that that was only the tip of the iceberg (no Titanic reference intended!). After seeing the finished film (in Imax 3D of course), I can easily say it is the greatest movie ever made! To think, among your many bold choices as a filmmaker—soldiers who fly helicopters despite mastering interstellar travel; inexplicable floating mountains; and humans still petty enough to commit genocide in order to acquire precious minerals such as the very cleverly named unobtainium—that I would be one of them. Kudos to you for not spending a single cent of your massive budget on an expensive, attractive font for the subtitles, and opting to put me to the task instead.

Shockingly, as if you hadn’t already done enough for me, when the title card appeared at the end of the picture, there I was again! Chills, I tell you, chills. I hardly have words, even now, to describe my sheer admiration for this final master stroke: glowing, green letters filling every inch of the screen. A lesser director man might have settled at filling the screen left to right, but not you. You saw me, in my humble proportions, and said No, not big enough. Undoubtedly, a few mouse-clicks later, your most talented technician had me soaring to new cap-heights. Let me never come back down.

Thank you Mr. Cameron, thank you!

Yours in friendship and wanton servitude,

Please note, Pr*tty Sh*tty was chosen as the forum for publication of this letter because of its long standing impartial, and unbiased stance on matters pertaining to design. The views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the views of the author of this blog. They are the views solely of the author of this letter.

Editor’s Note: Just as Avatar is best scene through uncomfortable, headache-inducing glasses, this Special Edition Open Letter is best viewed with the font Papyrus installed in your system’s fonts folder.