Foodie friend recommends...

Just got a list of Seattle recommendations from a politico friend that travels quite a bit and always eats very well...

Macrina Bakery and Cafe, 2408 1st Avenue, for coffee and pastries, sanwiches, soup, etc. Only a few blocks from the hotel, and for those that do the walk, talk and shoot to the Olympic Sculpture Garden this is my recommended lunch stop right on the way back.

Etta's, 2020 Western Avenue, one of famed Seattle restaurateur Tom Douglas's locations, conveniently located between the hotel and Pike Place Market.

Gelatiamo, 1400 Third Avenue, downtown--always something new and unusual to taste ("try the rice")

Matt's in the Market, Pike Place Market, hard to find but cheap eats--try the hot albacore tuna sandwich.

A couple of other nicer Belltown recommendations I know nothing about but will pass along, Mistral at 113 Blanchard and Lampreia at 2400 First Avenue.

Enjoy!

Oregon State "powered by orange"

In March of this year Oregon State University launched a new social media campaign, Powered by Orange, offering a network of alumni, students, faculty, staff, friends and fans a place "to tell your story and connect with the other practical idealists who are Powered by Orange."

In their June 25 blog mStoner featured the site calling it the "most comprehensive university social marketing campaign that we’ve seen to date" and eduStyle awarded the site the Jadu Best Integration of Social/Networking award. Mashable featured the site in their must-see article 10 Ways Universities Are Engaging Alumni Using Social Media.

Amy Charron will be representing Oregon State as this year's "featured school." I'm sure I'm not the only one in UCDA that often feels overwhelmed trying to figure out how these new tools fit into our patterns of work and strategies for marketing. Can't wait to see what Amy has to share with us.

On the right track

Looking for another way into Seattle when you arrive?
Give our new light rail system a try.

The main terminal from the airport won't be complete until December. You can, however, take a free shuttle bus or walk to the terminal and from there it's a short 34-minute ride to downtown Seattle.

From the Westlake Mall Downtown Seattle station, you can take a 10-minute cab ride or a 15-minute walk to the conference hotel. This will drop you right into the heart of the shopping district.

During your 34-minute ride into the city you will pass through the historic neighborhoods of Rainier Valley, Beacon Hill, Columbia City, SODO (home to the Seattle Seahawks and the Seattle Mariners), the International District (Chinatown) and Pioneer Square.

If the weather isn't too cloudy, you will also see some amazing vistas of Mount Rainier.

Healthcare and Cupcakes?

Seattle cupcake maven Jody Hall, owner of Cupcake Royale, was featured this past Friday in a Morning Edition story on healthcare. Who am I to question NPR?

Okay, I probably can't buy into health benefits from cupcakes, but my mind is open...however, can't wait to make a trek to one of Cupcake Royale's four locations to do my part "to support healthcare benefits."

Conference registration deadline extended.

We know budgets are tight. So we're extending the early-bird registration and hotel deadline to August 15 in order to save you a few bucks.

Get to it!

Are you a runner? Seattle is for you!

Another mention of Seattle for you! Check out Chris Guillebeau's list of best cities for running ... Seattle is one of the few American cities listed. My director Dave is a runner and he has started a runner's group that gets a little exercise in before everyone starts to exercise their minds in our sessions. Get in touch with him if you're interested! You can find his contact info on the Board of Directors page.

And if you don't know who Chris Guillebeau is, he's a very interesting person who writes the "Art of Nonconformity" blog. I'm sure he'd find me utterly boring, but he's an interesting read nonetheless.

Registration has been extended! With that and the lower hotel rates, get signed up now. We've got a terrific lineup for you, so you want to take advantage of learning about the latest and greatest in our changing landscape.

A reason to travel!

Hey folks! Just read this really interesting article about creativity from Scientific American and it turns out that traveling is an excellent way to develop creativity. I quote: "It suggests that there are several simple steps we can all take to increase creativity, such as traveling to faraway places (or even just thinking about such places), thinking about the distant future, communicating with people who are dissimilar to us, and considering unlikely alternatives to reality." Leave out the "thinking about such places" and tell your manager that coming to the conference is an excellent way to build your creativity!

A link between UCDA and literacy?

A study by Central Connecticut State University ranked Seattle as America's Most Literate City in 2005 and 2006. In 2007 Minneapolis claimed the top spot and 2008 saw the two cities tied for the honor....hmmm....UCDA conference in Seattle this year, and in Minneapolis next year. Coincidence?

Less really is more

At a recent marketing summit one of Fuller's trustees, a former executive with Johnson & Johnson and Bristol-Myers Squibb, repeatedly touted the website of Oregon State University as a benchmark for both brand consistency and usability.

I don't know how involved Amy Charron is in the design of the website, but in representing OSU as this year's featured school at the UCDA conference I believe she's going to be focusing on how different entities at Oregon State, including print and web designers, share resources to build a stronger more cohesive brand and save money at the same time.

In education where there's always pressure to differentiate units and do something different it's great to see someone get recognition for doing something less--but doing it consistently and really well...and who among us isn't being asked to save money.

Best Local Food

Just in on the Huffington Post is a list of best cities for local food and Seattle is #4! Now of course we will all come to the conference for the terrific and inspiring programming but a designer's gotta eat, right? So we have some excellent choices as well. Yeah!