It's Pumpkin Spice Time, or not!

RHYS BOWEN: It is officially fall. The leaves are turning, there is a nip in the air, Halloween candy has appeared in all the stores AND pumpkin spice has returned to the universe with the punctuality of the swallows coming back to Capistrano.

I have a confession to make that may anger many of you: I do not like pumpkin spice! I can tolerate pumpkin pies, although they are not my favorite. I like pumpkin soup, but not with that cinnamon kind of flavor. But pumpkin spice lattes? Yuck!

It's that season when we are overwhelmed with everything pumpkin spice. The stores are full of pumpkins. Starbucks had a countdown to the day when pumpkin spice latte would become available.
And it seems that pumpkin spice flavor/scent is available in almost everything, from candles (which are actually quite nice) to condoms.

But when I saw this post by my friend Eileen Dreyer on Facebook I felt I had to share. Is it for real? Eileen is an ER nurse so she should know a thing or two.

Should I add a clause to my will stating that in no circumstances am I to be embalmed with pumpkin spice flavored fluid? I will come back to haunt anyone who tries to do this!

So is pumpkin spice a thing that you either love or hate? Who loves it? And who thinks the embalming fluid is going too far?

Name that Brand

INGRID THOFT
Quick!  Do you see it?  Don't worry if you don't.  I didn't either.

Not until it was pointed out to me did I see the "31" in the baskin robbins logo.  Like Op Art, now that I see it, I can't unsee it.

Nowadays, writers are often told they need to develop their "brand," which got me thinking about the brands that litter are visual landscape, brands that are so recognizable we'd know them anywhere.  I wondered about the most recognized brands and the secrets that they hold (like a giant "31"!).

Another logo featuring a symbol that completely escaped my gaze was FedEx.  Did you know there's an arrow in the logo?  I didn't!

The only thing hidden in the current Starbucks logo is the siren's breasts.  If you stroll by the first Starbucks in Pike Place Market in Seattle, the sign shows the original siren.

There are various stories about the logo's evolution from a siren to a crowned princess.  Some claim her hair was rearranged for the sake of modesty.  Others claim it was a copyright issue related to the original woodcut of the siren.  One thing is certain, she seems to have gotten younger over the years!

Did you know that McDonald's golden arches logo was originally modeled after the shape of the restaurants?  And that today, the name "McDonald's" rarely appears in the logo, given how recognizable the golden arches are?

Another logo that requires no words is...wait, I'm not going to tell you because I'm sure you'll know both it and the name it goes by.  Talk about a successful brand:  the logo gets its own name!

Do you have any favorite logos?  Know of any hidden art or meanings?  Tell me I'm not the only one who didn't see the "31"!