Visual Thinking For UX
Whole room full of people sketching.
Empathy maps
Whiteboard ninja practice.
Kristina Halvorson talking about content strategy.
Notes on LukeW’s presentation. View Larger.
Working on my team’s sketch board.
Thought I should share a few of the photos that I took at UI15. I mostly don’t get into work on this site, and I’ve posted all of my notes and materials on an internal Roundarch site, but thought you’d get a feel for the conference in a few photos.
Tags:boston·ui15·waterfront
Right next to the Boston Renaissance Waterfront was LTK, or Legal Test Kitchen. This restaurant is a part of the famous Legal Sea Foods chain, but at LTK there’s a new menu every six weeks.
On my last day in Boston I decided to check it out for lunch. Around noontime they were pretty packed so I just sat at the bar. The waitress gave me a menu and I ordered Legal Sea Foods’ clam chowder, of course. She also told me about something that wasn’t on the menu. It was a Caesar salad with lobster on it. SIX OUNCES of lobster. It was so much lobster…. as much as was on their lobster roll, but instead of in bread, it topped a salad. Here’s what it looked like:
Awesome, right? So awesome that the guy who sat down on my right and the lady who came in and sat on my right were both like “holey moley! what is that!?” and ordered it themselves! I should have gotten a commission on that salad. It was not a cheap salad, by any means, but it was so delicious!
Tags:boston·chowder·clam chowder·legal sea foods·legal test kitchen·lobster·waterfront
One night in Boston I got take out dinner at Yankee Lobster. I wasn’t sure what to expect from this place but the prices were really reasonable. I just wanted something quick and casual to take out back to my hotel room. Yankee Lobster was nearby, on the waterfront, so I headed over.
Perfect. You order at the counter and there’s a small dining room. When I was there only one other person was in the restaurant. I asked the guy at the counter what their specialties were and he said the lobster roll and the fried full-bellied clams. I wasn’t really feeling either of those.
I ended up getting a small lobster bisque and the fried haddock. The bisque was really good, but SO rich. After I finished my soup I didn’t really eat a ton of the rest. A rich bisque plus a fried platter was just too much! Still, it was all very good. If you’re looking for a no-frills, casual, fresh from the boat restaurant on the waterfront, check it out.
When Dallas lived in Boston Matt was one of his best friends. In the time that Dallas and I have been together I’ve gotten to know Matt and his wife Molly. On the last day of August this year they had a baby girl, Lucy. So, I couldn’t go all the way out to Boston and not arrange to meet their new addition.
From my hotel it was pretty easy to get out to where they live, just south of Boston. I took the Silver Line bus to the Red Line T and it was just a few stops south. I hadn’t been on the T for probably at least 3 years, so it was interesting. I always find other cities public transit systems really interesting… to contrast and compare to the one I use every day.
So, Molly was having one of those days. I don’t know she handles it anyway. Newborn baby who picked that day to be cranky, remodeling the house, trying to cook … wouldn’t it be just her luck that she’d get into a fender bender on her 1-mile drive to come pick me up from the train station! I felt so bad. But once I got there it was great to see everyone. Lucy was sleeping when I arrived so we visited and caught up on everything that’s been going on since the last time I saw them, last Thanksgiving. Lucy’s schedule is to get up at 9 and eat then go back to bed at 10 then she sleeps through the night. So at 9 she got up and I fed her a bottle.
Isn’t she the cutest? Such a chubster. Perfect olive-toned complexion and tons of dark hair. You can see where she gets her looks from. Her dad! Molly showed me a baby photo of Matt and Lucy looks exactly like him.
After her bottle, Lucy was content to just sit on my lap. She is in a stage where she is really studying faces. She must have stared at my face for 20 minutes. I wonder if she’ll remember me next time. ha!
It was so good to see everyone again. I wish we lived closer! And that I could have caught up with Ross, too. Next time. It was kind of sad when Lucy was going to bed and I was leaving. I probably won’t see her for quite a while.. and you know by then she’s going to be a totally different baby! Still, it’s exciting to watch all of our friend’s babies grow up!
There were many delicious seafood restaurants around the Boston Renaissance Waterfront, where the UI 15 conference was held. I love seafood, so I made it my mission to sample as much as I could.
On Monday we had free time for lunch so I decided to check out No Name Restaurant on the Boston Fish Pier.
Actually, when I headed out, I didn’t realize that No Name was on the pier so I passed by the pier and had to circle back. Even when I realized where it was, I was still a bit unsure. This is what the pier looks like -
As you walk down the pier it’s pretty industrial looking. Like the sidewalks are really tall for big trucks to pull up and it seems like warehouses or distributors. Just keep walking. No Name is located on the right side, about 3/4 of the way down.
When I walked in a guy at the host stand immediately told me to go upstairs. I don’t even know if they have a downstairs dining room and it was full or what the deal is. Upstairs there were rows of long tables.
I chose to sit at the small bar, where I took the photo above. My waiter saw me take the photo and insisted that I let him take this photo of me -
Not to shabby. The menu at No Name is pretty simple. Just a photo-copied sheet of paper. Two sided. Seafood prepared different ways.
I decided to try the seafood chowder. It was SO chock full of seafood. Very meaty. It looks kind of strange, but was delicious.
I also ordered the broiled scallops for $10.95. I don’t know how many scallops I thought I would get, but it wasn’t 13. The scallops also came with piles of fries and coleslaw. What a deal!
When my waiter set the scallops down in front of me he said, “This plate is hot. Don’t touch the plate. If you touch the plate don’t make any noise.” Nice.
This last photo is dark, but you can see the harbor outside the restaurant windows.
Tags:boston·boston fish pier·boston renaissance waterfront·chowder·no name restaurant·pier·renaissance hotel·scallops·ui15