As a language geek, I love the word “lanyard.” It sounds like such a naval or nautical term (although it
only sort of is) to describe something very prosaic (the cord worn around the neck that holds trade show badges, although lanyards were originally used for securing guns to military uniforms so it has always had the same basic meaning). It reminds me of the word “penultimate,” which sounds cool and ominous, and demands to be spoken in deep tones by James Earl Jones or someone like that, and yet only means “next to last.”
Okay, that’s a bit of a tangent; this is what happens when I over-caffeinate... Anyway, I am wearing my lanyard as I write this as the blog has been this week at Graph Expo and the blog is, as it inevitably is, somewhat disappointed by the “GreenSpace” portion of the show floor, purportedly dedicated to “sustainable” printing and green initiatives, but which seems to consist almost solely of UV coating suppliers and equipment manufacturers. Now, this is not to “dis” UV coating suppliers and equipment manufacturers; I am a very big fan of the effects that can be created using UV coatings. Nor do I mean to impugn their “green cred” or anything, but surely a show such as Graph Expo can provide better “green resources” in a portion of the show floor dedicated to them. There is a “consultant’s corner” where experts from PIA/GATF, SGP, and others can answer any questions—and that’s fantastic—but every year the GreenSpace seems like such a missed opportunity to tout the sustainability of print and the efforts of the printing industry.
At the instigation of one of the consultants in the consultant’s corner, the blog shall importune show management once the chaos and carnage has ebbed...