Im getting close to a rollout of the new design for SemanticBible: here's the logo i'm working with. I've been trying to come up with something that symbolizes the structured connection between meanings and words (the "semantics" of the Bible), but also ties in the vertical dimension of how that affects our relationship with the Lord. 

It's obvious i'm no graphic designer! But at least it seems visually distinctive ... 

The past couple of Friday nights, donna and i have vegetated on the couch while watching shows on TLC like Trading Spaces, While You Were Out, and What Not To Wear. All these "makeover" shows have common elements:

• some home decoration or fashion problem: a kitchen that looks too dated or boring, an unused porch or patio, office attire that's sleazy/slouchy/scary
• a quick turnaround (bankrolled by the shows' producers!) orchestrated by professional designers, carpenters, and fashion consultants
• a lot of quick camera shots and some manufactured drama: will they finish in time? will the person like it? will the fashion makeover "take"? this is TV after all
• a focus on the external and material aspect of life

I'm sure one reason these shows are so popular is that they give people a sense of what change is possible. Just $1000 and a weekend, and you can have a whole new dining room! Turn that dowdy bedroom into a palace! Look how a new sense of style and wardrobe (to the tune of $5000!) can change how others see you and how you feel about yourself.

Here's the kind of show i'd like to see instead:

• Bob's fellow employees have noticed he's demanding, inflexible, and thoughtless in his interactions with them. They call in the producers from What Not To Do At Work, who capture it all on videotape, confront him with the evidence, and then see if he's willing to trade in his bad attitudes for some training on treating others with love and kindness
• Rick is so busy chasing a promotion at work that he's put his family, his spiritual life, and everything else on the back burner. The crew from While You Were Distracted send him away for a mini-retreat to pray and reflect on what matters most in life, and to create a mission statement to guide his priorities
• Sally is obsessed with her car, her swanky apartment, and owning the latest high-tech gadgets. The producers of Trading Fates take her to Haiti for a weekend, where she distributes food to hungry children and gets a first hand look at real poverty.

TLC producers, i'm waiting for your call.