We’re longtime supporters of balls. But there’s one breed of ball in particular that inspires us like no other. If you don’t know what Buckyballs are, you may not even want to find out. These Rare Earth magnets attract and repel each other with a seemingly supernatural force, which makes them more addictive than bubble wrap and Bejeweled combined.

Buckyballs come with a big fat warning saying they’re not appropriate for children. But thanks to a couple bright kids who decided it’d be a good idea to swallow them anyway, the Consumer Product & Safety Commission is now avidly fighting to get these heaven-sent balls banned for good.

What does this say about our country? That we’re a valiant, vigilant people, dedicated to protecting our vulnerable youth? No. It reveals that we’re much too eager to latch on to the next cause for fear, without stopping to question whether that fear is rational or not. A mere 22 children have been injured from Buckyballs, out of 2.2 million Buckyball sets sold. As the Huffington Post astutely points out, dog bites, tennis, and household chemicals are all significantly more dangerous than our beloved magnetic balls. What’s next, banning tennis balls from every American home? Before we know it, we’ll be completely ball-less, in every sense of the word.

We mustn’t give in to the irrational demands of a mindless few. If we all did that, we’d find ourselves trapped in a world full of moronic ads like this one:

…instead of smart ads like this one:

And that’s a scary thought.

Thankfully, Buckyballs is nowhere close to backing down. We’re pleased to see that they’ve cleverly used PR to make balls a national topic of conversation. They’ve garnered visible support, from Congress to Fox News.

Parents, we know you’re scared. But instead of trying to keep adult toys out of adult hands, why not be adult enough to keep your kids away from them in the first place? So that the rest of us may enjoy rare beauty like this.

Untitled #4, by Alexa Leung, Account Coordinator at Mortar. Of course it’s work-related. We’re a “creative agency.”

You kids seen this Nike spot? Thoughtful. Believable. Wonderful. Just about the best thing we’ve seen all week. Except this, of course:

How did Sylvie’s dog Cody make the Fluffington Post?  By knowing that greatness requires discipline. And tortilla chips. Happy Friday.

From the Department of “Hey, I Didn’t Know You Did That!” we’re proud to announce a sizzlin’ new segment of the MortarBlog, entitled Mortarons Exposed: Stuff We Do When We’re Not Advertising.

Whilst fraternizing with each other for fun, as we’re occasionally known to do here, we discovered that people at the Mortar actually do some pretty interesting, non-work-related crap. So interesting we think it’s worth telling you about. If all goes well, you’ll agree.

Our first guest: Stefanie Hornby, Accounting Manager at Mortar.

You know what accountants do: crunch numbers, balance ledgers, and star in feature-length films. Wait, what? Just so happens that our money-managing, paycheck-cutting, now-married Stefanie Hornby has been an actress in the Bay Area for 18 years, under the moniker Stefanie Goldstein. Not only can she generate a profits and loss report with a pivot table, she has her own IMDB page. Oh, and her mother was a talk show host, her father was a writer on Happy Days, and her cousin produced about a bajillion TV shows. NBD.

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Okay, people. Something freaky-maleakey is up. Not only is today Friday the 13th – it’s the third one we’ve had this year. You know what that means. Watch your back today, is all we’re sayin’.

In the spirit, here’s a Friday-kind-of-post for y’all: a then-and-now look at the logo transformations of 10 of today’s biggest companies. It’s worth a gander – the original marks are near unrecognizable. Kind of like how some of the best-looking people start out as the ugliest babies.

For starters, Shell’s first logo looks like a moody 8-year-old drew it. And can you imagine if McDonald’s had blossomed into an international barbecue franchise? “McBBQ” just doesn’t sound right to us. Not one bit.

Of the vintage logos, Kodak and Xerox are probably our favorites. What’re yours?