[ptoomey3]

For me the option key was always the one that threw everything else off..since failure to recognize it made me doubt all the others :-). One "pneumonic" that helps for the option key is that it looks a bit like a "fork in the road" (i.e. "an option"). The ^ for ctrl goes back to linux, so "logical" for folks with that background. And, cmd is used so often I just got used to it.

[JadeNB]

> One "pneumonic" that helps for the option key is that it looks a bit like a "fork in the road" (i.e. "an option").

Although I think that there's no official answer, there are other people who agree with your explanation: https://twitter.com/marcedwards/status/225601862756352001 .

(Also, I don't know if this was just an intentional joke, but you probably mean 'mnemonic', not 'pneumonic'.)

[Terretta]

Doesn't it also look like a timeline, start pressing and hold one key down then also press a second key?

The stories we tell ourselves to remember things.