Did you ever notice that some people are dollar droppers? What do I mean by dollar droppers? Well, during conversations they must make reference to the cost of personal and not so personal items. The cost of their house, their salary, the cost of their cruise, the worth of their jewellery, the cost of their child's education, is all disclosed without the bat of an eyelash.
Really, do I need to know how much your future son-in-law makes or how much the engagement ring costs? Your wife's salary, is really none of my business. Your child's braces cost how much? Oh, I don't remember asking, but I know you'll tell me anyway.
I never would have known that your new fur lined leather jacket or your new skinny jeans cost that much, even though knowing now has made my life complete.
Blah$, blah$, blah$, blah$, blah$, blah$, blah$!Oh well, my bagel cost a buck fifty, so there, take that!
A colleague of mine just dumped her coffer into a big mug with ice, creating an "Iced Coffee"!! Not being a coffee drinker, maybe I am missing the point but isn't coffee suppose to be hot or at least warm? My colleague then explained that she was saving herself five bucks! So I am assuming that's the going rate at local purveyors of these types of beverages.
Again, not being a coffee consumer I realized that the sales of commercial marketers of coffee, especially in colder climates like Canada, probably took a hit in the the warmer months when consumers did not need that warm up jolt. So they invented these iced coffees etc., to maintain their markets shares.
Pondering what was next in the line of exotic beverages, I discovered that a "Frozen Hot Chocolate" was being conjured up by a big chain in the USA. Wait a minute, isn't hot chocolate, supposed to be .... hot? If hot chocolate is hot, how can it be frozen or if it is frozen, how can it be hot at the same time. Hmmmmm?
However, this debacle is a non-issue for marketers. Marketers just wave their magic wands, add a few catch phrases, such as refreshingly new, energizing tasty treat, sprinkle in a few enticing commercials and wallah, consumers suck it up like sheep to the slaughter, lining up in droves to part with our coin.
When are we going to wake up and smell the coffee?
First off, I'm not a technophobe. I use a Blackberry Torch, laptop, email, Facebook, MP3 player, iTunes and other music sites. I have watched movies online, streamed internet content to my television, etc. So, I embrace all of our new "can't live without it" technology.
Twitter, on the other hand seems a little trifling and narcissistic to me! Is it really necessary to broadcast how you feel about restaurants, politics, sports, news, celebrities and just simple feelings or emotions to hundreds and even thousands of followers? Unfortunately, the story hungry media picks up these little tweets, like they came off the news wire, giving them more credence than necessary, and repeats them as fact. Meanwhile, in my opinion, many of us feel like saying "who cares?" Tweet that!!
To say that one has fifty, hundreds or even thousands of followers is like a badge of honour! But when you start tweeting the first thoughts that come to mind, that's when the fireworks really start. Recently a few sports figures, politicians and other personalities have tweeted their feelings on controversial subjects and suffered repercussions, even if they later retracted or clarified their tweets with further tweets or re-tweets!
Losing face, dropped endorsements and facing public scorn and ridicule is the cost of airing ones controversial thoughts. I mean, let's face it, we all have some controversial and even insanely crazy thoughts that cross our minds at times, like poisoning our neighbors cat or telling our manager to take a long walk of a very short pier, but we don't share them with the world!
As a social media tool, Twitter may prove somewhat useful, but in the hands of some otherwise intelligent people, Twitter is a tool to infamy.
Recently, a young woman in the US received a photo via twitter, of an underwear clad bulge, supposedly from a congressman named appropriately, Weiner! In all fairness to the congressman, he does state that his twitter account was hacked, but did not deny that the picture was his.
Really, was the account hacked or was the picture of the "Weiner" just sent to the wrong young woman?
Wake up people, just saying, or at least, please think before you tweet!
Okay, directors and creators of Glee! If it's publicity you craved, you got it. In this media driven world any kind of publicity is good publicity, I suppose!
Now, as a guy I find the recent GQ pictorial spread of some of the cast members of Glee absolutely ridiculous! The executives at GQ are obviously intelligent and are in the business of selling magazines. Today, sex is used to sell almost everything from cars to toothpaste, from boats to gum. But is there a line that we have crossed?
In my opinion GQ and Glee have collectively dropped the ball. GQ is using the old and obviously not original school girl in a uniform fantasy fetish, that men and I suppose women are suppose to find titillating, no pun intended. School girls are a common theme in pornography!!
Furthermore, even though these actors are over 18 or 21 or 24, they are posing in their Glee characters in a school setting!! Come on, standing at a locker in your underwear, sucking or licking a lollipop with an open mouth? Why is this imagery even necessary????
Regardless of the fact that the precious teens and pre-teens who follow this program may or may not be reading GQ, these pictures will be plastered all over the internet where children and perverts have easy access.
Who cares if Britney and others have already played the sexy school girl in uniform to a tee? Boundaries keep getting pushed, then we wonder why child molesters and others rule the day.
As for the women out there that support these types of pictures (the male is fully clothed) ...... give your head a shake. You are just eating what you have been force fed all these years!!!
Was this the goal of feminism? No, just a bit of publicity for good old Glee and GQ.
So I was strolling down the road the other day and a streetcar rolled by with an ad for vitamin water and I started thinking about the absurdity of water, a pure, natural, refreshing, substance mixed with artificial flavouring and colouring then spiked with vitamins.
Is this what we have come too?
No other liquid can quench your thirst like water! Not Gatorade, Powerade, Propel, Coke, Pepsi, milk or cold apple juice, my personal favourite!
Who cares if pro athletes drink sports drinks?
Water is so important that left without it human beings would die within three to seven days. Our muscles are actually made of of seventy five percent water. But no, we have to add to natures perfection, bottle it, advertise it and consumers like sheep to the slaughter have to lap it up.
Besides, do we really need to get our vitamins from bottled water? Who knows what effect these anti-waters have on the human body anyways!! Man was able to survive for thousands of years by drinking water and look how we turned out.
Come on people, wake up, nothing beats pure water!
The "decision" has finally been made. All the build up for the last two years has been about the free agency period of 2010, when some of the extremely talented draft class of 2003 would become free agents.
The King wants to play in New York, the greatest basketball stage on earth. The King wants to play in New Jersey, for a rich Russian and his king of rap buddy Jay-Z. The King wants to play in Chicago, in the memory and shadow of his idol Michael Jordan. The self-anointed King, according to Cavs owner Dan Gilbert, wants to stay and play in Cleveland, his home state, where he is adored and worshiped like a god!!
CNN, the king of the news world, was running the headline, Breaking News .... World waits for Lebron's decision!! Are you kidding me?
Nielsen Co. estimates that 9.95 million people in the US alone watched Lebron James announce on ESPN that he's leaving Cleveland to play for the Miami Heat, making it the third-most-watched program on cable television this year.
Incredible!! Almost 10 million people!! At its peak, the ESPN broadcast was seen by 13.1 million viewers during the 9:15-9:30pm ET quarter hour in which Lebron, spilled the beans, I mean the "decision".
Now that the "decision" has been made, let's move on people. I know we won't. But at least, let's try.
A couple of months or so ago, Tiger finally come out and apologized for his, ah, indiscretions. It's obvious that his public relations, image consultants, spin doctors and the workers of the almighty make it disappear voodoo, advised Tiger to use the, "I wrote the speech myself" approach. Did it work? Well, the jury is still out on that one.
Tiger chose to speak to a few hand picked, handcuffed media people, in a news conference without any real questions in a situation where he was in total control, as always. Noticeably, Tiger's mother was there but Elin, his absolutely gorgeous wife, was absent!
Headline news was made on Sunday March 21, 2010, when Tiger gave two separate five minute interviews to ESPN and the Golf channel.
Now, I don't know about you but I was expecting something more substantial. Will we ever get all the details? No and maybe we shouldn't. But I quote "it's all in the police report" was not what I expecting. Did I mention that headline news was made?
Tiger sounded more like he was he was sorry for getting caught with his hand in the cookie jar, than he was for getting caught cheating on his wife with numerous hoochies!!
Leading up to the Masters, in Augusta Georgia, this weekend Tiger has given another interview in hopes of satiating the masses need to know the sordid details of his fall from grace and subsequent rehab. Nothing new of consequence was revealed, although Tiger did reiterate how sorry he is for letting us, the little people, along with his wife, family and close friends, down.
I am glad to see that Tiger has had at least one good friend, that will stick with him through thick or thin. Good, old reliable Nike!! Could that friendship have anything to do with the fact that Tiger Woods is Nike Golf?
The hardcore golf fan has already moved past the "Tiger" debacle and just wants to see Tiger, do one thing, play golf.
Of course, Tiger-gate was a huge story of epic proportions and the non-sports media went excessively overboard. Now the media circus keeps billing Tiger Woods at the Masters as the second coming of Jesus Christ; everyone is going to watch him!
The Super Bowl of Sunday February 7, 2010, was the most watched television program in American television history. The Saints prevailed in a thrilling 31-17, come from behind victory.
However the half time show was a real blast...... a blast from the past!! "Who played the half time show?" "The Who." "Who?" "The Who!" "Who?" and on and on. Since the Janet Jackson, costume reveal of 2004, the National Football League has gone all conservative, aiming to please middle-aged men.
Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers, Bruce Springsteen and The Who. In my opinion, the lone bright spot was Prince in 2007 and he seemed pretty tame. The NFL was aiming for the young hip crowd with Jay-Z and Rihanna, in and out of the commercial breaks and the geriatric set, with the 60 something rockers of The Who, at halftime! I suppose if you subscribe to Rolling Stone magazine, you are happy!!
Who next? No pun intended. The Grateful Dead? The Beach Boys? Pink Floyd? I witnessed the Super Bowl at a huge Super Bowl event with over a hundred attendees and we simply muted the volume, hit the bathroom and topped up on snacks for the second half.
Oh well, there's always next year to get it right!
Old news by now, but Gilbert Arenas was suspended last week for the rest of the National Basketball Associations season, for his felony gun charge and subsequent ridiculous behavior.
His initial sorry explanation for having the unloaded guns in the locker room, was for the safety of his children. Ah, note to Gilbert, buy a safe! Next!!!
Today (Feb. 2/10), in the Washington Post, Arenas issued the obligatory apology. "While I regret a lot about this incident, letting the kids down is my biggest regret." Blah, blah, blah! No kidding!
Isn't it all double speak, anyways? After the incident and before the pending suspension, wasn't Arenas caught with his guns a blazing, so to speak? Making light of the matter by pretending to shoot teammates with his hands during an on-court huddle before a game! Yeah! Sorry! Sorry he got caught.
Actually, I feel sorry for Arenas. He was just battling back from a couple of season ending knee surgeries. Leading his team, the Wizards, in scoring and assists averages and now this.
Well Arenas, it's all on you brother. It's all on you. I guess the moniker "Agent Zero" is very appropriate.
If you are looking for a poignant piece on world politics or some moral or ethical issue, you are out of luck in this particular blog. Just some good old fashion venting. Unfortunately, I had to pick up a couple of items at a Super Walmart, this cold but sunny Sunday afternoon. In fact, the biggest Walmart in Canada.
Is bigger always better? Sometimes I wonder. Bigger homes, bigger cars, bigger malls, bigger big box stores, bigger Walmart Superstores! This big Super Walmart is so big, it needs two postal codes. For example, garlic bread is not in the section where bread is kept. Why? Because they keep it near the ready-to-eat food section, with the barbecued chicken, chunky fries, processed chicken parts, etc. Fantastic!! All I know, is that it necessitates a lot of unnecessary looking around for challenged individuals like myself.
Bigger, better. Hmmmm. Customer service is a joke on normal days, but on a busy Sunday, one might as well pack a lunch because it is going to be awhile, a long while before you make your return or exchange.
But the creme de la creme is the checkout. Don't let the twenty something checkouts and massive express lanes fool you into thinking you can make a quick exit. Bigger Walmarts just mean bigger lineups. Seriously! Bring a book, a newspaper, needlepoint, a chess game or something. One might as well use the time in the lineup for something productive other than gazing at the gazillion "gotta have" products strategically placed along your mammoth journey through the check out. Even when it's not super busy, Super Walmart still has super lineups. My trick is to go the the electronics or watch/jewelery department and feign ignorance to checkout before my next birthday.
The lure of Walmart and Super Walmart for me and I am sure others is the one-stop shopping. You can pick up your cereal, spray paint, shaving cream, wiper blades, garden tools, asprin, carpet deodorizer, apples, window cleaner, chocolate chip cookies and pet food all in the same trip and if your fortunate enough, the cashier may just shove everything in the same super big bag!!
All this venting coming from a guy who loves Walmart and goes there for everything from motor oil to granola bars.
Adam Lambert's performance at the recent 2009 American Music Awards, created a little bit of buzz, I'd say. Feigning fellatio and kissing a male band member on a nationally televised program, may not have been the best career move, or was it? Who knows these days, with all the of the publicity stunts to get your name out there. I mean, lying and saying your son is in a run-away weather balloon, crashing a White House state dinner, leaking a video of yourself having sex, all for some shame fame.
Well it worked, because Adam Lambert, wasn't even in my world prior to this incident! Since he is a post American Idol contestant, he will soon be out of it.
But what got me in this whole Adam Lambert affair, is the reaction of people, especially woman. "Oh, he's sooooo good looking, so leave him alone." "Oh he's soooo hot!" I'm like, good looking, hot!? Please, I saw a couple of pics and the dude looks like a lady.
Are woman young and old so confused today, that they find gay men, who look, primp and carry themselves like woman, attractive?
Come on, I never heard a guy say, "Oh K.D. Lang or Ellen Degenerate, oops I meant DeGeneres are sooooo hot!" Not even the honourable mention of being attractive!!
That's because guys don't find gay women, who like like men even remotely attractive.
Haven't heard much from Michael Vick lately? No kidding! You can't spend two years in jail and miss playing the skilled position of Quarterback, in the National Football League and just pick up playing again.
After all, football is not like ballroom dancing. No offense Emitt Smith, Michael Irvine and Jason Taylor, of Dancing With The Stars, fame.
In fact, Vicks stats were very hard to find. Two completions in six attempts for, are you ready, six yards! Now, for all the exciting rushing yards. Are you ready......twelve carries for twenty seven yards. Yes, that's a whopping 2.3 yards per carry.
If Vick was in the army, he could be reported as missing in action. The Eagles probably will no pick up his option year, which means, you've heard the rumours, Buffalo here he comes.
Me: Are you feeling anxious, afraid, lonely, confused, suicidal, angry, guilt ridden, tired, hateful, stressed, depressed, repressed..... sounds like you have a hole deep, deep inside, that only one person can reach.....!
Friend: Who are you talking to?
Me: Everyone .......
Friend: Who is the one that can help?
Me: Jesus! He puts everything in context and perspective! For example there will never be peace in the Middle East, so we can have all the peace accords, treaties etc. It will never happen. The word of God tells us as much. Men will cry, peace, peace and there never will be peace.
Those who have their eyes open are jaded by politicians, politics and their fanciful but hopeless politicing. Politicians and politics are not the answer. The answers don't come from within.
The answers, come from Jesus.
Religion and religious people have contributed to this messed up world for sure. But do you throw the baby out with the bath water?
An emphatic, no!
We are all searching for more. Something more than this existence!
Something so close but yet so far. Something far beyond wealth, status, fame, sex, drugs, music, power, idolatry, idealism, philosophy, mythology and yes even empty religiosity. People have tried all of these substitutes before and they are not happy, not at peace, but joyless and empty!
Did John Lennon, Princess Diana, Kurt Cobain, Michael Jackson, that German billionaire who committed suicide because his net worth was cut in half during the recession, seem at peace, seem content?
Looks like they were looking, for much more!!
Do Kanye West, Brittany Spears, Paris Hilton, Perez Hilton, Donald Trump, David Letterman and Oprah, can't forget Oprah, seem at peace to you, full of joy, contentment?
