not will smith

My attempts at continuous blogging have failed

Wed, 18 Feb 2009 20:03:43 -0500

Sigh

It was a noble goal - to blog every day for a year. Ultimately, however, it ended in failure as I only kept it up for a week!

Been very busy at work lately. As I have often commented, it is a much different experience than where I came from. The surprising thing is that although there are lots of balls up in the air, I haven’t really dropped any. That makes me proud!

This week sucked

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 19:17:12 -0500

I am so glad this week is over!

Very stressful times but there is light at the end of the tunnel. I have a lot of self improvement ahead of me. Fortunately, i think i am taking the steps to make that improvement happen.

So the weekend couldn’t come quickly enough!

Got a superbowl party this weekend to go to, which should be fun. Also, I have iLife 09 which finally arrived to play with. Maybe I might make things interesting and throw in some walking!

Video

Mon, 26 Jan 2009 22:52:37 -0500

Wasting Time

Sun, 25 Jan 2009 12:10:17 -0500

So, my plan to blog every day sure went out the window!

Currently, copying off files from my mac book pro so i can reformat and reinstall the OS. Over the past few weeks, my networking has gotten really, REALLY slow. I have tried basically everything i can think of or read to speed it up but no luck. Times like these call for reformat/reinstall!

Been watching and reading some of Merlin Man’s videos and blogs on time saving and getting things done. I have decided to try to implement some of these tactics in my every day life. So many things are competing for my attention - email coming in, chat windows, Facebook, video games, watching the new TV, etc that it is becoming really hard to get ANYTHING done. I’ve decided that if it isn’t absolutely essential, or something that will make me happy, i am not going to bother from now on with it.

There just isn’t enough time in the day to do everything.

Beautiful Day

Tue, 20 Jan 2009 19:13:00 -0500

We have a new President today and it is a beautiful thing. Watching the inaugaration on CNN (with the Facebook bells and whistles turned on) was really awesome. You know, people give Michelle Obama a lot of shit because she once made a comment that she only recently really became proud of being an American.

Truth is, I think a lot of people feel that way.

Over the past years there has been catastrophic damage done to our nation’s reputation abroad, economy at home and overall morale. I blame most (but not all) on the previous President. Whether Barack can turn it all around in 4 or even 8 years is of course not known. But he certainly can’t do any worse and if he only achieves half of what he promises, our country will be so much better off than it is now. Hell, even if he is able to bring people TOGETHER that will be a major improvement.

A great dinner at Benihana for my birthday. It was the first...

Mon, 19 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0500

A great dinner at Benihana for my birthday. It was the first time i had lobster that wasnt in some sort of pasta. Was absolutely divine - fanastic. All in all, a lot of birthday wishes and free lunches.

Super

Sun, 18 Jan 2009 23:20:29 -0500

The cardinals are going to the superbowl.

Yeah, I know it is absolutely insane a thing to hear, but it is true.

The Arizona Cardinals… Superbowl Bound.

I feel bad for Donovan McNabb and the Eagles. Really like to watch him play. I think Andy Reid is an awesome coach. Sad to me that they are this decade’s version of the Buffalo Bills. They make it to the big games, but never win.

Who knows what happens from here, but I agree with many of the commentators on sports radio who say win or lose, the Cardinals have changed their culture of losing and now have to be given respect. I’m not a huge fan of the Cardinals, but, I give them a lot of props for this accomplishment.

Musical Chairs

Fri, 16 Jan 2009 08:50:28 -0500

Today we get to move chairs at work. I’m dreading it, but also, looking forward to it. I know, wishy washy. But, I love the group i sit with now so i’ll miss them. Plus, the location of my desk is pretty nice where i can see pretty much everything going on but don’t sit with my back to anyone.

I’ll definitely miss it!

The Longest Week

Thu, 15 Jan 2009 09:06:00 -0500

It really feels like this week has been the longest one of the year. True enough, it is only the second week into 2009. But between some changes around the office, the conclusion to the mustache competition, new clients coming on board, old clients leaving, presentations and workshops, visitors from other agencies and Kelly being in Chicago caring for her father, this week has surely dragged.

Thank god tomorrow is Friday.

Taking back social media

Wed, 14 Jan 2009 09:34:51 -0500

So it is obviously going to be tough for me to blog every single day - especially when one considers i have mustache competitions to take part in at work that keep me out late. Nonetheless, I am definitely keeping this blog more active and that is in spirit with what i was trying to accomplish!

Last night’s mustache competition went well - got to meet some new people, and i scored pretty well with the crowd. I think it is safe to say I was a crowd favorite!

When I got home I started to think about work topics, specifically, social media and its use in marketing. While I should really make a post about this on social jump, my social news site i never update, its just easier to do here.

Social media, to me, is all about empowering folks (the public) to create their own content. Whether it is sharing photos, videos, audio, written content or simply ideas, social media = public + content. So many companies just think social media is about having a Twitter account and pushing out links to their followers, who if they are like me, by and large don’t read those updates anyway.

So when you sit down and consider social media, and its role in marketing, i think you need to set some goals. What should your campaign actually achieve? At the end of the day, 9 out of 10 times that goal is going to be to get folks to talk about you. So, why not avail yourself of sites like Twitter, or Facebook, or YouTube/Vimeo, and give people ideas and tools that they can use to do just that? Ask them for feedback, and keep a conversation going (PR) but instead of just asking for an email reply, have them post a video response to a question you have on YouTube. Or actively solicit the best pictures from your customers of your product on Flickr.

To me, thats social media.

I find bliss in watching a 32" Samsung

Mon, 12 Jan 2009 12:01:00 -0500

Aside from a short stint in the office yesterday, I enjoyed my Sunday by watching football in bed on the new television.

In addition, I played a little Fallout 3, which still has yet to really “hook” me. My guy pretty much sucks at this point, getting killed by random wolves and raiders. I am wondering at what point I’ll be able to survive any kind of attack. Gets a tad frustrating.

Also, I am on season 6 of the Sopranos now. It is getting pretty violent!

In the land of video..

Sun, 11 Jan 2009 00:05:51 -0500

I am king!

Put in about 20+ hours of video editing over the past 2 days, working on a RFP (request for proposal) at work. During that time it is safe for me to say that I became a near Premiere Pro expert. Going in, I hadn’t used it.

And, i can scratch a thing off my todo list—

I bought a new tv!

I absolutely love it too. Its a 32” Samsung LCD. Originally, I was looking at 40” plasmas at 1080p. I have to say though, I am glad i bought this set. Its smaller, but fits perfect in our room, and it is a 720p, which is what all of my Apple TV content is formatted at, which is nice. Finally, it cost me about $100 with all that I had saved, so i don’t feel like I splurged too bad.

First thing I really watched on it? The Cardinals beating the Panthers to earn a spot in the NFC Championship game.

Busy and it feels good

Fri, 09 Jan 2009 21:46:15 -0500

Got a project I am working on for work, and it is keeping me very busy. It is a video that I am editing for a RFP. Its been very fun, actually, and I really enjoy learning new things. But besides even the learning experience, I like to please the folks I work with by pitching in.

You know, with the economy the way it is, and the jobless rate in the country at 7% and heading to 10% at breakneck pace, its good to have a diverse set of skills. Although I know SEO/SEM, I also love the creative process. Designing web pages, buttons, or even editing video are all things that I’m happy to do.

I wish more people would look at the situation in the world today and feel the same obligations to really roll up their sleeves and go the extra mile. Having a job in times like these is precious.

Worry

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 00:00:00 -0500

I’m going to resolve to only worry about the things I can control from now on. Too often I stress over things that really, I have no say in. Just going to do the best I can with what I have.

Sopranos Revisited

Wed, 07 Jan 2009 23:59:00 -0500

Season 5 isn’t very good so far. I’m watching this episode called “The Test Dream” which is more or less horrible. Almost the entire thing is a dream sequence that makes little to no sense. Now, I am sure that if people could leave comments on my Tumblog they would say, “Oh that episode was great! You just have to find the deeper meaning, etc.”

To that I say, bullshit. Its just a stupid episode ;)

Sanjay Gupta

Tue, 06 Jan 2009 20:15:37 -0500

Here is a cool story I just found.

Sanjay Gupta has been approached by the Obama transition team for the position of Surgeon General of the United States.

I am all for this, for many reasons.

First, Gupta rules. The guy is young, charismatic — hell, he is even on Facebook. He is in touch with the younger generation, which i think is important in this day and age. Dr. Gupta would bring enormous credibility to the position.

Second, I like where Obama’s head is with this pick. Clearly, he is staffing his administration with notable people across the board. For whatever you think of Hillary, she is very accomplished and a proven leader. His Vice Presidential pick has credibility and experience galore. Sanjay is very well known, respected - some might say a hero for what he has done over in Iraq.

Hopefully, he accepts.

The End of the World

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 19:04:02 -0500

Lately I have been wondering if the world is coming to an end. I don’t mean in an “asteroid colliding with the planet in a fiery inferno” kind of way, though.

This is all about economics.

People are getting laid off left and right, literally, and these aren’t just people I’m hearing about on the radio but folks I actually know and call friends. This economy is scary.

I was laid off myself almost 9 months ago, at a time when the economy wasn’t nearly in as bad as shape as it was now. And I worked hard and was productive. Given my experience and salary rate, I wouldn’t have thought of myself as the low hanging fruit in the company but obviously the writing was on the wall.

Now, doom and gloom is everywhere. People are spending less, which then leads to companies laying off staff or making severe cuts, which of course leads to more unemployed folks who don’t have the money to spend — a vicious cycle.

It makes me wonder what Obama can possibly do to help turn this all around. It isn’t like he is going to be alone, he will have Congress to help, but still. Things right now are as bad as I can ever remember them being economically in our country.

And here, I have been saving money each week, stashing it in a sock (not really, but close) so I can afford a new TV. How irresponsible would it be to buy one, knowing that the week after I took it home I myself could be a casualty of these crazy economic times.

I titled this blog “The End of the World.”

Maybe it is a tad dramatic, but it certainly is the end of the world as we knew it only a few years ago. How long will it take to get this mess sorted out?

Walking for fun and profit

Sun, 04 Jan 2009 21:30:00 -0500

I have been on a walking kick recently — part of my 2009 New Years Resolution to exercise and get healthier. Part of how I plan to keep mysel motivated is to use Nike+ to track my walks/runs.

The whole thing is pretty slick. So far, I have done 8.2 miles in 5 different workouts. I’m just walking, so my pace is pretty lousy. Still, i have seen it come down and each time i record a personal best, I get a message from Lance Armstrong congratulating me. Sounds cheesy, but it is actually pretty cool ;)

I still don’t know precisely how Nike+ works, but basically you put a sensor in your shoe and it keeps track of your distance, speed and calorie burn. It also will of course control you iPod as it is an Apple accessory.

Here is a little video I recorded earlier during my walk using 12 Seconds.

[iPhone] Out for a walk on 12seconds.tv

The Cardinals

Sat, 03 Jan 2009 22:47:58 -0500

The Cardinals won their first playoff game in 903 years this afternoon. Pretty cool I guess. I watched this one and saw many times for them to blow the game, but they manned up and got the job done.

I guess if I am going to root for any team this post season, it will be the Eagles. My beloved Seahawks got eliminated back in like, week 3.

Sopranos

Fri, 02 Jan 2009 14:37:46 -0500

I’ve been watching a lot of the Sopranos recently. Actually, my christmas vacation from work has been nothing but watching. It all started when I restarted my Netflix account. I had forgotten to empty my queue when I left the service, so a year later when i reinstated it (to watch Jericho through Netflix On-Demand) the Sopranos Season 1 showed up in my mail box.

After watching the first disc of Season 1 in 1 sitting (4 hours) I was hooked. Been purchasing the rest of the episodes on iTunes because i don’t want to wait a week for the next disc to show up in the mail!

Junior Soprano is my favorite character - I also like Christopher. The show is great and I a currently downloading Season 4. Pretty good chance I can get through the entire series before I return back to work on Monday.