Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Wordless Wednesday: Secret Garden















































Spring time always reminds me of The Secret Garden. There is something dreamy and calm about a spring rain, blossoming flowers and sunny afternoons. I hope everyone who is on spring break this week (lucky ducks) is enjoying it.

All images from weheartit.

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Free Time Gets Weird




I'm not very good at having free time. As much as I may dream of having a break with nothing to do, I honestly can't handle it. Whenever I have a totally free moment I end up feeling restless and my mind takes me places I didn't know I had.

Now sometimes that mind travel can be great, other times it can be bad and then there are times like today when it's just plain weird.

While on my lunch break at work I actually took a real break instead of working through my lunch, reading a book, listening to my iPod, or talking/texting someone I know who isn't busy. It was just me, my food and my thoughts. Thoughts like:

"Has Angela Lansbury been old her entire life? It's like she found the secret of never aging only she found it when she was 65 and has to stay a senior citizen permanently."

"When do clothes become laundry and laundry become clothes?"

"Why is hair gross when it's not on your head? It's my own hair but once it's on a comb or gotten loose and found on an item of clothing it's instantly disgusting."

"Sometimes people will refer to a group of men hanging out together as a 'sausage fest', what do people say about a group of women hanging out? The first thing that comes to mind is 'taco stand' and the fact that that's the first thing I can think of creeps ME out."

Luckily, I only have 30 minutes for lunch so I didn't get much further than that. Lord knows how much other weird stuff I could have dug up. This is why even in my downtime I need to remain in a constant state of activity.

Monday, March 29, 2010

Music Monday: Temper Trap

Okay, so I've already blogged about The Temper Trap.

BUT

I like their song "Love Lost" & the music video for it and since this is my blog I can do whatever the hell I want, so there.



I promise to blog about other awesome bands/music next week, one repeat doesn't hurt right? 
Also- I bet it takes that video host a long time to get his hair to look that perfectly disheveled.


"Keep me in mind. When you're ready, I am here to take you every-time"

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Conversations With A Cat

One out of the three cats that reside in my office happen to be very bossy. And of course the bossy one has become my shadow. At first, I was not ok with this but now Fancy (she should have been named Sassy) and I have a dialogue going. She gives me death stares and meows at me with a nagging undertone and I talk to her as if she cares about what I have to say.

Example:
A photoshoot was being set up for some product shots at work. Fancy being the attention loving cat she is always feels the need to hop in the light box and pose when the camera is out. Not having time for shenanigans no photos were taken of her. This made her grumpy, so I tried to talk her through her bossy mood:



She avoided me for the rest of the day after this.

Monday, March 22, 2010

Music Monday: Van Morrison

I made the decision that Van Morrison's "Jackie Wilson Said" is an excellent song to dance around with reckless abandon to.


In the spirit of dancing with reckless abandon I thought about all the other songs I like that are good for dancing around like a fool in your underwear. Which happen every once in a while Not that I do that...



















But if I were to do such a thing, that mix would include Van Morrison and few others like these:

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Things I love: Musical Adventures


















I like music but I love live music, I get off on the energy and finding new albums to get lost in. 9 times out of 10 if I'm out and about it's because I'm going to see a show. This spring promises plenty of musical adventures. So far I've got these on my "to see" list:

The Growlers: Last time I saw them they opened up for Vampire Weekend. They're worth another listen.

Ra Ra Riot: I may not be able to go to SXSW (Wouldn't that be so much fun? I need a partner in crime!) but I can see them when they roll into town.

Camera Obscura: I love their 60's pop-esque sound. I hope they play "Lloyd I'm Ready"—instant smile on my face if they do.

Best part is, those are just a few bands I plan on seeing in April. I'm excited for even more fun music this year.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

The Highway Rocks, Literally.

We had a lovely sunny weekend and I decided to take advantage of it by looking for some thrift/record store finds and enjoying a pint... or two. On my way to begin that adventure I found myself in the middle of this:




































For about 20 minutes highway 41 was covered in rocks. But after it was all cleaned up I was the only one on the highway. Mind you, I was the only one for about a minute or two but those couple of minutes are hard to come by on a usually congested highway.

Speaking of enjoying a pint, I suggest everyone take a break from their crazy midweek schedules and indulge in at least one green beer for St. Patrick's Day. You totally deserve it. If not, pretend you do.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Gratitude Tuesday: Truth

Sometimes I need a pick me up when I'm at work. Most people reach for a cup of coffee but I'm not much of a coffee drinker because I have a low tolerance for caffeine. I turn into an antsy mess—an A-Type running on caffeine can be scary.

I needed a boost today so I made myself a cup of tea. One of my favorite brands of tea is Yogi because 1) their green tea energy blend gets me going without feeling like an ADHD kid 2) they have affirmations on their tea bags.

This was my affirmation today:

Monday, March 15, 2010

Music Monday: I Met The Walrus

It's not a band or a song, but I really love the I Met The Walrus video. And since the video centers around John Lennon I think that it counts as a MM post:

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Etiquette For Social Media
















X

Last week I hosted a webinar for an MLM company to help clients begin using social media for marketing. After the Q&A portion of the webinar I got to thinking about how social media and marketing don't go together. It should really be known as social media and public relations. I get the feeling that most people see marketing as an active way of finding an audience and sending them their message. But to me, social media is a passive way (aside from SEO) of sending your message and allowing your audience to find it.


That being said, here are a few points I covered about "sending" messages via social media. I like to think of it as a good starting point for corporate social media etiquette:

Be real.
Is social media a great way to market to your audience? Yes. Should you accost them with marketing messages/strategies? No. Well, not all the time. The point of being real is just that- engage your audience in a conversation. Ask and answer questions, learn about what's important to them and every now & then toss out a message. It will be better received after building audience trust rather than acting as an internet billboard for your product/service.
Add value.
Think of value in terms of your everyday conversations: you're either listening or waiting for your turn to speak. Be the listener and respond by adding value to the conversation. You've already worked on being real and building trust so now add to that trust by offering your expert knowledge. You want to be the first place your audience goes when not only wanting answers but also information.
Respond.
Be present in the conversation. Remember, listening or waiting to speak? Listening is great but if you're not around to respond in a timely manner then you're ruining all your hard work. Too many people think they don't have enough time for social media. These are the same people that think they need a hand in all areas of social media. Narrow your focus, learn where your audience is going to share & receive messages and make those social outlets your new home base.
Give Praise.
This is where most people get lost. Why would you want to praise others when your goal is to build and keep your audience? Because you're being real, remember? If you find a piece of information that your audience would like to hear about share it. Give praise to others that are adding value to your niche. It's another way to start more conversations, add value and build audience trust.

Be Original.  
Not everyone is going to want to read an informational article or even a 140 character status update. Present content with images, video, audio... the possibilities are endless and originality makes for a more meaningful conversation.

Monday, March 8, 2010

Music Monday: Beirut
















Beirut has a great vibe. It's something like Gypsy/Eastern European/Brass Band with Spooky Russian Grandpa Vocals. That might not sound great, but it is. What's even better is the band is fronted by a white dude from Santa Fe New Mexico. I would like to think that whoever or whatever influnced the bands sound had a lot to do with Amsterdam. Speaking of, does anyone want to take an adventure to Holland? Because I imagine Holland sounds a lot like this:

Monday, March 1, 2010

Music Monday: Chopin

















Today marks Frédéric Chopin's 200th birthday, so naturally it's this weeks MM post. The timing is too perfect too pass up! I love how music can be unphased by time. True works of art really do last forever, isn't it amazing?

This might be a bit TMI but Nocturne Op. 9 No. 2 is really good to listen to in the shower. I don't have a definitive reason as to why, so the next time you hop in the shower you'll just have to see for yourself:



Since Chopin was a child prodigy I had to add this one in. It also doesn't hurt that she's pretty darn adorable too:

Related Posts with Thumbnails