I think I am suppose to tell six "odd" things that I do/did  !

Now let me see... hmmmm... odd? Quirky?    Hey, this is difficult than I thought!! I don't think there is anything "qurky" with me! 

Okay, okay... enough of self praising.

1) When I was in fifth standard, I beat a classmate really hard, sitting on him...  Don't really remember the matter but do remember his face with round plastic frame glasses and benny bunny like front teeth... I now think, he might have looked kinda cute, but he must have really irked me for some reason!! 

2) In school, I was a good student. I could have been still better if I was a bit more sincere.  But since I always stood either first or second in the class I had got good reputation.

Once I sat on the last bench and put "tic-toc" in my shoes and did "tic-toc", "tic-toc" during the class... teacher never suspected me (I wore a "oh-so-innocent" expression on my face!!) and the boy sitting next to me was made to stand out of the class for the whole day!!

3) In my Medical College, girls had a dress code! (Now don't raise your eyebrows, we did have a dress code! :x ) We had to wear Saree in college (Stop giggling, pleeeeeease! ) - every single day and for all the 5 and half years of MBBS (am including internship here! )

So what's so quirky about me, if every girl in the college had to do it??

Yours truly used to wear snickers with saree (for initial couple of months, as I never knew how to walk like  a "female" and was really scared of tripping on my own saree if I wore a chappals or sandals!!  )

4) Once at a restaurant we friends were really in mischeivious mood and a "dare" was going on... and I was dared to mix "sambaar" and "coke" and drink it!!   (How stupid we can be in certain age!!)

I did drink it, but couldn't do it for more than a few sips!!     ( I won the bet nonetheless, as nobody had defined how much was to be drunk!!    )

5) First thing I notice in a person is his/her nose!! Please don't ask me why. I don't have the slightest idea!!   

6) I love chocolates!! ( i know, I know, there's nothing quirky about it!    but couldn't come up with anything else...)

Aaaaaaaaahhhhh... done!  :)

I don't really want to tag anybody (today, I am in a good mood!!)   

No, hey, I want to tag some one... So I tag;  Jemal, Mahak, Bindu and Bluemist!

Last night fucking rocked.

After a day filled with details I don't really want to post on here, I went to the pub for some food.  While I was there, I ran into an exgirlfriend and we proceeded to talk and do shots.  We had four shots and I had part of her Jack and coke.  I didn't overly care for it.  Don't think I'll be doing that again.  We were flirting and having fun, and life was good. 
Then her boyfriend showed up and we went back to our lives.  LOL.

I started to walk back to the library to get a little work done before Karaoke and talked to my friend Tim about a brand new movie idea.  This one is fucking killer.  I'm excited.  This may be THE ONE, if you know what I mean.  I'm sure some of  you have heard me say that before, but this one really could be the one that puts us on the map.  I'm going to be heavily researching it while finishing FC and trying to graduate and get a job... oh the long months ahead of us!

So I get off the phone, and I run into another ex, Lindsay, who was back in town for D-Days.  She invited me in to her friend's house for some drinks, and we proceeded to drink some Zinfindel (4 glasses each) and talk about her recent move to Colorado.  That was pretty awesome.  She made some comments about me being able to stay the night there, but I had plans already.  I left there and went back downtown, to Maya Jane's for the Karaoke Contest round one.  I ran into Jared and Jeremy and we proceeded to throw a few back.  I had more shots while they drank Morgan and cokes... yucky.

Bryan came down after work and he ordered two pitchers of Blue Moon and one cup.  "Two Pitchers, One Cup" should be a new YouTube video.  Bryan drank them both as we watched [name deleted]dance and I drooled over that ass. :)  We played pool, but we were both so trashed that we were both shooting for the stripes.  Finally, we both tried to take solids and got mad at each other for not just taking stripes.  I hit on M for a while, and she flirted back and I'm still counting down the days til I make a move on her... if I make a move on her.  But I was way to drunk to talk to girls, let alone try to do anything else with them.

We left there at closing time and made our way past the Char, where Bryan informed a black guy who was with a white girl that white girls will let black guys "stick it in their butts."  Then Bryan talked to J and informed her that I was only talking to her because I thought she was twins, but it turned out to just be her.  "But you're both very beautiful when you're both here."

From there, we made our way to a house party, but along the way, I was frightened by a parked boat that I thought was trying to run me over, and Bryan insisted on playing MARCO POLO with anyone who would play.  So I decided to yell "WATER" and wait for someone to get it and yell "POLO" back to me.  I finally met a guy who did, named Adam, who let us go to his house.  Ironically, his roommate was the other guy who had invited us to his house for the after bar, so we ended up at the right place.  We ate pizza and drank some more.  Charlie, the other roommate, was hanging out with our friend Roger, so we were all reunited in a way that only happens in bad teenage comedy movies.

Bryan loaned his phone to Charlie and then found their other roommate's phone and proceeded to prank call the front desks of the dorms asking for crazy things like directions to strip clubs and whether or not the girl at the desk dated black guys.  She did not, so he told her I would be disappointed because I'm black. 

We ate a bunch of pizza, being drunk enough to believe it was the greatest pizza ever cooked.  Roger fell down, knocking over the garbage, and I watched him pick it up, knowing I should help him, but being unsure how to go about it.

Finally, Charlie got off the phone, but managed to lose Bryan's phone in the 30 seconds it took him to walk back to the kitchen to give it to us.  So then we got to seach for the phone.  Roger fell over on the stairs and I took a picture of him.  Bryan was given a white russian in a 32 oz glass and I videotaped him trying to drink it.

We laughed.  We cried.  We did that thing where you stand in a doorway and push out and then step out and your arms have to go up in the air.

Then we decided it was time to go to Bryan's and make breakfast.  It was early morning and people were getting up to go to work.  [name deleted] kept texting me and trying to get me to come over when her boyfriend went to work, but I knew I'd just fall asleep anyway, so what would be the point?

Finally, around 6:30 this morning, I went to bed.  I got up at 1:00.  Time for day four.

I DRANK:

3 Rumplemintz

4 Dead Nazis

4 Red Headed Sluts

2 Washington Apples

1/4 glass Jack and Coke

3/4 bottle of Zinfindel

1 Squirt

7 Cherry Cokes.

Hilarious ! Just watch !

Advertising Agency: Santo, Buenos Aires, Argentina
General Creative Directors: Maximiliano Anselmo, Sebastián Wilhelm
Creative Director: Pablo Minces
Agency producer: Abigail Harding
Production company: Landia, Buenos Aires
Director: Andrés Fogwill
Executive producer: Claudio Amoedo
Post production: Che Revolution Post
Music: Daniel Fainzilver

When I was young growing up in mainsouth I didn’t see a lot of doctors, lawyers, or scientists. All around me were drug dealers, ball players, rappers and generic thugs. Picture as a child you see on tv doctors and shit but when u walk outside u see a young nigga in a BMW and you know he aint got that from his practice, feel me? It seems for a lot of ghetto youth we want the fast life, society looks at it as childish for wanting material possessions. Peep, in the hood we keep the tags on our clothes for validation; we want you to see how much the shit cost we slaved for. For a lot of inner city youths we aint got shit and we told we aint never gonna have shit so when we get shit we wanna show everyone it before we lose it! The only reason I had such a serious focus on education is due to my father, the greatest man I had ever met. My father refused to buy me shit unless I proved to him my intelligence. Looking out the window everyday I seen what would change me forever Drug Dealers. Drug dealers were so cool, gold chains, money and bitches I mean what more could a kid dream for. My older brother use to cut raw on my star wars bed sheets when I was younger; I thought it was so ill to be part of that movement. I was wrong of course but I must say to this day I still love that world. My mans sold drugs my fam sold drugs everyone I knew sold at some time, it was a way of life. I think in most cases we are products of our environment, if my neighbor was a doctor maybe I would have practiced medicine and not pharmaceuticals.

While temperature is falling in big parts of the world, people from Oceanian countries are welcoming the warm weather and planning their perfect summer.
Summer is a perfect time to have fun & relax. Go down to the beach with some friends, have a BBQ, drive around in a convertible, take a sunbath, swim & surf or crash a pool party.

Last year, Coca-Cola New Zealand promoted "Summer As It Should Be" with a series of modern pin-up prints, featuring local bikini beauties ready to dive into surf and sand with their board-size bottles of Coke.

Why? It's a saccharine lie. It tastes like crap unless you're addicted to it and in denial that it tastes like crap. If we could admit that things taste like crap when they do, a lot of problems would dissolve into carbonated bliss.

This hypothesis applies especially to Diet Cokers, who are the worst because that really tastes like hell in the mouth.

This hypothesis may not apply to people who like ginger and root beer. I like those, so those don't apply.

Take today's victim friend... He gave me 3 photos. Was he crazy? He could have given me one corner of one half a photo and I could have pointed it out to him. Hell... This guy is so Souf Efrikan that even Mandela calls him boet. I bet you he has the typical 1, 2, 3 of Souf Efrikans - 1 liter brandy, 2 liter Coke and 3 liter Ford. That's Souf Efrikans for you. As easy as 1, 2, 3...

I give to you Koos Baardman (Chuck Beardman)... Oh, he thought he was Keven Bennet from Seattle, but we know he is Koos Baardman from Sonderwater (Withoutwater). But let me give you a bit of background on Koos...

Every year millions of Souf Efrikans go down to the Cape for a holiday. Those Vaalies, or as we call them, Klipkakkers (Hum... Rockshitters...) come down in their numbers. Getting away from the craziness of living up at high altitude. Only problem is that they are the crazy people and they all gather down at our place. And guess what happens? It's the same crazy people doing the same crazy things - but just with a better view. Ja, bleddie Klipkakkers...

We have a few of the farmers coming down as well. Bringing their caravans, sheep and mother-in-law with them. That is also the order of importance. Koos does that. He is a farmer. He rents a place right next to the sea every year. Okay, what he defines right next to the sea. It's about 5 miles in and right next to the sewerage plant. But that's no problem. Five miles is just enough for the mother-in-law to go missing for the whole day. Or whole holiday. And the smell of the sewerage plant remind him of the kraal (enclosure for sheep and cattle) back home. He is from the land where men are men and sheep are scared...

So here we have Koos at his little place by the sea. Let's see what evidence we can find. A bit of a tester today. Try to match the red arrows to the statement of his Souf Efrikan roots...

The afdak... (The lean-to) 

Every good Souf Efrikan has got one. An afdak. But not just any afdak. There are certain things that tells us this is a Souf Efrikan afdak...

Now, let's match the arrows... Join the dots... Check the lines... You get what I mean?

1. A roof made of old blue overalls and stitched together by his lovely wife Ant Bettie. (Blue overalls are the standard outfit for farmers in Souf Efrika.)

2. Leg of blue overall still hanging down the side of the afdak.

3. Old school lawnmower for when the last sheep is on the braai but the grass still needs to be cut.

4. House at the back where mother-in-law is locked up at night. (Just to keep her away from the booze and boys.)

5. Window Aunt Bettie uses to shout instruction like, "Pulls up yor pents Koos. Duh hole nayburhood dusn't neet to see yor builders cleavage." (Proper accent included.)

6. Forest for feature braai wood. It used to come right up to his back door. Yes, Koos likes to braai. Often. And big.

7. Pipe to let the steam out from the "braai". It isn't really a braai. It is a home made mampoer factory. (Mampoer is the strongest drink ever made. And it is home brewed. Not to be used close to an open flame. But can be used as a paint stripper. Made from fruits. Any fruits. We Souf Efrikans aren't too picky...)

And... Did you see the generator driven computer in the background? That's to keep up with what's going down with AA! Fox News for Africa. Unfiltered and unbiased... Hah!

The workshop...

But you would think the guy will stop there right? That he won't give me any more reason to "show him the way"? He did...

1. The stick part of a broom used to poke the coals, chase the bloody dog who just grabbed the meat off the braai and also to flip the dog turds off the grass like a professional golfer. (Was once used to keep Ant Bettie away when Koos by "accident" had an "accident" in the kitchen sink after too much mampoer.)

2. A telly to watch the rugby and cricket on. This is cricket you see because no true contact sport for men will really have so much padding or wear helmets. The motto of rugby players... "Real men don't wear helmets" and "it doesn't hurt if you can stitch it back on".

3. A coffee mug. Koos's favorite coffee mug. He drinks everything from this mug. It says, I Love Mum. Not allowed to be washed, only rinsed, as Koos believes the residue of coffee, mampoer and braai sauce leaves a nice aftertaste. Also known to repel flies from the braai area. And cats won't even crap close to it. (Currently has mampoer in it.)

4. Wooden fence to keep the noisy neighbors out. Especially the mother-in-law.

5. Bag of charcoal. Only to be used when wood runs out or when you need something hard to chuck at the dogs crapping on the lawn but you don't really want to get up from the chair.

6. The "Mampoer Bucket". Used for any type of residue left after making mampoer. From the leftover fruits to the brown and green stuff that grows at the top of the liquid or the yellow watery stuff that comes from you after consuming too much liquid. Once the bucket is filled... Used to kill ants and bees in the garden. And stop the dogs from crapping on the lawn. And makes a mean mix with some ice and a lemon. Not sliced. Called Souf Efrikan Cocktail.

7. Chair taken from the rubbish dump and welded together again by Koos. He made his whole dining room set this way...

8. Big bag of crisps hiding behind the chair. Ant Bettie doesn't want him to eat so much crisps. But he needs his fix. Also used to store biltong when Ant Bettie isn't looking. And spare beer.

9. Huge bowl of dip for the chips. Currently covered in tinfoil. Key ingredients... Onion, salt and the stuff from the mampoer bucket.

10. Grass where the dogs crap. No matter what you do there will always be fresh crap in the morning.

11. Big cooler / small paraffin fridge to keep the beers cold. Always stocked full. Because you never know when the "Big Wind" of '78 might hit you again. That was when Ant Bettie made bean stew and forced Koos to sleep outside for a few days until his "Big Wind" passed. And passed completely.

12. Spare canister attached to braai / mampoer factory to hold extra cold beers while waiting for the mampoer / braai to be done.

13. Tools hanging from braai. These tools are proper antiques and the London Museum has offered Koos loads of money for this already. They want to use it as part of their Neanderthal display. But Koos said his dad gave it to him and he has fond memories of those tools. And he can show the scars on his butt to prove it.

Koos himself...

You think that is enough? How Souf Efrikan can he be? Much more...

1. Neck. Made for playing rugby. Take no prisoners! Real men play rugby and real men have real necks. Not rednecks.

2. Hair shaved for the holidays. Generally covered in big floppy farmer hat. Good to get a haircut once a year. Gets rid of all the things that live there. At least 3 previously unknown species was found by the Nobel prize winning group of scientists who make this yearly pilgrimage to what is known in scientific circles as "The Haircut". (It is not known whether any of the new species will be able to survive outside the Koos habitat.)

3. Fence also used as spare wood for really big braais. It used to be 60 feet long. But then, Koos had a couple of really big braais since then.

4. The bakkie... Like every good farmer Oom Koos drives a bakkie that is diesel and the smoke it creates when you start it can be seen from space. Rumored to have led to the invasion of Iraq as the bakkie was seen as a WMD. But he drove it back to SA quickly once he filled his oil drum (now used as a braai / mampoer factory.) The US never suspected a thing. Oom Koos is good in that way. Or maybe Rummy was just bad in that way. And yes, when Oom Koos drives the bakkie it can also be heard from space.

5. The kraal where the sheep stay during the holiday. Barren because the sheep have eaten almost all the grass. Not a problem because Oom Koos have eaten almost all the sheep already. Yes, Oom Koos and Ant Bettie have been there on holiday for almost a week already.

6.  The towel used to wipe bloody hands when Koos slaughters the sheep. Also used to dry himself after a swim at the beach.

7. The path to freedom. Or at least to the outside toilet known as his "office". That's the right turn where he makes his number 2's. Number 1 is done on the grass like all good Souf Efrikan men do. Koos turns left for his 1 and 2. 1 Liter brandy and 2 liter Coke. The shop is just around the corner. Oom Koos is known to be more inclined to go left than right. It's a natural thing for him to lean towards the left.

8. Braai made from an oil drum. You know, the one he got in Iraq. He cut it in half and just welded a few spots together. High tech for a Souf Efrikan but then, he is known for his edgy attitudes towards braaing. He was once seen braaing chicken! What the hell is a salad doing on the fire? A question asked by the many onlookers. If it's not red it's not meat. If it's not meat you can't eat.

9. Rooster to place the meat on. The rooster (grill) is a key component of any braai. It leaves nice lines across the steaks. Best place to get a rooster is to cut one out of the frame of a grocery trolley. And it's shiny too!

10. Battery backup for the mampoer factory. The clamp is used to charge the battery that runs the mampoer factory. At the moment not on as the braai and mampoer can't be done at the same time. Koos generally empties the mampoer into his mug for "safe keeping" while he braais. No one knows how safe this really is. Not this close to an open fire in any case. Koos uses it instead of fire lighters. No, he doesn't pour it over the coals. He just breathes over the coals. So strong that no matches are required either. The term "spontaneous combustion" was named after Koos and his fire lighting abilities.

11. Tongs used to grip the rooster. Koos is also known as an expert in grabbing thongs with his tongs. The screams of surprise and the horror when they see him can also be heard from space. Koos doesn't mean anything with this. He just needs something to cover his hands when he grips the tongs. They get hot. Unlike the girls he gets his thongs from.

12. Meat and fish pot. Koos is famous for his daring braai techniques. You can see the pot where he mixed fish and chicken together. Men call him names because of this. Names like "traitor", "Mr WTF" and "stupid doos", but Koos doesn't mind as he is a Renaissance man. Just don't call him a maverick... Let me just clarify Koos being famous for this dishes. Infamous might be a better word for it. Eating this dish is not allowed under the Geneva Convention. It makes grown men cry. And get very, very sick. There is no known cure for this. Have you seen the movie Awakening? Now you know why...

13. A red arrow. I just threw an extra red arrow in there to make it look even more impressive. Honestly? I actually forgot why I had that other arrow in there. Or that one...

14. The chain. Some people think that Koos have dog chains around his neck. No, it isn't. It's his keys, tools (drillbits and screwdriver), earbud (he has used the same one since 1984. They always come clean after a rinse under hot water. Or after repeated use), tobacco for his pipe, his pipe, glasses and Swiss Army Knife. Oh, and a can of Bullybeef (Spam/Corned Beef) and a half-jack of mampoer. A man can never be too prepared. He hides it really, really well.

15. Boep. The paunch that you see is the pride of all Souf Efrikan men. Or like they would say, "I work-ad werry hart forr dis boep. U no how mutch beer I hed two drinked two get dis boep? Et leest wurf 40 bucks. Part off my retiremint plen." A Souf Efrikan man without a boep is like having Italy not change their government every year. Or the English not lose against Souf Efrika in rugby or cricket. Or President Bush without a f*ck-up once a day. You know it is possible, but it ain't gonna happen.

16. Rugby jersey. Every man in Souf Efrika must have a rugby jersey. You never wear it on the farm. But you also never take it off when you go on holiday. Including at night when you go to sleep. Alone. Outside. Also never washed. NEVER washed. Wash it and you could be deported and lose your citizenship. Another reason to sleep outside... The smell. Just ask Ant Bettie. Koos played rugby. He was a winger who played on the left. A left winger.

There you go! And who said that KB isn't Souf Efrikan? Hell, he is more Souf Efrikan than me! Seattle is only where he visits for the duration of his lifetime. But Souf Efrikan he is...

Sorry Kev, but you asked for it...

______________________________________________

Who's next? Come on... Don't be afraid. I'll be nice...

We ate breakfast in Sio Hong Mao on our second day in Macau...

All of us look obviously tired after our first day in Macau...

The waitress preparing our meals...

The interiors kinda cool...

Egg Tart... we bought a lot of it :D

It's so fatness first. Yumyum...

Rosemary juice (tastes weird).

I think that's Liu Xiang on the bar code. Everybody was rooting for him. Too bad he got injured during the games...

Yeah Coke. Love the Olympic edition can design...

Ate Vicky on the background.

To each his own (bowl of noodles)

Ate Luanne's bowl.

Ate Jinny's bowl.

Kuya Mike's bowl.

Ate Geishela's bowl.

My bowl. Ate Vicky ordered the same bowl as mine. :)

Happy noodles!

Octopus! Yumyum. :P

Gotta go!

More pictures to come...

[/caption]

In today's political climate the most important thing you can do is to vote.  The 2008 presidential election is perhaps the most important election in our nations history.  How many people did you hear complaining about president Bush over the last 4 years?  That's a rhetorical question, because it would take your entire day just to recount every time you heard somebody trashing Bush.  As a result, the Democrats won a majority in the legislature and Bush is a sitting duck in the white house.  He cannot get anything done, keep that in mind when your voting in a congressional election.  As soon as the new president takes office expect sweeping reforms in foreign affairs, economic management, taxes, oversight on lenders, and possibly a basketball court in the white house.

Do not get overzealous for either candidate too early, because what presidential nominees want you to see is what they tell you.  They are very skilled at putting on makeup, sorta like that girl you see every day that looks so hot until it starts raining and the makeup drips off, and she has more blemishes than mars.  Researching candidates is a never-ending process, one that requires a balanced approach.  Fox, NBC, MSNBC, and every political show on T.V. is on-air because they are paid by one of the two major parties, either Republicans or Democrats.

Why are we limited to picking Democrats or Republicans?  Imagine the drink section of the grocery store offering only two options, Pepsi or Coke.  That is how it used to be for soda drinkers, but the industry progressed and found people like options, options are good.  Our government has not learned this lesson, and third parties have done terribly in elections because everyone knows they cannot win.  The only place every has an equal say is the voting booth, so do you want to be heard?

-Ben Feldman feldma_b@denison.edu

More political news

This may seem like a bit of a comical notion, but the lack of flexibility in US denominations did adversely hurt Coke, allowing its time-honored competitor Pepsi the chance to use their famous slogan, "Costs a nickel, worth a dime." A similar situation faces soft drink bottlers and various other vendors today. Across the country, it appears that prices are being pushed past $1.00 for a 20 Oz. bottle and $0.50 for a can en masse. While prices obviously differ from place to place, the new ceiling for cans tends to be around a dollar, indeed a doubling in price.

But the fact that it costs twice as much isn't the issue anymore. Indeed, even the poorest among us would rarely be found complaining about the average price of a can of pop/soda/insert-your-regional-slang-here. The problem now is what I call "convenience of money". While $1.00 is a nice, round figure, bottles are left in an odd predicament. In most cases, $2.00 would be seen as too high of a price, and on an ounces-per-dollar basis would be less of a value than a dollar can. Prices for bottles have fidgeted often around the $1.25 point. Even though this is much more reasonable than $2, I would surmise that Pepsi and Coke's sales don't show as large of a difference between $2 and $1 as they show between $1 and $1.25 due to a demand curve bent as if by gravity to the easiest combinations of monetary denominations.

The problem is that blasted quarter. People just don't carry change like they used to, and while there may be a few $1 bills in their wallets, the likelihood of being able to finish the transaction with a quarter is much smaller. Indeed, in this day and age, it is a $1.25 bill that Coke and Pepsi should request from the US Mint, rather than the 7 1/2 cent piece of old.

Broadly speaking, it might be even better for the soda companies if dollar bills were to simply be taken out of circulation, replaced with dollar coins entirely. The Mint has tried again and again to get people to switch over voluntarily to a higher-denomination coin. Yet the embattled green portrait of George Washington survives with nary a scratch.

Dollar-scanning machines tend to break down more often than their coin-only counterparts and can become an issue when dispensing return funds when more than one dollar bill has been submitted. Vending machines have already mostly been converted to accept dollar coins, whether they are of the Susan B. Anthony, Sacagawea or Presidential variants (all share the same size and weight). Coinage loves company, as well; having dollar coins on hand makes it more likely that smaller coins will again find their way to people's pockets, making $1.25 not so awkward a price, after all.

Another tactic has been to switch to plastic: more and more machines include credit card swipers on the front, which allow consumers to either swipe their RFID-enabled card or their old-fashioned magnetic strip to purchase some edible goodies. Overseas, cell phones are often used for transactions, with the final tab simply added on to a phone subscriber's bill at the end of the month. Both methods take the actual money out of the equation, leaving only the true price for customers to consider; having a quarter on hand isn't a part of this purchasing decision. While these alternatives do carry transaction costs, a price point of, say, $1.35 for credit card purchases vs. $1.25 for cold, hard cash would not scare away many customers looking for a caffeine fix. Or, perhaps, not having to be as concerned about machine break-ins, drivers having to carry around so much coinage and cash and technicians having to fix the mechanical pieces required to process the money would present a large enough savings to vending companies to make the transaction costs a wash.

One caveat is that higher prices still carry a psychological barrier to customers. Especially in these smaller denominations, people have been taught to think in coins. Perhaps $1.35, then, is a larger leap for some people than it honestly should be. Certainly $1 seems like a much better value than $1.15 would be, for example. But alternative payment systems strip away the physical tie to this price psychology and affords companies more flexibility in adding more balance-sheet "bounce to the ounce".

Immediately Noah began to ‘scheme’ a way to take on the challenge, and soon he was asking to go to the nearest Publix. Once we went to the store, and purchased our Mentos, we need only to return home, and put it together with a coke that we already had at home in the fridge.

The scene was set; Noah and Julia had a Mento in one hand, and a cup of coke in the other. Pandemonium ensued in amongst us, and adrenaline rushed through our veins as they poured the fizzy delight into the plastic cups, and toasted. It was not long after they put the coke and Mentos in their mouth, that…nothing happened… Yes, you read that right, nothing happened, they merely just felt a slight tingle in there mouth, which is quite usually for soda.

~ Aaron!

Very cool find on flickr...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/coca-cola_art_gallery/

ØX2008, Ørestads kulturdage, blev åbnet på Ørestad Gymnasium af den lettere retarderet T. S. Høeg på coke. Ikke en god blanding, og det tog da også sin tid før eleverne vendte deres opmærksomhed mod dette vidunderlige one man show. Efter adskillige hak i båndoptageren, og forsøg på at få eleverne til at brumme deres parringskald ud over hele foryeen, kom den kulturelle karavane dog på rette spor igen og sat på play.

I Field's var der også sat udstillinger op, som efter sigende skulle tiltrække et publikum. Desværre kan tre udstillingsbokse med skraldespande, whiskeyglas og en opvaskebalje med inspiration fra en snurretop og et sneglehus ikke skabe noget for sig selv. Men tak for forsøget, Field's. Kreativitet har altid været jeres force!

Jeg blev skam også selv sat i en gruppe - gæt hvilken. Vi ville da lave en såkaldt, "stop motion"-film, til vors blog, hvor man kort fortalt klipper en masse billeder sammen og får "hakkende" film ud af det. I kan se resultatet her på siden ...

My last post on the vice presidential debate highlighted the great marketing campaign of the GOP.  I say marketing because many of you pointed out via emails and ims that Sarah Palin, and to some extend John McCain, focuses on broad sweeping statements about some utopian United States without much in the way of a plausible road map.  Well... that's what worries me most of this campaign, as did the campaign in 2004.

The American people have always held on to great hope for the future.  It's been the promise of the American dream that's driven so many people to immigrate to this great country (yes, it's still great).  And that's exactly the tactic that the republican party focuses on during election time.  They toy with our optimism, fondle our emotions and make those sweeping generalizations about how their candidate, McCain, will change the U.S. and the middle class for the better.

But so many supporters of the GOP at major corporations and the wealthy.  They hold much more sway over the party than the millions of rural, small town and middle class families.  Can we trust that they will serve us over the rich?  Has the last 8 years taught us nothing?

But the Obama and democratic party actually gives clear goals and action plans that cite the benefits, costs and consequences on the economy, healthcare, social security, foreign affairs, the energy crisis/global warming, etc.

But at the end of the day, as we learned in Made to Stick, the emotional appeal works much more effectively than the factual... right?

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PART II

Well to explain, let's examine the brief history of marketing [via lessons from my management 101 class at The Wharton School].

Let's start at the very beginning (a very good place to start - The Sound of Music). Marketing is defined as "an ongoing process of planning and executing the marketing mix for products, services or ideas to create exchange between individuals and organizations."  Advertising, public relations, research, branding among others all fit under the marketing umbrella.  But marketing is the core strategy that directs all of the above.

New technology = economic growth.  The Industrial Evolution spurred the beginning of mass production.  No longer do we have to make our own clothes because the cotton mills could do it faster and cheaper.  Great!  With Ford's application of the assembly line, the Model-T was so much more cost effective car that the average American could afford.  Great!  However, there wasn't much in the way of marketing.  No strategic placement of a product or service, finding market segments, developing a unique selling point.  There was no need.  It's "any color, as long as it's black."

Skip forward to proliferation of the market place.  Developments in transportation, packaging and refrigeration means that people now have a choice in what they want to buy.  These were especially apparent in the CPGs (consumer packaged goods) like Heinz ketchup ("47 varieties!"), Campbell's soup ("M'm m'm good" since 1935), Coca-Cola ("Deliciously refreshing" 1900) and so many more.  Slogans were a way to set products apart from competitors and a catchy phrase to help advertising and consumer choices.

From there, marketing mutated to a complex machine.  In order to keep things brief (because it gets a lot more complicated), here are some highlights in no particular order.

• Proctor & Gamble realized that it's better to cannibalize their own products, if it means gaining more of the marketing.  Just in their family of detergents, they have Tide as a household name and top market brand.  Cheer and Gain, which sorry for not knowing, play somewhere in the mid-cost, mid-performance range.  (I'm sure PG has gigabytes of consumer studies, scanner data and much more market research on the differentiators and market segments under each.  I just don't know them.)  Then Era at the bottom (which I assume b/c I've never heard of it... maybe it has higher market proliferation abroad).
• Intel evolved into a household name by using both the push and pull strategy.  During a time when chips were a dime a dozen and consumers weren't aware of what went into their computers, Intel pushed their chips as the top of the line.  More importantly, they pulled consumers in with effective advertising and PR (all part of marketing).  Make sure that your computer has "Intel inside" to guarantee quality, etc.
• Pepsi, as the newcomer, challenged Coca-Cola with their blind taste test, and stupidly Coca-Cola (instead of leaning on their tradition, branding and established consumer base) fell for the trap.  They came up with New Coke.  Sure... months later with people across the nation hoarding the old stuff and complaining so fervently, Coke came back with Coca-Cola Classic.  But Pepsi had make it's mark, and they're still competing with about 50-50 market share (depending on country) of beverages and snack products.  [Side note: some people suspect that Coke had introduced New Coke as a ploy to convince the public how much they really love Coca-Cola.  I think the executives were just idiotic.  Side note #2: Coca-Cola determined a few years ago that there are 27 beverage opportunities in a day.  Yeah, 27.]

Those are just three very quick snapshots of successful marketing techniques and how much marketing's evolved from "47 varieties!"

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Now every company is trying to differentiate itself.  We have dozens of choices.  Brands are freaking sub-branding, creating off-shoots and variations.  There's like 12 types of Tylenol ache, cold and flu medicines.  When I'm in pain, I just want "THIS IS THE ONE YOU NEED."  So advertising's become less effective.  Direct mail's also less effective because my mailbox is full of ads I don't want.  [Discover, unless you're giving me 10% cash back, which I know you can't afford, stop sending me biweekly mail.  I'm not going to accept your 'exclusive offer.']  Telemarketers hounds us all the time.  These annoying marketing techniques work because they're so cost effective that a few "YES's" make up for the majority of "NO's." [Unfortunately, they also give marketing a bad name.  It's become an industry of shoving shit people don't want down their throats.  Not true marketing: exposing product/service options to audiences who want to know.]

The problem was that companies were offering their guarantees so often that what they say mean nothing to us.  We're emotional numb to their appeals and no longer trusted their slogans.  At the end of the day, no matter how kitschy or cute the advertising is, if the product/service ain't work, we ain't buying it.   So things started to change.

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Remember new technology = economic growth.  Internet = proliferation and democratization of information.  The normal paradigms of advertising, public relations and branding are changing.  Thus, marketing (the planning of such) is evolving as well.

Inventions like TiVo and DVRs help us skip the ads, while companies are trying to find ways to 'cut through the clutter.'  Marketers are moving online.  Okay, yes, a lot of the bad habits of marketers have moved online.  The flashy, corny banners.  The incessant pop-ups selling us crap and then selling us pop-up blockers.  The spam, even from legitimate companies (you have the money; hire an email-marketer!).

But this is just the beginning.  More and more, word of mouth is playing a role.  Blogs and influencers across the web are popping up and spreading relevant information to interested niches.  Email marketers are popping up with opt-in policies and reassurances that our information isn't getting sold to the evil spammers.  Semantic search and backend settings allow us to just see ads and banners that may be of interest to us.  Because we do want marketing.  It helps us find out about great sales, the new android phone or 20% off coupons.  We just don't want what we don't care about.

So here's the lesson: marketing works.  Emotionally appealing to audiences works.  BUT.  BUT, there has to be facts that support the emotion.  In order to prevent buyer's remorse and to keep a customer (which is so much cheaper than acquiring a new one), the product/service has to deliver.

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Part III

Thanks for sticking with me. :-)

Presidential nominations are like laundry detergent.  We have to choose one.

The difference (other than the fact that one is soap and one is people) is that the companies and branding may stay the same, democrats, republicans, independents, etc., but the product changes all the time.  Last time around it was Kerry and Bush.  Now it's Obama and McCain.  So we can't rely 100% on past experience to determine which one we want this time.

But we learn from shopping (an everyday task of differentiating among products and choosing what's right for us) that we have the tools to make those decisions.  For example, we know that we care about the product specs above marketing gimmicks.  As a shoe fanatic (I have the proverbial shoe closet), Manolos would go so much better with my lifestyle brand.  However, they hurt my feet, don't fit as well and quite frankly, I'd rather save $200 and buy Kate Spades.

The same should go for decisions on candidacy! Yes, I love America.  Yes, I want the government to be for the people again.  Yes, I want someone who isn't afraid to challenge the authority and be a 'maverick.' But that doesn't mean I'm going to blindly go on my emotions and not look at the FACTS!

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1) I'm SO enraged that the GOP would use a cheesy marketing ploy to try and fool the American people.

2) Even more so, I'm irked that the public would buy into it!

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FACT: Sure, she's cute and a MILF, but Sarah Palin said exactly 0 about specific plans of the McCain doctrine.

FACT: A 'blanket' tax cut helps the rich exponentially more than it helps "the Joe six-packs and hockey moms."  (see below)

FACT: Obama's healthcare reform includes a specific plan.  He plans to "make employer contributions more fair."  HOW? ... "by requiring large employers that do not offer coverage or make a meaningful contribution to the cost of quality health coverage for their employees to contribute a percentage of payroll toward the costs of their employees health care."  McCain's healthcare plan is full of unsupported claims.  "John McCain will reform health care making it easier for individuals and families to obtain insurance." How?  Not sure... but "Americans [sure] are working harder and longer, yet the amount workers take home in their paychecks is not keeping pace because of rising health care costs."  Really?  I wasn't aware.

FACT: Obama's foreign policy talks about the situations, the factors and multiple influences we have as a country to resolve/strengthen the problem/our position. McCain... doesn't have "foreign policy" on his website...  Apparently, it's not that important to him...  The closest thing I found was "national security."

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Look, I'm not going into all the issues and who said what (all from their websites).  You can do your own research.

The point is that when we're making such an important decision that affects not only Americans but the entire world, shouldn't we look above the marketing ploys that tug at our heart strings and get to the not-as-interesting facts?

To answer the first question, wayyyy above: the emotional appeal works much more effectively than the factual... right?

We'll see.  But it shouldn't.

I am currently getting myself high with Coke Zero. Stupid, I know, but it’s the most legal and most effective upper I can take right now. Coffee doesn’t work for me anymore (or it doesn’t make me stay awake for a long time anymore), plus we have no fridge or hotpot so it’s stupid to make coffee in the boarding house. As for apples, it’s impossible to have them around. It just is. Fruits are so rare here (in the boarding house). My brother and I have been drinking Coke for three consecutive nights already staying up late and finishing our term papers and thesis. I can see my belly swelling already and it’s gross. Stress makes me fat. Eew.

The final exams are fast approaching. My eyes are failing me. No time, energy and enough amount of brain cells to talk shit about Loser. I’m too tired. Let him do whatever he wants to. Let him hurt me. I’d care, but I’m too tired to do so.

Gahd. I wanna sleep.

-isablahblah-

Cocaine is huge right now.

Compare and contrast:

with ...

That's marketing for you.  If you're a bloke and you drink Coke without sugar in a white can you're a big girly faggot; drink it in a black can and you're a kinky sex God.

Same drink; totally different brand identity.

Errm ... where was I?

Oh yes, well actually I don't really care what brand of low-calorie cola it is really, just as long as I drink lots of it.  All the time. 

You may think you speak "Standard English straight out of the dictionary" but when you step away from the Great Lakes you get asked annoying questions like "Are you from Wisconsin?" or "Are you from Chicago?" Chances are you call carbonated drinks "pop."

Not a chance. Actually, I call all soft drinks "Coke". I'm from Alabama.

"Do you want a Coke?"
"Sure."
"What kind?
"Mountain Dew."

Trust me. This conversation is held everyday in Alabama.
Most native Alabamians don't use "pop" as a noun, unless we're talking about our fathers.

"I can't come over. Pop says I have to cut the grass."

Usually it is used as a verb in reference to setting off fireworks, hitting someone, or shooting someone.

"Let's pop these firecrackers before Momma gets home."
"If you don't get out of my face, I'm going to pop you upside your head."
"Let someone break in my house. I'll pop a cap in their a**."

Oh, and we refer to the whole family as "mamanem."

"Are mamanem bringing Johnny over for Halloween?"

Just keeping it southern, y'all. ;)

1) Men prefer natural breasts over fake boobs, I am told by Russell Brand. He is among those who participated in a Heat Magazine poll that

found 89 percent of men would rather women kept their natural breasts than invest in a larger, plastic pair.

Serial womaniser Russell Brand, said: "I prefer natural, to tell you the truth. In my thoroughly researched and valid academic view, they look amazing: the symmetry, the softness, the roundness ... it's the touch too."

But T4 presenter, Steve Jones - who dated Baywatch star Pamela Anderson - disagreed adding: "If you want to know what implants are like, push your calf muscle against your leg. That's what fake tits feel like ... I find implants very sexy."

mmm... as it looks, I don't mind to upset the poll results.

2) News reads: Mothers exposed to phthalates during pregnancy may give birth to boys with incomplete genital development and impaired testicular function. In other words, Oops, Honey, we shrunk his penis:

Shanna Swan, a professor at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, authored a study recently, testing 106 expecting mothers' urine for pthalates. They also looked at their babies at 12 months old, and found a correlation between the levels of pthalates in the mother's body and certain physical traits, such as undescended testicles, smaller penis, and immature genital development.

3) We knew it all along don't we? That coke is a dish washer, coke is a pesticide and coke is a contraceptive, a spermicide. Its true; Coke kills sperms and it is proven. It has even won a 2008 Chemistry IgNobel for those who confirmed it.

CHEMISTRY PRIZE. Sharee A. Umpierre of the University of Puerto Rico, Joseph A. Hill of The Fertility Centers of New England (USA), Deborah J. Anderson of Boston University School of Medicine and Harvard Medical School (USA), for discovering that Coca-Cola is an effective spermicide, and to Chuang-Ye Hong of Taipei Medical University (Taiwan), C.C. Shieh, P. Wu, and B.N. Chiang (all of Taiwan) for discovering that it is not.
REFERENCE: "Effect of 'Coke' on Sperm Motility," Sharee A. Umpierre, Joseph A. Hill, and Deborah J. Anderson, New England Journal of Medicine, 1985, vol. 313, no. 21, p. 1351.
REFERENCE: "The Spermicidal Potency of Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola," C.Y. Hong, C.C. Shieh, P. Wu, and B.N. Chiang, Human Toxicology, vol. 6, no. 5, September 1987, pp. 395-6. [NOTE: THE JOURNAL LATER CHANGED ITS NAME. NOW CALLED "Human & experimental toxicology"]

So, this cokelore has to die?

4) Jason Heckenworth uses latex for another purpose. He creates fabulous balloon art with them. The shapes that he creates sticking latex balloons look mostly like alien life forms or bizarre insects and creatures.

In time these creatures deflate and shrink and droop, mimicking living things and their inevitable ageing. But his art is usually enthusiastic. The picture here is of his Orgasmoebic. From what I see, the sculpture certainly is full of virulent life, I should say.

His sculptures are a huge success in international galleries. He also has videos of how he is making such art at his website.

In the world of design and illustration, especially commercial, the artist usually remains ambiguous, unless, your name is Murakami for example. His work has graced ubiquitous brands such as Coke, Nike, BBC (Billionaire Boys Club) and MTV yet the face behind his amazing work remains obscure. Inspired by 70's rock posters and a love for the circus Steven Wilson's resulting pieces are obviously eclectic and remain decidedly distinct. A cross-section of his portfolio pieces below.

By: Mikhail Budhai - Style

Monster Energy’s international build-up seems to be getting some serious traction, after yesterday’s announcement that Hansen Natural (HANS) – Monster’s parent company –, The Coca Cola Company (KO) and Coca Cola Enterprises (CCE) signed a distribution agreement (additional financial information here). Covered markets will include selected territories in the U.S., Canada and six Western European countries (including mini states Luxembourg and Monaco).

Earlier I mentioned how Monster Energy might be falling behind in international markets versus Rockstar Energy. And although Hansen’s CEO Rodney Sacks characterized Monster’s  international progress as “Rome wasn’t built in one day”, this deal with Coke looks a lot like empire building prefab style. Opening up several new markets and having access to the Coke system of bottlers and distributors is a major step and emphasizes Monster’s proven brand strength.

The table below shows new international markets where distribution has recently commenced or is imminent (with population size and GDP per capita). The countries of France, United Kingdom, The Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and the city-state of Monaco fall under the new Coke agreement. The French market is especially interesting, since arch rival Red Bull has only been allowed distribution since this spring, making it the only big western market where Red Bull (apart from its reputation) doesn’t have as much of a headstart as in other countries.

Now new markets almost outnumber the U.S. domestic market when it comes to population. Monster Energy has been distributed for some time already in Canada (pop: 33.4 mln; GDP/capita: $38,400) and Mexico (pop: 106.7 mln; GDP/capita: $12,800). Note that about 25% of HANS sales still comes from California, even though Monster represents about 90% of their sales.

For developed countries the market for energy drinks is roughly estimated to be $10 per capita at a manufacturing /wholesale level, at which Hansen Natural operates. Although no market is the same, and Monster’s success shouldn’t be extrapolated 1:1 to these new regions, these new markets alone present a $2.5 bln opportunity. Who needs Rome...

Coca-Cola douches had become a part of contraceptive folklore during the 1950s and 1960s, when other birth-control methods were hard to come by," according to Anderson. 

It all started in1980s, when researcher Deborah Anderson of Harvard Medical School's birth- control  laboratory discovered that "Coca Cola douches" were being used as a contraceptive at the all-girl Catholic boarding school  in Puerto Rico and decided to test it.

As part of the urban legend, “Coca-Cola douches had become a part of contraceptive folklore during the 1950s and 1960s, when other birth-control methods were hard to come by." Anderson said.

Anderson along with medical student, Sharee Umpierre and gynaecologist, Joe Hill experimented on four different types of Coke by mixing it with sperm in test tubes. A minute later, they found that all sperm were dead in the diet Coke, however, 41pct were still swimming in the just-introduced New Coke.

"It was believed that the carbonic acid in Coke killed sperm, and the method came with its own 'shake and shoot applicator'" - the classic Coke bottle," she added.

Natatandaan ko pa nang bata pa si Sabel ay may patalastas noon na ang sabi ay, Coke adds life. Iniisip ko kung papaano, pero wala naman akong makitang dahilan maliban lamang sa pinagkakagastosan at saka nakakapaminsala pa sa iyong katawan. Ngayon nadiskubre na itong nakakapatay pala siya ng sperms. Paano na iyan, di busted na iyong myth na coke adds life, hehehe.

Pero mga manong at manang, kung nakakamatay pala ito ng semilya, e di bago mag-sex e buhosan muna si Manay ng kaunti para malusaw ang mga ibinuga ni Manoy na katas ng buhay? Ano kaya ang epekto nito sa pagsisiping? Baka mamaya mauhaw pa si Manoy at mag-coke na lang siya sa bunganga ni Manay? Alam ko pagtatawanan ako ni Colegiala dito pero okay lang, nandiyan naman si doc.bobonyo na taga-explain.

Inuulit ko lang, hindi daw ito epektibong pang-family planning dahil mabilis pa sa olympic champion kung magswimming ang mga sperms. At saka nakapanghihinayang naman iyong diet Coke. Inumin mo na lang kaya? Hindi rin ito tatalab dahil kinakailangan ay mismong mabuhusan ng coke iyong mga sperms. Teka kung lagyan na lang natin ng gin? Baka naman umaray si Manay na parang virgin dahil sa  hapdi? Doon kaya sa ulo ni Manoy ilulublub muna sa isang basong coke bago makipagsiping? Inay ko po mali na naman.

Correct me if I am wrong Dr. Margie Holmes, pero hindi naman kaya lalong gaganahan ang mga brotcheros kapag may lasang coke si Manay? A bahala na kayo mga tsong at tsang dahil kayo ang mga nakakaalam at experto diyan. Kimuchi ano po ang masasabi ninyo sa bagay na ito? Ako naman hanggang theory na lang muna. Pero darating din tayo diyan sooner or later and I will share with blow-by-blow what I have experienced, hahaha. 

T-teka ano kaya ang masasabi ni Padre Damaso at Padre Faura dito? Baka magbigay pa sila ng sandwich dahil may panulak nang Coke. Simbahan Katolika, hindi na siguro kokontra dito dahil coke lang naman ang pinaguusapan iyong nga lang sa ibang bunganga na ito napupunta.