cool things to check out.

if you do nothing else today, you must wander on over to miss Jane's blog and view the special on "The Stopping Occasion." i'd post it here, but then i'd be stealing. so i'll borrow with credit. check out the absolute hilarity if you haven't heard about it already. oh, and if that's not enough for you, try out a youtube version of Choose Your Own Adventure (courtesy of adverblog). i was going to save it for Feline Friday, since it has to do with finding a cat named Sparta, but you get lucky this time.

be sure to stick your nose in or around all the fun cameras in the Plaid van. the tour is in full swing; i've followed them through Vancouver and Seattle so far (digitally speaking). i even got to listen to Bill pick radio stations. i was envious of the Canadian view, but even more jealous of their trip to Jones Soda. i love the Cream Soda best. they promised to drink one for me. you can tweet them, AIM them, and any number of other dirty-sounding social networking actions. ...PS >> if you didn't notice, even their social media tour shirts are dirty. can anyone say "tires"? hee! (thanks, greg, for loan of your photo!)

AdFreak. yes, as in the blog. they're on fire these past few days with some really interesting posts. if you're not a frequent reader, you should just dash on over there for a few minutes and peruse the latest stuff. full disclosure: no, they did not ask me to do this. i really just enjoyed it that much. so apparently did johnny (every time i type his name, i hear Poe's Angry Johnny in my head).

how agencies are surviving zombie takeovers.

working in advertising, as jane points out, often requires the master of an escape plan.

i agree. keeping your heard above water requires focus undoubted on something larger than the agency to which oneself belongs. while jane recommends Fox news, i think that including the ironic humour that is a staple of the creative aspect of the industry is mandatory. vampires, werewolves, and Iron Man are more pending 2.0 threats than anything Fox news can come up with.

no, you need a zombie plan.
at least 37 or so.

as it happens, zombies are everywhere lately. no, not in the cubicle next to you--though perhaps.
with the assistance of twitter, we learned that an escape plan is no longer good enough. case in point: kensingtonvictoria.com. i particularly enjoy the supersoaker technique.

my at-work zombie plan involves rifling through my Big Dictionary of Death whereafter i learn not only are zombies technically undead, but they do not flinch at big words like antepenultimate. the next resource would be the grab the nearest Windows PC and throw it in hopes of having the zombie contract any number of viruses and trojans.

in the event that those means only aid in an enhanced zombie virus and the desire to copulate without birth, i will splash the great killer of ideas all over the zombies: burnt coffee. running henceforth from my agency, i will run wildly into the street, discovering it looks like an atom bomb hit. reaching for anything sharp, i will run with scissors to the autobody shop is just 2 stores down. a crowbar is my friend.

by that time, all of these posters will undoubtedly be on every telephone pole.

...and that is my zombie plan.
only 36 more to go.

challenge me! taking World of Advertising to the streets... err blogs.

[longest blog post title evarrrrr]

Creative Beef has taken agency fun and games to the next level: BATTLE. mwuaha. in the spirit of a certain mmorpg, adhack brings you World of Advertising. click for all the different classes, from CD to AE.

on Dear Jane Sample, Jane and i are putting that game to work. she asked for a challenger, and so now we are comment-battling (for what prize, i have no idea. someone level us up? haha). amusing nonetheless.

she nearly slew me with her Shaolin Jargon:
[...]they won’t pay for that” which slowly brings you back to reality. But to restore goodwill, I will let you present your “best idea ever” to the client … as long as you deliver to me what I asked for in the brief. Oh and you don’t get and extension.

i rebutted Tiger Style with a near-fatal:
[...]it’s the “they won’t pay for that” which causes the damage. we don’t want the Creative Vision ruined by Shitty Production (booo, hisssss). so we drink some english tea which enhances our Ability to Work Under Pressure (+5 which combined with Free Pizza), enabling us to Meet Brief 2 Minutes Before Deadline.

who will win? only time will tell. want to do battle? leave me a comment! get creative.

Riot's day in brands. & analysis thereof.

[the brand montage a la dear jane][see larger logos]

rather than do a TYPICAL day in the life of Riot brands, i decided to do an EXACT day in the life. and analyze what all that means to me. i realized in the doing that it wasn't exactly what i thought it would be, nor was it exactly representative. this is MAY 23 08. thoughts below. anything marked with an asterisk didn't have a Google-able logo.

THE BREAKDOWN: AM WAKEUP
08:15: verizon • LG
08:18: DELL • Adobe Photoshop • IE
08:30: Crest • Oral-B • Dove • Gilette • Axe • Tom Ford
08:33: lolo* • rave* • Saucony • TWLOHA • Style&Co
08:40: FOX • Sephora • Neutrogena • CoverGirl • Benefit • Urban Decay • MAC
08:50: Nike • Nissan Maxima • Fueled by Ramen

THE ARRIVAL: AM WORK
09:00: Apple • N.Design Studio • Intellimerge • Firefox • Entourage • iChat
09:04: Cafe Du Monde • Stop&Shop Tea • Domino Sugar
09:11: Apple • Firefox • Google • WordPress • Blogger • Twitter
10:05: Firefox • Twitter • Amazon • TextEdit • Verizon • LG
11:35: iTunes • TextEdit • Firefox • Twitter

LUNCH TIME+: AFTERNOON DAZE
01:28: Verizon • LG • Altamira* • Dickies • MasterCard • HSBC
01:50: Gino's* • Gatorade • Chase • HSBC • Twitter
02:11: TextEdit • Quark • iChat

FREEDOM: POST-WORK WIND DOWN
05:00: Verizon • LG • Nissan Maxima
05:14: DELL • IE • MSN • Chatroom*
06:45: Tina's II*
08:32: Verizon • LG
08:45: DELL • IE • MSN • Chatroom*
10:06: Verizon • LG
10:12: DELL • IE • MSN

GET THE FLOCK OUT OF HERE
11:16: Hyundai • Tom Ford • Nike • Lily Flanagan's • Blue Moon
11:43: Hyundai • Delicious • Subculture • Sambuca • More Sambuca
12:20: Black Haus • Peach Schnapps* • Southern Comfort • Rose's Lime
02:47: Hyundai
03:10: DELL • IE
03:20: Ford Taurus • Taco Bell • Ford Taurus • Crest • Oral-B

BEDTIME! Somewhere around 4AMish.

now, here are the interesting things when i consider a literal day in brands. as in what i actually used and did not use. this gets a little personal, but i promise there are deductions.

1 -- THE UN-BRANDS and their sneaky, sneaky ways: that particular day, i had a very, very casual friday. i was supposed to head onto the LIRR directly from work to see my very ill best friend in New Hyde Park, so i was in jeans, a tank, and kicks. not necessarily my daily work attire. not to mention, i couldn't have told you what bra brand and undies i was wearing that day--or socks. even though i'm usually a Vikki's Secret girl, and wear Journeys socks, i know i wasn't doing that. not to mention, i have no idea what brand of toilet paper my agency uses, nor have i any idea their faucet's brand, etc. as much as we are branded, there are still small simple places. i don't look down and see "Cottonell" imprinted on my toilet paper.

2 -- DEVIATIONS & SACRIFICE, or, Change of Plans: the best laid plans of mice and men. what happens when your brands aren't there for you? so i had to do laundry. so i didn't have Vikki's undies or Journeys socks. i had some nameless undergarments and borrowed my mom's socks. my agency was out of Tazo Earl Grey and PNGTips tea (the HORROR) so i had to drink Stop&Shop (sacrilege). i couldn't make it to my HSBC bank, so i had to use Chase, which is a bastard for charging $3 to take out my own cash and $1.50 to transfer funds. i don't like DELL or IE, but that's my laptop right now while i'm saving for a Mac(Black)book. i wear my Reverie Duel hoodie every day--except that one, because i couldn't find it. so my choices were reflective of my day, not my normal brand usage, and the psychology of pressure.

3 -- THE LIES ABOUT daily brand use: just because i use you daily, doesn't mean i'm loyal to you, or ever really like you. ie: DELL, case in point. Dove, too, whom i hate but it was there in the house. also, i only own 1 Dickies item (my wallet) and while i see the logo every day, it does nothing for me. likewise with Nike (my bag is my only Nike purchase) and FOX (my makeup bag--that's all). some things are like breathing, and i don't have to think about them--like my N.Design desktop at work. i use it, but i don't change it or interact with it, though i like the art. unlike, say, my ugly DELL's desktop, which i made using Audrey Kitching photos. yes, Lily Flanagan's is a usual haunt for me--but usually only on thursdays; had i gone to New Hyde Park, i never would have been there. to boot, all 3 cars mean nothing to me--they belong to (in order) my mom, my other best friend, and my partner.

4 -- ON TO PROM QUEENS & star quarterbacks: then, on to what really matters. what brands am i loyal to that i do actually use every day? what appears here that is typical of me, that i do think of as my personal "prom queen" brands? my alcohols, of course. i'm very picky with that. so Blue Moon, Sambuca, swedish fish shots, and Soco Lime are all pretty representative. add in Magic Hat #9, Goldschlager, Patron, Jose Cuervo, Ketel, and Reyka, and that's the short list of things i'll drink without spitting on you. my get-ready gear--Axe deodorant, Tom Ford Black Orchid perfume, my makeup, my daily tea. my style: never leave without at least a To Write Love On Her Arms button; Delicious shoes are club footwear of choice (Pleaser, too). my work habits--i need Apple, Adobe, iTunes, iChat, Twitter, Blogger, Firefox, Amazon, TextEdit. the real prom queens aren't necessarily hip; just what i can't live without.

the value isn't in the daily use, but instead in what i'd miss sacrificing. i wouldn't miss my Oral-b toothbrush, and i wouldn't cry if i had to switch from Crest. if i had to trade my Post-Its for Staples brand, that's okay by me. but don't you take my personal prom queens. don't you take Tazo Earl Grey from me; you'll be getting a fight. and don't you DARE take away my cell phone. its batteries died early yesterday. i was without it for 20 minutes. i cried a little--inside.

clearly, i'm a brandwhore.

i have so many thoughts about this already and i've only been doing it for about and hour and a half. i've taken on dear jane's brand timeline challenge. and what an excellent day to do it. it's a dress down friday and i have a long, long day ahead of me. by this time, 9:44AM, i already have 40 brands (exactly) written down. i'm trying to be really meticulous and notice every brand i use. results will be posted tuesday. i may update this post today with any worthy thoughts surrounding my conscious brand experience.