I have included A Life In Translation because I found it cleverly written, very funny and interestingly insightful into the mind of 20-somethings. I vaguely remember what it was like to be a 20-something (and I loved it) and Jamie (and her roommate’s blog which is almost as funny and slightly more x-rated funny) share some hysterically insightful glimpses into their lives. The site isn’t for the faint of heart (or the old folks hearts) but it is really well written in a very personal way. So. Who is “a life in translation”?
“This is Jamie on Jamie – Jamie Varon is the type of person who feels extremely awkward talking or writing in the third person, because it’s slightly narcissistic. I mean, everyone knows Jamie is the one typing this description and are we supposed to pretend that she’s not? That she hired someone to write this page? No, my friends, we’re not. Bottom line: on this blog, I’m the most honest version of myself, to a point where my mom will email me telling me I should be a bit more “innocent” or “PG-13″ which is adorable, but HAS SHE MET ME?”
Diamondkt is a guy named David Stehle. I stumbled across his site awhile back and found myself going back to it again and again. He is not as concise as Hugh McLeod or as verbose as I and yet he seems to find the right words, and seemingly the right amount, to say what he has to say. I am happy to add his link and I think you will like that he shares personal thoughts and serious thoughts but always a thoughtful point of view.
Oh. And I admit I got sucked in by how he described his site:
“I fill this virtual notebook. I cast a light on myself that is not always kind, but always shines true, illuminating the soul. Pieces of me left unwritten. A life I can’t always define. Words often unvarnished. Other times finished. They are all my own and this is their home. This is me.”
Finally. These two links are examples of reasons why his site is now linked to mine:
So. I have written a number of things about God and religion not because I am religious, but mostly because I get grumpy with how some people use (or misuse) God and religion and the Bible.
With that said, my friend sent me a mailer he received from Saint Matthew’s churches with a mailing address of Tulsa (not picking on Oklahoma although I am still a little pissed about having to pay a $3.50 toll every time I tried to drive on any paved road in the state). Anyway. The mailer.
Not only could I use a prepaid business reply card to get a free “golden prosperity faith cross” but I could also check a box (although I assume I could check multiple boxes) for:
Pray for my finance
Pray for me to receive a continuous money blessing
Pray for ‘I need a job’
Pray for my blood pressure? Huh? WTF.
Or
“List other needs you have” (so I could order a specific prayer if I wanted)
Ok. I don’t know God. Never met him. But I have been quite near the top of a 350+ employee organization. So. With all that goes on in that position, I did tend to filter out some things from employees (“we want French Roast instead of Breakfast Blend in cafeteria”, “why is TV in lobby on CNN instead of ESPN”, “are shorts really appropriate on casual Friday”, “is it ok to not wear underwear” … things like that). I am kinda thinkin’ God, who has slightly more than 350 employees, ain’t focused on answering a prayer so you can afford another big Mac (or Budweiser if that’s your thing).
Ok. Ok. That’s extreme. But. C’mon. Prayers for financial support? (I won’t even touch the blood pressure). This is the kind of shit that gives God an ulcer (assuming he or she has one). Heck. It makes my blood pressure go up (but I promise I won’t pray to relieve it).
Next. While the mailer does not ask for money (I don’t know what you get when you get the cross you requested by sending back the business reply card) it does suggest if you receive this cross wealth will follow you.
It says .. “God has made these promises to you in the holy bible .. for it is He that giveth thee power to get wealth.”
Oh my.
In addition. If you doubt the meaning (or are maybe slightly confused on what God is promising), there are some nifty testimonials:
“God blessed me with a home and a gas station”
“I was in need of $2492.00 for income tax. God blessed me the next day.”
“After I received the Cross God blessed me with $1000.35. I was so far behind I was almost broke.”
“I wrote to you to ask you to pray that God would bless me with a larger house. God answered my prayer by blessing me with a beautiful three apartment building. It is called a triplex because it has three apartments and I own them all.”
Wow.
Linking prayer to receipt of wealth scares me (and I don’t scare easily).
Do I mind prayer for spiritual health and well being? Nope.
Do I believe God wants people to have wealth? Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm … spiritual wealth absolutely. Financial wealth I tend to believe he doesn’t really care. (he didn’t seem to have a lot of dinero himself)
If religion (Christianity) ever wonders why it seems like it is always fighting an uphill battle this little mailer becomes a showcase example for why. Soliciting a belief in God using “financial relief if you contact us” in my little packaged goods marketing world would be construed as possible “bait & switch.” And in my wacky world that is illegal. If God were here I would tend to believe he would not only find this direct mail campaign as offensive but also “illegal” in his law of ethics. But that’s me.
The few employees remaining are being more productive
People are drinking more cheap liquor and not in restaurants.
Am I the only one to conclude that drinking cheap liquor increases productivity in the workplace and may be a key variable in increased unemployment and the recession?
First. The Labor Department says new claims for unemployment insurance rose again (this was 2/4/10 report). Surprise, huh? Oh. And it’s a separate post but what am I counted as? I am not working but I don’t claim unemployment insurance. I cannot envision I am the only one. I guess once again I am just “unclassified.”
Second. In another report Thursday, the Labor Department said worker productivity rose more than expected in the October-December quarter as companies squeezed more output from their employees. All I can say is “cheap bastards.”
Anyway. Productivity rose a seasonally adjusted 6.2% in the fourth quarter, above analysts’ expectations of a 6% rise. The increase follows two quarters of sharply rising productivity. Overall, productivity has risen 5.1% in the past four quarters, the most since the 12 months ending with the first quarter of 2002.
Third. In a third report last year, the lowest-priced liquor segment, with brands such as Popov vodka that can go for less than $10 for a fifth, grew the fastest, with volume rising 5.5%, after edging up 0.6% in 2008. Meanwhile, the most expensive price range, roughly $30 or more for a 750 ml bottle (think Grey Goose, owned by Bacardi), fell the most, tumbling 5.1%. Sales in stores — which make up three-quarters of liquor sales — rose about 2.1%, while sales in restaurants fell 3%.Sales volume for the cheapest versions of tequila rose 21%, the fastest of any type of spirit.
Fourth. Hey. I am no Einstein but I do know that A + B = C (or squared or whatever). So. I conclude cheap liquor is helping create this recession. Eliminate liquor and employees will be less productive and then companies will need to hire more people to maintain their productivity. (Hey, I took Economics in college).
Once again Enlightened Conflict combats ignorance and is the first to tell the truth about the recession.
As I plucked out all the junk mail from my mail box the other day I almost threw away a letter from a pet cemetery assuming it was simply a solicitation. Instead the envelope contained Tigger’s certificate of death highlighting the fact his remains were interred in a country setting with other pets. With this little slip of paper a lot of things came crashing back into my pea like brain.
The first thing was a feeling of selfishness. Did I not honor what Tigger truly meant to me after 15 years by simply leaving him at the vet? Should I have buried him? Did I do the right thing to have as his only memory a slip of paper rather than an urn or a grave somewhere?
The second was the thought of whether he realized how much he mattered to me.
Did he realize that I wasn’t disposing of him but rather simplifying the ‘letting go’ process.
Aw shit.
I don’t know.
After being shaken a little by this little slip of paper I took a moment to recognize neither one of us were ones to dwell on anything. In this situation the owner took on the characteristic of the dog and the dog took on the characteristic of the owner. We were at one on this issue.
We took the good and the bad as simply a moment in time and moved on.
I would like to believe he would have wanted his ending to be just another moment, simply the closing of a door, rather than a more drawn out ceremony. In the end our ceremony was a brief loving moment between a guy and his dog. I still miss the sometimes goofy but best friend I called Tigger.
The Tigger legacy
With that said.
This little slip of paper made me think about what I would like his legacy to be (beyond great memories with aunts & uncles).
So.
If I had the opportunity to create a campaign for pet adoption or the wonders of owning a pet I would use my experience with Tigger to create the campaign. I don’t mind what has been done so far. The adoption campaign using Sarah McLachlan’s song was nice in a heart wrenching way.
But.
I still believe it slightly misses the mark (at least from a current owner’s perspective).
Owning a pet is truly a maddening joy not just heart wrenching. The tug of war between who is the master of the relationship can drive you through the roof and yet the moments of companionship are overwhelmingly rewarding.
And through it all it is the pet that dictates the relationship.
For it is in their loyalty and devotion that we pet owners will step up to the plate time and time again to speak out for how much having a pet can add to your life.
With all that said here is what I would do.
I would build a campaign from the perspective of the pet (I will use my Tigger as a reference point).
And I have the song.
Throughout this song envision everything from a border collie’s perspective (or your own pet which is the true test of a campaign). It is in his or her voice talking to you (the owner or prospective owner).
You are getting a glimpse of what they see in you and their lives as a partner in life with you.
It includes the moments when they are straining at the edge of your patience and you are sharp with them. The moment when he was at the edge of the field wanting to chase that one tantalizing squirrel and yet you called him back. The moments you had to leave him alone for a long day at work and he sits there staring at the door awaiting your return. And the moments of joy in togetherness.
You know in their heads they have to believe it could be easier but in their love and devotion to you (their owner) they will walk through fire for you and to be with you if you need them.
So.
The song is Ginny Owens “If you want me To.” A beautiful song. Probably one of the most underrated love songs of all time (although I believe it is truly about her relationship with God).
That little slip of paper made me think about my buddy again. And once again reminded me how much he meant to me, my life and how he could continue to inspire me to create things in his memory.
I believe the amount of time people spend on developing or thinking of taglines is nuts. Yes. They are important but in the scheme of things I would envision if you are analyzing your time (or people’s time in general) by billable hour, the amount of time invested in this type of thing is … well … not a good investment.
Second.
Here is why I think the time invested is out of whack. In general, here are the guidelines for developing a brand line.
If the company/brand name is more aspirational/inspirational, or less descriptive, like Nike’s company name, err on the side of aiming for a more descriptive tagline telling people what the company offers or does (like Nike’s original line of “superior performance athletic shoes”).
If the company/brand name is more descriptive of the product/service that is being offered then the tagline can assume a more aspirational feel & direction.
The exception: when a company has achieved such a strong awareness that it has achieved a brand status, meaning that people know what the company actually does/offers, a tagline can take on more of an aspirational aspect (use Nike as an example when it shifted to “Just do IT” after they had attained 90+% awareness).
Third.
The main rule of the road for descriptor/tagline development:
When the logo/name of company and tagline are stand-alone, make sure people can tell you exactly what that company does or offers. In other words, don’t be tricky or creative and lose an opportunity to be clear about who and what you are. And this is REALLY important when you come out of the starting blocks. Look. You can always change later. Upfront be clear. Making people guess (and you don’t have enough money to answer their guessing) is a silly investment.
Why? Anything other than meeting that main rule translates into having to invest a lot of money, and time effort, to educate people.
There you go.
All these “inspirational taglines” and such are kinda silly.
Do other things to inspire people.
Plus. I am also a believer that a tagline can change. Almost as often as you would like (as long as it stays in the same sphere of character).
I love writing about the biathlon because no one else does (and I am slightly fascinated by this whole skiing and shooting thing).
So. In the Women’s Biathlon Sprint event Slovakia’s Anastazia Kuzmina won with a score of “19:55.6”. Once again the scoring is one of those things that take a guidebook. Speed of skiing and penalties for misses. Anyway. It’s like 7 kilometers of skiing or something like that. And then they shoot at this miniature target of Osama bin Laden all with a heart rate of over 170 or something like that (apparently it is an incorrect belief that these shooters slow their heart rate to level the sighting). Just to give you some perspective it’s like maybe jumping rope for 15 straight minutes or doing a hundred straight jumping jacks a fast as you can and then sitting down with a pencil and writing all your valentine’s day cards (in a way someone can actually read them). Amazing stuff.
The guns are wacky looking but they do seem kind of lethal (so you don’t see a lot of spectators hanging out behind the targets).
And in the Men’s Biathlon Sprint event. (And I am still a little unclear how this merits a “sprint” heading .. see Summer Olympics hundred yard dash as example of confusion). Anyway. The top three were:
France. Vincent Jay
Norway. Emil Hegle Svendsen
Croatia. Jakov Fak
Never heard of them (but have heard of the countries). I just wanted to note the winners. I figured this may be the only time their names appear on our radar. Oh. Yeah, their fans (who I assume are mostly relatives or people who subscribe to Guns & Ammo), they are nuts. Think cowbells and big funny hats and horns. I am just not sure guys who ski and shoot rifles for a living are funny hat/cowbell spanking type of guys but, hey, whatever floats your boat. Maybe the tickets were for free. I went to a fencing event at the Atlanta Olympics because I had free tickets (but I left my cowbell at home … just blew a dog whistle every time someone did something great).
This whole mogul downhill (going downhill with lots of bumps and a couple of jumps) skiing thing.
Women’s version. Ok. Men’s version. I don’t care. My knees and lower back just start hurting every time I watch these contestants bounce their way down the hill. Their knees pump furiously as they pound down the course. Their runs are a brilliant mix of speed and technical skiing with daring back flips and “helicopter spins” and other amazing feats that seem to defy gravity. Who thought this crap up? Awesome.
Women’s ice hockey
The Canadian women’s hockey team, a two-time defending Olympic gold medalist, didn’t disappoint. The Canadians cranked out an 18-0 rout of Slovakia (exciting the 16,000 Canadian fans eager cheer to keep warm and disappointing the 496 Slovakian fans – who cheered anyway to keep warm). C’mon. 18 to zilch? And I thought Slovakia had ice rinks. Oh well. They would beat the crap out of Canada in a “bryndzove halusky” (small dumplings made of potato dough with sheep cheese and topped with scrambled bacon) cooking contest. I know that for sure.
This speed skating thing.
Yikes. First the solo stuff. Who decided to put that on television exclusively? 20 some laps of two guys skating around a really small rink with one hand tied behind their back (ok. that’s what it looked like). And then there is the group speed skating thing. In the huge wipeout fortunately the Koreans weren’t injured with those razor sharp blades flying in their pileup (thank god they weren’t North Koreans or some nukes may have been dropped). Anyway. This group speed skating is kind of like Indy car racing where the cars are inches apart and you cannot really fathom how they can stay so close to each other without hitting each other. But, it was kind of amazing to see the skaters in that one race self destruct at what would have been a 1-2-3 finish for them and allow the Americans to take the 2-3 positions in the race. These races often have a little bit of roller derby flavor. But on really big skates. And with funky colored outfits. I still admit I don’t really get it and it seems a little boring to me.
Cross country skiing.
Awesome. Today a really cute 22 year old Swede girl unexpectedly won her cross country event and puked after crossing the finish line (she still had a Crest bright big smile afterwards). The Polish woman, the favorite, collapses in fatigue maybe a minute from the finish (so that’s collapsing after maybe 23 minutes of cross country skiing). I need to watch more of this. Put it on prime time I say.
Oh. And how cool is it your coach (or I assume it is a coach and not some random spectator hovering at the side of the track) is screaming at the top of their lungs (and because it is in Swedish or Russian or Croatian I have no clue what they are saying) at the skier as they ski by. I assume they are saying something like “you are a lardass and an embarrassment to the queen (or whatever monarch is appropriate) and may your ancestors be hamsters if you don’t win a medal.” But the screaming person sludging their way through the snow beside the track is awesome. I would go if I could do that.
I have been slamming on our government in some of my posts lately.
It is probably more a sign of frustration than anything to do with democracy (because I am a huge democracy fan).
So.
I will try and back off by offering them a couple of thoughts (should any of them deign to read my little post) and an idea to discuss.
1. Please remember our forefathers:
“I am not a Virginian, but an American.”
Said in speech in the first Continental Congress, 1774, by Patrick Henry.
You will see my idea (a proposed solution) below but at minimum if they could remember that while representing local constituents they are Americans. And making choices for the good of America not just locally (and sometimes what is not good for local may be good for “the whole”). We need to remember Henry is known for his “Give me Liberty, or give me Death!” speech.
He is remembered as one of the most influential, radical advocates of the American Revolution and republicanism, especially in his denunciations of corruption in government officials and his defense of historic rights.
2. Take a field trip to the Lincoln Memorial:
While they all probably walk by the memorial every day, maybe there should be an organized field trip so they can all take a moment and reflect. They can use the time to reflect on a time when the country was divided and Americans were killing Americans. And what it took to lead at that time and reconnect a divided nation.
We aren’t killing each other (at least only figuratively at the moment) but divisiveness is running rampant. And they are feeding the divisiveness. We elect them to lead us not just to follow us (or what we say). They should stand in the shadow of the memorial to one of our greatest leaders and remind themselves of that.
When in DC I have to admit that when standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial I feel the enormity of leadership responsibility as well as the greatness of America. The House Representatives and Senate members could use a good dose of that feeling.
So.
Here is the idea.
I don’t really like politics or pay much attention to it. Because I tend to be straightforward and logical and politics is anything but straightforward and logical.
Ok.
I have a random, completely non-doable solution (which reminds us that unreasonable ideas are often reasonable solutions to problems):
I am willing to let everyone currently in office serve an additional term with no election.
Just once.
They can act and vote as “Americans” without fear of “oh. I won’t get reelected if I do what I believe is the right thing to do”.
This idea has 2 obvious benefits:
Their decisions have some time to actually come to fruition to show some valid proof versus getting slammed solely for a voting record.
The country gets to save all that money and time that gets invested in trying to prove why you should vote for “X” politician.
I used to coach kids baseball and football when I could still actually play some (I liked teaching the mechanics and playing stuff). Nowadays there is this kind of wacky thing going on where kids, learning to play, can’t lose. Sometimes they don’t even keep score. They play games with a tee ball where you can swing as often as you want until you hit it.
I am sure there are dozens of psychology (or psychiatry … I can never keep ‘em straight) papers suggesting that in some way not losing encourages kids to keep playing or feel better about themselves or something.
Ok. Here the deal. In games. In school. In whatever. Someone wins and someone loses. I won’t list all those situations again but in addition to winning and losing, there are some people smarter than you, some less smart, some will be better at things than you and some who don’t do some things as well as you. Sorry folks. That would be called Life.
Somewhere along the way we seemed to have lost sight of the issue.
It isn’t about winning or losing.
It is all about how you handle winning or losing. That is the lesson we should be teaching kids (and there are a boatload of adults who could probably use the lesson too).
So now we are heading down a path where the initial lesson we are teaching a generation is that winning or losing doesn’t matter. And I don’t care which side of that equation you take…each side matters.
Yes. It matters if you win.
And, yes, it matters if you lose.
If you don’t think that, then you don’t learn from each time. It isn’t that losing is bad (although winning feels better), it is that losing should show you something. Can I improve? Should I invest time improving? Is it that maybe there are too many others better than I am at this particular thing?
Winning is the exact same thing. But winning in childhood is tricky and addictive. Winning can fool you into believing different things about yourself and your abilities. But that is a lesson also.
But none of that really matters because we are bringing up a generation where we are missing the opportunity to teach kids that. Why? Because no one is frickin’ winning or losing. We are building a generation of nonwinners where everyone is truly losing in the end.
(a male view of the Valentine’s situation having also accumulated a zillion research data points over multiple beer events discussing everything but Valentine’s Day)
All this talk about Valentine’s Day being created by Hallmark, the myth behind St. Valentine … a massacre for god’s sake.
Confusing.
Well … maybe confusing to some but I have put some strategic thought to this whole concept.
Because the thought behind it is really very simple.
Basically we men are idiots <that is the theorem underpinning>.
Therefore Valentine’s Day plays an important role in a “stimulus-response” type model for men.
The day is a valuable stimulus to stop us from thinking solely with our dumb stick and with some random portion of our brain that isn’t being used for sports, work, alcohol, oogling <not ogling … there is a difference>, mindless daydreaming or sleeping.
Below you will see a diagram that outlines how we think without Valentine’s day and then with Valentine’s day.
(click on the image for a larger, somewhat more legible version)
As you see.
Valentine’s Day is not something created by Hallmark.
Nor is it stupid.
It is an important event with a use benefiting men <kind of like the Super Bowl and March Madness but not as important>.
Strategically Valentine’s Day makes sense to the existence of men <and possibly romance but in a non linear way>.