Thursday, June 30
frankenbread
wonder bread, purveyors of gluey white pseudo-bread since 1925, have come out with a new 100% whole-wheat loaf aimed at customers who want more fiber but crave the same old white-trash flavor they know and love (hey, as a red-blooded cheeto-loving american, i can't judge). but with such appealing ingredients as "albino wheat" and "dough conditioners", i'm only left wondering what the hell it is! no thanks. downgrade.
Wednesday, June 29
stand clear of this one
i was browsing target yesterday for a gift for my nephew's 2nd birthday, and came across a display of character-themed yard sprinklers. there was the little mermaid, elmo, darth vader and piglet, among others - but i have to say the one that caught my eye (and made me laugh out loud in aisle 16) was the horribly named pooh sprinkler. i went with elmo.
the gnome knows
travelocity is using a cool new ad-serving technology (new to me, anyway) where they reach beyond geo-targeting and other general targeting methods and actually serve you banners based on your recent searches on their web site. so while you're surfing yahoo, for instance, you'll get a banner touting a reduced rate from richmond to denver (clearly hypothetically speaking, since there's no such thing out of richmond), which is just what you were searching for yesterday. big-brother-ish, but in the best (and most useful) possible way. i like it. upgrade.
Monday, June 20
a coke and a big smile
to follow up to kristin's coke post from last week, yes the world really does need coke zero. why? because it ROCKS, that's why! it actually tastes much more like regular coke than diet, and would probably go splendidly with a shot of bourbon. of course, it's all subjective i guess, since i thought her beloved diet coke with splenda was pretty blah. but with so many versions to choose from, there's a 0-calorie soda out there for everyone.
Friday, June 17
i'll gladly pay you tuesday for a hamburger...
calling all restaurant-minded opportunists:
looking for a sure-fire, can't-fail business venture? please open a deli near our office (corner of 5th and franklin, by penny lane). we only have one within a couple block radius (the next nearest being the quizno's at 8th and main), and after suffering through 4 years of mediocre and wildly overpriced sandwiches (30% of the time the wrong sandwich), i think i've had enough. build a better sandwich, we will come.
Wednesday, June 15
beebeep zip tang!
hot news out of Pennsylvania. eyewitnesses report having seen a coyote pacing and cursing after the incident, and a large mottled ground-bird (speculated to be a road runner) speeding away from the scene of the accident in a cloud of dust. more at 6:00.
Friday, June 10
virtual me
oddcast, builders of those kinda creepy (but equally cool) banner ads that feature an animated talking head whose eyes follow your cursor around the page, have built a cool application for ESPN whereby you can customize your own oddcast character. you can monkey with all of the physicaly characteristics (hairstyle, eye color, wardrobe, etc.) and then customize your own script for your character to recite. here's mine. have fun! (by the way, she's not mispronouncing "buford" - my new last name is Hawthorne).
Friday, June 3
platinum ringtone
sign of the times, or sign of the apocolypse? you be the judge: a song based on a cell phone ring tone has climbed to #1 on the british pop charts. an asinine combination of the "beverly hills cop" theme song ("axel f") and the "crazy frog" ringtone (sounds like a guy doing an imitation of an over-wound moped), the song has displaced new singles from colplay and oasis on its rise to the top. while i scoff at the ridiculousness of it all, i do have to admit that i spend a good part of every day singing kristin's reggae ring tone in my head as though it too were a #1 single...
Wednesday, June 1
LOST and found
as a rabid fan of the abc show LOST, i was so psyched to find the web site of the fictional - and ill-fated - Oceanic Air. it's been a loooong time since i've seen an easter-egged site done this well, without some well-meaning client mucking it up by demanding that the hidden treasures be, well, less hidden. there are entire forums popping up dedicated to exploring and unravelling the mysteries of this maddeningly layered site. awesome show, awesome site - check them both out if you haven't already.
SPOILER ALERT!! [try entering Hurley's doomed lotto numbers (4 8 15 16 23 42) in the fields on the home page, then click them in order on the seating chart on the next page]