test post before Montreal

Hi all,
just re-testing the remote blog posting tech before we set out for Montreal,
seeing as it's now a part of my job description (how blessed am i?). If you
are reading this, all is well!

talk soon,

Where we are going

This is where we are going... Rivers Edge Community Church. click the link and take a quick tour. This is a great flash site that really expresses their heart. Looking forward to seeing them in person, tomorrow nite.

Oh, and if we get time (and i'm sure Jake will make time) then we can expect to visit this as well. Six Flags Montreal... or, if you'd prefer, the same site,only en francias.

Preparations are done for the travel, as done as they will be, ready or not, we leave tomorrow. This brings to mind a quote that Michael Arlen made:

"It is amazing how nice people are to you when they know you are going away"

Yes, we are leaving Medicine Hat at 7 am tomorrow morning, but we will be back. Medicine Hat is our home, and we love it.

Montreal Quebec - The Rivers Edge

T minus... some hours. Yeup, it's only a matter of a few hours (and a quick sleep) and we will be off for Montreal, as foreign a land as one can find within this great dominion. Renee and i have been blessed with the chance/opportunity to travel with the Youth team from Hillcrest Church on their way to lead daycamps for a week. The Day camps have been designed around the Chronicles of Narnia series by C.S. Lewis, as per a recent post, here.

I was preparing myself for what appeared to be imminent internet-less travel ( often referred to as bloggus interuptus), until Pastor Jake gave me a call. Thank God for pastor Jake, i mean it. He asked me to blog the trip... i don't know how he got the idea i'd like that, no, i'd LOVE that. He must be a reader of this humble site already. Of course, i replied with a positive. Whoohoo, er, yes!

And now, to get packing and ready to go.

i should probably say a quick hello to those readers joining us thru the recent link at Hillcrest Church. Welcome, thanks for dropping by...

Alan Moore delights

Remember Remember the Fifth of November. (hint: that is the set release date)
V for Vendetta. Mmmmm. Graphic novel classic, now a major motion picture.

"Idea's are bullet proof!"

Watch the trailer here.

Bobble head craze going too far?

i'll be honest, i've got a couple bobble heads. The sports figures with the shaking heads... They make timely gifts as well, every once in a while.

This tho, from Whoopass Enterprises, this custom bobble head might just be going too far. Visit, review and get back to me.

(have you clicked the link yet? good... come on back now)

All right, i think they are on to something... i like it. How about a jace anderson blogger bobble head, would you all like one of those? (insert obvious: my head is inflated, ego joke here)

i'm taking orders, send the dosh ($89.95 USD) via paypal, or buy my wife and i dinner, and you're on. This is golden.

/ Now is a good time to ask me if i'm serious... ? Just send the money and find out.

Seth Godin Quote

Seth Godin speaks, or types, or whatever. Seth may just be the most brilliant hairless guy i know, or have heard of, or at least can think of at this late hour.

"Average is often the goal. Average rarely leads to growth." - Seth Godin

Experience breeds resolve - Stay strong

i must need to spend more time focused on marketing (like this) and less time on world politics...(like this world class spot, or this one) but dang, this evening's reads are great. Join me.
the first comment on this blog site giving silent sympathy to the UK during these terrorist attacks is priceless. (the quote is priceless, the attacks are hog wash).

"Rotten, craven bastards...

I think I am right in believing the British have far more resolve... however... One quote I read from a London taxi driver went something like 'And they think we are scared of this? Have they heard of the IRA?'

Must read The Donald Fri-Day NITE

Only on a friday nite can i read the amalgamation of Donald Trump and the UN's re-building concept (while listening to Rancid mp3's). Fri-Day NITE!

This is a must read:

"The Senate International Security Subcommittee, chaired by Oklahoma Republican Tom Coburn, was holding a hearing yesterday into the proposed $1.5 billion refurbish project of the United Nations building. One of the star witnesses was The Donald."
- Radioblogger

"I have to start by saying I'm a big fan, a very big fan of the United Nations, and all it stands for. I can't speak as to what's been happening over the last number of years, because it certainly hasn't been good."

This is a great snip to end with (and the rest you have to go read for yourself... or listen to on the mp3 available here)

"So, that's it. Congratulations. You've got yourself a mess on your hands."


Ok, a little bit more, but you have to promise me you read/listen to this...

"I would love to help them. I don't want any money. I want nothing. I've made a lot of money. I don't care. I want nothing. There are lots of different...you know, if somebody said, what would be your dream on this site, while my dream is a dream that won't happen, but it's a dream that I might tell you. It's a dream to take the United Nations, and the Senator over here is probably going to go crazy, move it to the World Trade Center as a brand new United Nations. Sell the United Nations site, which is one of the greatest sites in the world, for much more money than the whole thing would cost, and you end up building a free United Nations at the World Trade Center, where I don't think anybody's going to want to stay anyway. I think it's going to be a very, very hard rent up at the World Trade Center.

But let's assume that's not going to happen. Not a bad idea, though.

Unidentified voice: ...got no problem with that.

The Donald: Not too bad. He's got no problem, and most people don't have...

Unidentified voice: Put Kofi Annan on the top floor.

The Donald: Okay. I won't get into...I didn't say that."

[update: DOWNLOAD the Audio, the above quote is even better in sound (i love how they laugh) - sound byte starts at 19:11 - JHA]

Sleeping Giant of Ad revenue

"SERVING AN AD IN AN editorial environment with NO relationship to the product may seem counterintuitive, but it is becoming hard to ignore. Case studies too numerous to count are showing surprising results from the targeted delivery of "out-of-context"online ads - delivering ads to qualified consumers within content areas that are "out-of-context" for the offer. For example, serving automobile ads to "auto buyers" in a site's sports section, rather than in auto content. Quite frequently, the out-of-context ads will outperform those that are delivered in-context, sometimes dramatically so."
- Dave Morgan - Read the whole thing.

- So, where did you say your ad was going again? - Food for thought.

Londoners cheat death

"Up to 4 terrorists on run after Londoners cheat death"

"Key points
• Four bombs placed on underground network and bus, but fail to explode
• Events come 2 weeks after prior attacks on London
• No deaths, and a nearby passenger suffering an asthma attack is only injury"
- The Scotsman.com

While i don't generally blog politics and major news events (some folks do it so much better, like Pej, and the Instapundit) i am compelled to link this event. Again.
Hog-wash... for a deeper review, read the other folks. That is where i am going next myself.

Rebel Chess

Fisher, it seems, is labelled as a rebel and non-conformist. A defiant genius of sorts. Fact is tho, this is all about chess, which makes the read that much more savory. enjoy.

/off to dust off the board, and play a little 960 me-thinks.

Carnival of the Capitalists

Always a must-read. The Club For Growth provides us with this weeks Carnival of the Capitalists. Want to know more than this? clicky the linky...

Out of town this last weekend

Went to Calgary with the wife Friday. We just arrived home, tired and a little hungry. More blogging goodness to follow, of course!

Minds like water

In Toastmasters today i gave the Toast. Always a good opportunity to speak directly, emphatically and briefly on a genuine topic. i enjoy the exercise, and figure that the toast i wrote may be a valid addition to the blogosphere that i spend so much time travelling. The script is as follows:

"Picture if you will, a flowing sea, ebbing in and out along the coast line.

Not a local event for sure, but think about it none the less.

Power. Consistency, and vast potential.

[Charge your glasses.]

The ability to adapt to change and disruption
in a relaxed manner is
what David Allen calls
“mind like water”

[Rise with me.]

In every area of our busy, often hectic lives,
Lets toast to increasing our ability
to adapt with mind’s like water"

I want this book

i really want this book. In fact, i am going to make a place for this book on my shelf.

"This has got to be the best book on the planet at the moment" - Brett James

Visa, coffee, faffing

It's late, so any site that uses the word "faffing" while discussing advertising is all right with me. Fact that they are discussing Coffee increases the likelyhood i'm interested. It's a valid conversation for the UK i guess, tho really, here in Canada, we, as a buying public are more than happy to use our credit card for small purchases already. Aren't we? The local carwashes take Visa and MC after all.

Sip. Pay. Go. Every day's quick and easy with your Visa card!

Seedtime and harvest

"Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant." - Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894)Scottish novelist and poet.

Every morning in Africa

"Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up. It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed. Every morning a lion wakes up. It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. It doesn't matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle -- when the sun comes up, you had better be running." - Unknown.

Carnival of the Capitalist

Read. Engage. Grow. Succeed, whatever that means to you personally. Intrinsic or Extrinsic... it's all got it's place.

Oh yeah... enjoy. That is important too.

Mini is amazing

Was without my computer over the weekend, maybe i do need one of those twelve step programs. Special thanks to R.H. for the quick fix, i'm back.

Maybe, just maybe Mini should be awarded advertising awards for just showing up. After my saturday comment regarding the attaching a Mini to an outdoor billoard (that one in New Zealand i think) here is one in Ohio!.

Mini is pretty amazing, Mini might just be the new big.

Smart outdoor advertising

Fullsize mini Cooper, on a billboard (i do love the Flickr concept). Looks great, grabs attention... it's just out of the norm enough to get people talking (online and off). The theft factor is likely minimal (it's well insured).
hmmm... following along this line of thought: i might give SmartCar a quick call this week, and see if they'd like to sit one of their cars directly on top of one of our outdoor Pitch Cans. Give the Southern Alberta Market something to talk about. The Flickr pics would be sure to follow (that and worldwide marketing fame no doubt).

Wanna play a game?

Saturday nite. Wanna play a game? Check out this great site by Tony Pa.
... Bugs are coming! is a good mindless time, reminds me of games we play on our cell phones, if we do that sort of thing.
Starrunner on the other hand, heralds all the way back to the Apple 2E versions of Mario. Old skool.
Enjoy.

That was fun, now for a little more of this: CoD:QoR

Kenyan economist speaks out

After the recent G8, and Live8, read this snippet regarding the UN:

"a massive agency of apparatchiks who are in the absurd situation of, on the one hand, being dedicated to the fight against hunger while, on the other hand, being faced with unemployment were hunger actually eliminated." - James Shikwati

A profound perspective: simply: Please stop the aid!

/ a must read. Wow.

"This represents probably the most significant change in attitude by the G-8 toward Africa since the end of the Cold War," [LINK: added 09-July-05 9:50 pm - JA]

If mere graphic can suffice

Half of Media Reps considered ignorant

"Media Buyers: Half of Reps Are Ignorant, Pestiferous

MediaLife's media buyer survey quantified what most already suspected: media buyers think that about only half of media reps know what the heck they're doing. A significant minority of the buyers - about one in six - have such a low opinion of reps that they said only ten or twenty percent are useful. Complaints centered, unsurprisingly, on time wasting, both in the form of over contacting and proving ill-prepared when conversations do take place. Another big complaint proved to be overly hard selling, with some reps seeming to believe that repetition or browbeating may succeed in getting a property on the buy where the numbers won't.

Half of the buyers said they agreed with the statement that the rep problem was "no big deal. Sure, they're annoying sometimes, but I'm sure they find me equally so. It's how the industry is set up." About 45 percent agreed instead that they are "a necessary evil. Most are okay, but there are a few really obnoxious ones I hate doing business with." - Mediabuyerplanner

i had to quote the entire article. Ouch. It's a good thing i'm self assure... or i'd be really nervous right now. Really nervous indeed. Yeup, nervous (twitch, twitch).

London 2005

Bad. Really friggin bad.

Carnival of the NBA

The season is over. The Spurs won, again. Special thanks goes out to Big Shot Bob for his finals closure. The Draft is over, and question marks are standing tall.
Still, i'm a little excited to find out (for the first time) that there is a Carnival of the NBA. Uber cool. This edition is co-hosted by a Canadian too... Woot!

London 2012

Good, really friggin good. And this is just one reason why. Ouch.

Get my Drift? China Coke

Is this for real? Coke China and Blizzard Entertainment (new link - corrected, thanks for the catch R.M.). (11 meg video file, dial up users should pass on this commerical, or pour a cup of tea and wait, funny enough, this may be worth it).

/ Real or not, i shouldn't take advertising so seriously. Is it just me who finds the whole issue kind of, missed. These strong willed women fight an overbearing boss who claims "sexy is what sells". But they fight him (after stating "no means no"?) while being generally scantily clad. So, Coke is telling us that they will fight "sex sells" with more "sex" that, in turn, must sell... very well. i think my mind hurts, just a little.

// Good thing this NEVER happens in North American marketing... (read satire and wit here)

Yellow Lance & Dream teams

Tour de France again... Lance is in line for #7. Yellow jersey and all. i'm excited for Lance. i'm cheering him on from here...

"The Dream Team," Armstrong said. "For me, in the last year, it's special to have a team like this."

Don't wait. You can't afford to. Lance's sentiment here is great, but please, do not wait until your close to the end to assemble your dream team. In business, as in life, the longer you are with your dream team, the better the edge you will develop. Intrinsic and extrinsic (inside and out).

"You can have everything in life that you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want.” Zig Ziglar


Whether you are finding love, or developing a new offering in a stagnating market.
Assemble those parts that will make you better, those parts that you also make better, stronger, more adept at entering and controlling markets. Choose wisely. Adapt. Grow together. Enjoy.

Another prime example of a dream team. The Dreamteam of course!!! Assemble a dream team and change the course of history! "Since 1992, basketball has exploded in popularity around the globe, rising to a place where it truly challenges soccer's status as the world's most popular sport." Significant.

Carnival of the Capitalists

i've been out of the loop for a few weeks. If you've been relying solely on my hot link to find the weekly CotC, (shame) i'll buy you a coffee. That aside, the really good news is, i'm back, and so it the Carnival of the Capitalists. Thanks to this weeks host Caseysoftware. I'm off to read... blog soon.

Endemic emergency

Succinct and to the point. Get it?

"Let's say you work at eBay.
Your site goes down. How many people will drop what they are doing and figure out how to get it back up and running?"

Read the whole link (It's short). This will get you thinking. Or not.

Thanks Seth. An agent of change.

Fire alarm opportunity

"To the rescue (and detecting profits) comes Snap Alarm, a Swedish company that has designed an optical EUR 40 smoke alarm that is easy to install in as many rooms as needed."

"The patented installation technique involves a click-and-go system, which should fit most cords, chains and rods up to 2 cm in diameter, doing away with the need to drill holes." - Quotes from the Trendspotters over at Springwise

Worth thinking about. Worth pondering too, it's just a little late in the evening right now. i'll come back to this link earlier in the day... Later.

What's in a name

i would hazard to guess that a lot is in a name. (Les Nessman comes to mind... it's no Lance).
Take a quick look at one of the newest casino's opening up in the US. Morongo. yeah, click the link, you are reading that right. all that's missing is a helpful little hyphen: Moron - GO. i really hope this turns out to be an internet spoof. The branding/marketing exercise should be fun, and rife with inuendo. Can i help?
Don't people get paid to see this coming? (Did they see this coming, and go for it anyways?) Reminds me of a great episode from season one of Corner Gas, where they wanted to have the Worlds Largest Cracked Hoe. ummm. no comment.

It takes a man

With all of the recent Father sightings (congrats on the kids folks) it is only right that i draw some attention to this ad campaign coming out of the US.
"it takes a man to be a dad!"

Great ad spots, viewable online!!!

Got Smart?

Not sure where i saw it, (i think toronto) but there was (is) an outdoor advertising company that used these cars as their sales/service fleet for staff. Decaled up, this would be a eye catching vehicle.
With the ecology behind their design, these Smart cars would be a natural and ideal association with Pitch Outdoor, and our presence in the Alberta market. With our continued focus on waste, litter and looking good, these cars would fit within our mandate no problem, they may even help further position us as the Outdoor (and indoor) advertising company that cares about how clean it is where you live. This car just subconsiously says "i care about the air you breathe - i care about the world we share" and that is a good thing. Right? Market research may be in order (off to grab a textbook for a refresher).
i saw this car up close today, at the car show downtown. This is a tiny car that i don't think i'd feel cramped in, at all. The leg room was actually pretty great.
All that being said, i don't think i'll buy one. This week.

One billion Outdoor Ad contract

i get the impression that this contract is up for grabs. Time to call a travel agent (online maybe).
New York is likely a beautiful place this time of year. Maybe my good friend S.F. could let me know (he's spent some time there). Heck, even rain and sleet could'nt keep me from taking a strong look at nabbing this outdoor ad contract. Biggest one of its kind, worldwide.
"This summer, New York City will award a 20-year contract to a single firm that will have citywide advertising rights and custodial duties over 3,300 bus shelters, some 330 newsstands, and 20 public toilets" - "revenues... are expected to exceed $1 billion"
Mediabuyerplanner

Dominion...er... Canada Day

Spent the last couple of hours in the back yard weeding.
Happy 138th folks... i think some fire works might be in order this evening!