Cause I’m a pothole, soo…

Well, Geico has done it again. Personified an inanimate object. And you know what? I’m ok with it.

This time Geico has made a talking pothole. I actually think its pretty funny, and gets the point across about the benefits of having Geico (emergency road service). And the southern voice, perfect. Cheers to Geico for coming out with a campaign I might actually enjoy watching.

In the past, they’ve had some annoying ones. Mainly, the cavemen. Lets take a quick gander at what Geico has done.

First, and still, there is this little guy. The Geico Gecko.

In the beginning he was always upset for being confused for Geico. People would call him in the shower, and he would attempt to assure them he was Gecko, not Geico.

Then he more or less embraced the mishaps. He decided he should go with the flow, and just go around promoting Geico with every chance he had.

At times he revealed his innocent, yet funny side. His artsy expressive side, while dancing across a desk. And his mischievous side by using a bill that was not his to get something from a vending machine.

Then. There were these guys. The Geico Cavemen. Not only are these cavemen on my list of most annoying TV ads, but they are one of the worst campaign ideas Geico (Joe Lawson) has come up with. I hate the Geico Cavemen. And to think a TV show was made for them. I’m not sure what drugs ABC was on to even think of picking up a series on these guys and then to think it would be successful, but to no surprise it was cancelled quickly after it began. Very quickly.

Thank you Geico for finally phasing these guys out. If you want to reuse the Gecko, fine. But not these guys.

Then there was this campaign. Having a celebrity narrate a real persons story about using Geico car insurance. I’m okay with these. I mean they weren’t amazing, but they weren’t all together annoying. In fact, I found the Joan Rivers one comical. And who doesn’t love themselves some Little Richard?

This one you all remember. The stack of money with googly eyes, and that song. Still being used, but not the newest campaign. I have to admit, this stack of money did not raise my interest one bit when they first started airing this campaign. But after about 2-3 commercials I liked it. And the song stuck. Plus, imagine how much cheaper it is to use this stack of money over making new animations of the Gecko.

And then. Boom. This gal. Ultimately, I think the Gecko was probably their best, but this one looks very promising.

09/09/09

Today is 09/09/09. What would have made this post better is if I woke up at 9:09 am and posted it, or if I waited until 9:09 pm. However, since I am not an early bird, and one of my favorite shows premieres tonight, America’s Next Top Model: 2 hour special, I will post now at 1:51 pm.

So what is so special about today? Here are 9 reasons. Of course.

Number 1: Single-Digit-ness
You’re unlikely to experience another single-digit date in your lifetime. The next one won’t come around for 92 years, until 1/1/2101.

Number 2: Math-Magics
Lots of silly mathematics can be made this day. The date falls on a Wednesday in September, both of which have 9 letters. September 9 also is the 252nd day of the year. 2+5+2=9.

Number 3: Beatle-Mania
Its a big day for the Beatles. Today, digitally remastered versions of all of the Beatles studio albums will be released, along with the artwork that was originally released in the U.K.. Not to mention some other goodies that come along with them; expanded booklets and documentaries.
Additionally, today is the day that The Beatles: Rock Band releases.

Number 4: Apple Announcements
The Apple iPod Event is today, which will unveil the next generation of iPods. There are some rumors about what these future product announcements will be, but I’ll just wait and see.

Number 5: Movies
Today the movie ‘9,’ an animated sci-fi/action film, produced by Tim Burton is released. Not to mention that this marks 2 more days for the long awaited release of Sorority Row. Yeah. You’re looking forward to it, don’t lie.

Number 6: A Day Without Cats
A day without cats on the internet. Urlesque is organizing a web-wide ban on cat-related coverage today. No posting about adorably funny kitty cats today. Although, I suppose I may have broken this rule by even posting about them.

Number 7: Exchanging Vows
This is supposed to be a big day for weddings, along with lots of hotel deals for, you guessed it, $99. Sin City is making lots of preparations for today. Okay you crazy kids, you have fun.

Number 8: ANTM
I mentioned it earlier. You didn’t think I’d forget, did you? Today America’s Next Top Model: Cycle 13 premieres. What makes this season different? Tyra casts models under 5′7.” Excited!

Number 9: Birthday
Quite possibly the most important part about today is that its 5 days away from my birthday! This really should have been number 1, but sometimes you have to save the best for last.

Graduation

I’m not about to get all sappy about finally graduating. Although looking back, I think that college will be a major highlight of my life, like most.

So maybe I will get sappy for a minute, and a bit preachy. Enjoy college. It truly is great. The possibilities and people you meet. All good things. Sure classes can be annoying sometimes, but you might find yourself wishing you were still enrolled to just be around that atmosphere again.

Okay, on to the present and the future. I have a new degree, a new/old location (I’m back home), and more time on my hands. No classes, no part time job. Just me, my blog, and many resumes/portfolios being sent across the US in hopes of landing myself a “real” job. By “real” I just mean something somewhat related to advertising.

So in the meantime , I will be able to update this blog more, so look out for some new postings. I have also updated my About Me and My Work sections. Enjoy.

Augmented Reality

Augmented reality, according to Wikipedia, is a term for a live direct or indirect view of a physical real-world environment whose elements are merged with, or augmented by virtual computer-generated imagery, creating a mixed reality.

This can create a multitude of possibilities to many fields such as medical, military, architecture, and entertainment. But basically what this means to me, and others interested in advertising, is that I can take a 2-dimensional figure (product) on a piece of paper and generate a 3-dimensional representation of that product through computer technology. I’ll show you what I mean.

Take this print ad from Nike for the new Nike Lunar Glide+. If you go to the website and download an application you can hold this print ad up to your webcam and the shoe will literally pop out before your eyes.

Tada! It also allows you turn it in different directions to get different angles of the shoe.

Be amazed. Thats me. Amazed.

There are lots of examples of this technology being used. In 2008 at the LA Auto Show, Nissan unveiled it’s vehicle The Cube and presented visitors with a brochure which, when held against a webcam, showed several versions of the vehicle interacting with the brochure.

I also attended an Adobe Suite presentation at MSU where the presenter showed us a little community unfold before our eyes. It was something like this. He also talked about the possibility of generating a fully functional phone with just a piece of paper. Neato.

Now, I know this isn’t just a piece of paper to the computer. I’m told it has something to do with tags that the computer recognizes and uses programs such as Flash to create these 3-D forms. But, like most people I don’t know enough about that technology. So for now I will say its magic. A wonderful magic that can really ad some interest to your product.

Daytime Dora Drama

Today a star fell. Dora and her monkey Boots, which I really think she should have a permit for owning, ran after it. They blankly stared at me for a few minutes and asked if I would help them find Little Star. Waiting for a response I never gave, they figured I could spare some time and assist, which okay, I guess I could.

But, them asking me to point out where Little Star was, when he was clearly just laying face down in a bush, was a little demanding. I managed to look in the stars general direction anyhow and they got the hint.

Dora asking me to sing Little Star a song to cheer him up was going too far. I just met her and was still getting used to the fact that Boots was not on a leash. Sing the star a song? I don’t think so.

She was taking advantage of my kindness, and when I said no, she blurted out words in Spanish I didn’t understand. Then mocked me by repeating it’s meaning. That was one angry explorer and the last straw.

I changed the channel and can only assume that Little Star never cheered up, turned to a hard life on the streets never to return to the sky, and is now face down in an alley, much like when I first found him.

On a “post-worthy” note, here is a hilarious video from SNL a while back making fun of my demanding little friend. Enjoy, and I apologize for anyone having to read about my experience this morning. I’m glad that X-Files: I Want To Believe is now on and I can divert my attention elsewhere.

Paint Stained Fingers

Boredom has struck. Or rather it did. A few days ago. So when I’m bored, and have nothing to do I sometimes turn to artsy things. That day I turned to painting.

More times than not these artsy things turn out to be…not so artsy. I haven’t actually painted anything since my freshman year in high school. Although, I somehow managed to find old paintbrushes and paint in my closet. I knew that closet was good for something.

What my boredom results to is a bedroom painting with my three favorite colors. Nothing too special and it should probably be worked on more, but my boredom ran out (I watched Buffy), so this is it.

If you too are bored, maybe pick up a pencil and create something. Or you could just call your friends to hang out and save yourself some paint stained fingers, whichever.

They must have been on Pot Tarts

It’s my day off. So naturally I’m going to have my TV on while performing other necessary tasks like laundry, eating, internet surfing, more eating, and watching the horrible movies that are shown during day time television. However, this inevitably leads to a commercial that for some reason annoys me to no end.

The current Kellogg’s Pop Tarts commercials. As soon as I hear the background music I know whats to come. An animated bobble headed kid, with evil eyes as black as night, tap dancing across his kitchen, only to make sure his mom made him Pop Tarts, to devour them in front of her, and force her to dance.

What would have happened if he mistook the smell and instead of his precious Pop Tarts it was only strawberry pie? Village of the Damned? Children of the corn? Anyone?

The fact that others consider this child cute and funny makes me want to cry. Jeers to Leo Burnett, which usually has good work, for this annoying commercial and others like it. They have a new one going on about the “endless possibilities” of Pop Tarts.
1. Eat as is
2. Toast it
3. According to the commercial, put it in ice cream? Maybe.

So…that is three by my count. Yep. Endless. I’m happy I couldn’t find the corresponding video for that one.

Don’t get me wrong. I like Pop Tarts. I might even go as far as to pull a Liz Lemon and eat that long lost Pop Tart I find beneath my couch. “What do you do with the Pop Tarts?” But, I would much rather see the old doodled Pop Tarts with personality than those bobble heads again.

Kelly went from being “single” to “in a relationship”

Its official. I’m in love with Hungry. The little orange guy from the Weight Watchers commercials has captured my attention and my heart. In case you don’t know him, here is a quick bio about him.

Name: Hungry
Height: About 2 ft
Best known for: His wild and free orange fur
Hobbies: Makes people happy by handing them delicious foods
Skills: He can dance, play an instrument, fit in small spaces, and speaks to me with his eyes

I can’t help but like him. It seems I’m not the only one who has feelings for Hungry, however. If you Google search Hungry Weight Watchers (I just laughed a little), you will find countless postings on his cuteness, and requests to purchase Hungrys like him. Some have even made their own.

If I could have my own Hungry I would be one happy camper. I would love to have someone bring me donuts, hot dogs, and open boxes of pizza for me throughout the day. It’s one of the top qualities I look for in a man.

Congratulations to Weight Watchers for making a memorable plushy personification of hunger. I can’t wait to see his next commercial and the funny little tap dances he performs.

However, since I am a lover of all things food, and can constantly be seen with a bag of chips within 4 feet of me at all times, I probably will not be able to resist Hungry for a long time. So keep him coming Weight Watchers.

Oh, and in case you haven’t seen any of my new boyfriends commercials, here they are. Remember though ladies, he’s taken now. It’s on Facebook, so you know its official.

Girls Direct To You

After spending about 5 days in Las Vegas I would have to say one of the biggest things that caught my drunken attention was the line of men along the strip handing out hooker cards. If you’ve been there, you know what I’m talking about.

These cards litter the sidewalks, and are flicked in your face constantly. Not just by one, but by about 10-15 in a row (in advertising this means they were going for a high frequency).

So, I decided to dedicate a little something to the men of “Girls Direct to You.” Here you go boys.

More dedications to all things Vegas may be in the works.

Puke in My Mouth

Last night, I was on a site. As I recall, it was a Stumble site. On my couch I made a few clicks. Checked this post and saw your vids and I…

“Puke in My Mouth,” in response to Andy Samberg and Lonely Island’s video “Jizz in My Pants,” is, if nothing, an accurate portrayal of the creepers of the night, and is quite funny.

After looking further into this video I learned that it was made to promote a product. Did you catch it? Its for Ms. Taken, a company that sells fake engagement rings to women who want to repel creepers. Clever company name and product. Makes me love the video that much more. Good job Pantless Knights and Ms. Taken.

For those who haven’t seen “Jizz in My Pants,” here you go:

There is another “Puke in My Mouth” video out there by Lindsay Gareth & Kosha Patel, however it is not as funny as this one, so I thought I’d just give it a mention.