Happiness

Disclaimer: I'm going to get a little cheesy. Maybe even sappy.

Life is stressful. Everyone in CreComm is going a little crazy with all the semester-end assignments. We all can't wait to get out of school for a while and relax. But I think we need to make the most of the next two weeks of school. Life can still be wonderful, and stress doesn't need to control our lives.

I write this on the first day of December because I had a lovely moment of realization. Despite all my stress and work to do, I spent an evening at the Youth for Christ drop-in centre that I volunteer at weekly. I spent my night with a bunch of adolescent girls who spent the whole time giggling. We made Christmas snow globes, ate chips, talked about holidays, and took a walk outside in the beautiful snow.

And I realized something. While walking arm-in-arm with one of my young friends through the crisp snow and pointing out the cool frosted tips of bushes under Christmas lights, I realized that happiness is moments like these. Yes, jobs are important. School is important. Commitments are important. And all of those things stress us out and make us infinitely busy. But if we spend all of our lives focusing on those important things, and never take the time to, well, take time, we will be quite miserable.

So take a step back. Maybe take a night off of homework or work. Do something that makes you truly happy. Whether it's volunteering, taking a walk outside before it gets too cold, or watching The Big Bang Theory while eating ice cream, just relax and take a hold of the small, happy moments.

Spam

I am not very tech-savvy. Well, rather I am reluctant to new technology. As a small-town girl, I'm probably one of the most technologically advanced of those in my circles. But for being in the communications field, I am a little behind. It took me longer than a lot of people to get Facebook but I'm quite addicted now. I only got Twitter today and it already fascinates me.

However, both of these social networking sites seem to think I'm some sort of spammer. In the past week I have received two different notifications to stop "going so fast." While on Facebook, I sent the same message to a number of people about a surprise baby shower. After about 7 of these messages, Facebook gave me this notification:



It says "Warning! You are engaging in behavior that may be considered annoying or abusive by other users. Facebook's systems determined that you were going too fast when sending messages. You must significantly slow down. Further misuse of site features may result in a temporary block or your account being permanently disabled."

Stop going so fast? Significantly slow down? Fine then. It's Facebook's fault if not everyone shows up to the shower. I dont' want my account being shut down. Then today, I was rapidly following friends on Twitter when I received this notice:



I give up. I try to conform to technology, but it hates me. I am not a spammer. I just get excited too quickly.

Worst Local Commercials

With the holidays fast approaching many people are pulling out all the stops to you get shopping at their store. This means stretching the advertising budget and finding new ways to get people's attention. While most companies seek out professional help to come up with the best print ad, radio spot, and television commercial, some people, think they can do it on their own. This is a great example of how much the world needs advertisers. I found these videos online and couldn't believe how bad thy were. I was shocked that someone out there would actually allow them to run on television. Check them out, you truly have to see them to believe em.

Worst commercials

Muppets Bohemian Rhapsody

If you grew up loving The Muppets and have any admiration for Queen, you will love this new viral video. Muppets Bohemian Rhapsody depicts The Muppets performing the famous Queen song, using every recognizable Muppet including Miss Piggy, Gonzo, and Animal. It was released on November 23, and was produced by Muppets Studios. The hilarious Muppet version imitates the actual song with a few added lyrics, but it also mimics Queen's original video. In only one day of being posted on YouTube.com, the video has received over 2 million views.

Apparently, the video is only one of a series of Muppet viral videos. A few others will be, "American Woman," "Carol of the Bells," and "Stand by Me."

The humour of the video is more in the knowledge of the original Muppet characters than anything else. But no matter what, you should find it at least a little entertaining.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgbNymZ7vqY

Fun for a Cause

This past weekend I had my first fundraiser for my IPP. I live in a small town, so I planned an event that catered to that audience. I had sort of a smorgasbord of events including a BBQ, garage sale, bake sale, silent auction, and even manicures and pedicures. Interestingly enough, that beauty station was mostly dominated by men.

Once my Saturday event was over, I decided to open it up to people after church on Sunday. This proved to be more successful than I imagined, and shows the power of advertising. Give people the option of easy-access lunch after church, and they will give you money!

Here are some images of the event that raised over $500 for Autism Society Manitoba.

Image is everything...

As ad majors we are constantly struggling with finding the most creative and effective way to get our message out. After hours of perfecting our copy and headline then comes the challenging task of finding the perfect image to help us sell our product. But what happens when the image you choose sends the wrong message? What if it accidentally insults people and turns them off your product altogether? How do you know when choosing that image that it will truly work? While it might seem that it would be obvious it's not as easy as you would think. Don't believe me? Check out these ads that did just that.... can you tell what they are selling?

Trivia Night

Do you have a wealth of knowledge of seemingly useless facts? I feel that a lot of people in CreComm know a lot about random things that can now be put to good use! In support of the ad majors' trip to Chicago, Trivia Night at the King's Head Pub will be happening tonight at 7:30.

Come to watch or join a team for $5 a person with a chance to win fantastic prizes, including gift certificates for the King's Head and Tim Hortons. Use your knowledge of Trivial Pursuit, Red River College, CSI, Sex and the City, and the King's Head! Even if you haven't joined a team, it will be a fantastic game to watch. Cheer on your friends, shout out the answers obnoxiously, or challenge another team. It'll be worth it!