Why Twitter is Good for Mindless Entertainment

I was skeptical at first about joining Twitter, but it turns out Twitter is a gold mine of awesome information like ridiculous websites. It all comes down to who you "follow".

If you're a fan of FML (Fuck My Life)... then you'll love these sites I found from people's tweets:

• Rename the Swine Flu - Don't ever want to hear the phrase "Swine Flu" again? Rename it.

• The Fucking Weather - Find out what the weather is like where you live

• Texts From Last Night - Who drunk dials anymore?

• Lamebook - Because this is the road Facebook is heading on

This type of crowdsourced, specific content is where I think the internet is going. Creating social networks, microsites and viral videos is so mid-2000s because there's enough of those out there. Internet users want to be entertained, informed... and these one-off sites are pretty damn funny. Plus, all the work is done because users are submitting content. Genius.

Star in Your Own Video Game!

Turns out I get to go to DISNEYWORLD for graduation after all. My family and I couldn’t get on stand-by to go home to Honolulu, so we took a flight to Orlando out of Chicago.

Unfortunately, Disneyworld was a bust because of the awful downpour that lasted the entire day and a half I was in Orlando. Epcot was one giant puddle and Disney’s vibrant colors were washed out like cell walls. Disney was having a field day selling $8 ponchos on top of charging $75 for admission and not having to put on any of the outdoor shows. The rain was a big bummer but I still had fun.
The BEST part of Epcot was Futureworld--a nerdy kid’s (me) dream come true filled with machines, cars, space, inventions and innovations. My siblings and I checked out the IBM exhibit at Innoventions and made a video game with ourselves in it:Play the GAME, the victory dance won't disappoint.

In Need of Some Beer-vation

Where's a recent graduate to find motivation? Hmm... how about in BEER? Yep, this post is dedicated to beer-vation--one in a series of things that inspire me.

My love for GOOD beer started last semester when I studied abroad in London. Beer drinking was like breathing; you went to the pub for a pint during lunch, you grabbed a pint before bed at your neighborhood pub, and good beer was cheap (£3/pint avg).

Here's a photo of my roommate Larissa and I in London drinking a pint of locally brewed TIMMY TAYLOR at the Cheshire/Devonshire/Whoknowswhatshire Arms:
I didn't like beer at first. I remember my first beer being an MGD and not finishing it. It's also hard to love it when in America you're drinking Natty Ice, Bud Light, Coors and High-Life in large quantities out of a red solo cup. I recently saw a friends Facebook status that said:

"You know what we think of you're American beer? It's like having sex in a canoe. Fucking close to water." -BEERWARS

Pretty funny. I haven't seen it, but Beerwars is a documentary about small American breweries trying to fight the big guys (Bud, Miller & Coors) by winning people over with its unique taste and quality. Here's the trailer:

Anyways, today my roomates and I decided to take a tour and tasting of Harpoon Brewery in Boston (I've visited a brewery before, the Heineken Brewery in Amsterdam... cool exhibits and fun games, but bad beer). Well, turns out Beer does have a direct correlation with graduating from college, because two Harvard Business Grads started Harpoon after they went backpacking in Europe (one of them also quit his job at Lehman Bros after a year) and realized America was missing this local brewery culture. They opened the brewery in 1986.

The tour and tasting lasted an hour and was $5 all-you-can-drink for 30 minutes and a keepsake glass. Inside the brewery:
Store room with 20,000 cases. Gabs trying to look attentive.Freshest and coldest beer I've ever had.By the end, I had tried a bit of all their beers. My favorites were the UFO White, Leviathan (10% alc/vol), Ale and cider.
Bathroom signs:Lesson of the tour: Spend your life producing (and maybe drinking) what you love.
I left the tour very happy with a 64 oz. Growler of Harpoon Cider. It's definitely worth checking out if you're in Boston. The Silver Line #2 bus stops right in front of the brewery at the Harbor St. stop.

Although American beer has its down-sides, there is one thing American beer is good for: 40s.

UPDATED Flash Portfolio Site

I stayed up till 4 a.m. updating my flash portfolio site with recent work, and it's finally done and up. Nothing feels more rewarding than a debugged, working flash site. Check it out.

H&M Magazine = The Free Fashion Bible

Since age 12, I have been a magazine freak.  Old issues of Vogue, my aunt's stash of Glamour and Cosmo (I was probably too young then to be reading "101 Ways to Surprise Him in Bed"), $1.99 copies of Teen Vogue, Seventeen, Harper's Bazaar...  my favorites in high school were Nylon, ELLE, Marie Claire, InStyle and W (which reminds me, I have a stack of unread Ws waiting at home for me.  YAY, tan sesh).

BUT with the oh so unfortunate boom of online media, print media is dying.  While it's sad to see one magazine die after another, how can you compete with all the FREE MEDIA ON THE INTERNET? I'm an avid reader of NY Mag's Media Death Watch.

As for my present magazine reading habits:

• I don't buy magazines anymore (recession remember?)
• I take the extras from the mailroom
• wait for my roommates to buy them
• stand really long in CampCo skimming through them seeing if its worth buying
  
• Or find scans online

I've found a cure to my need to see pretty clothes on glossy paper--H&M magazine.  It's everything I look for in a magazine, pretty clothes, cool spreads, trends of the season... and NOT drowning in ads.  It's FREE at H&M stores, distributed quarterly and actually a pretty good read.  It features a lot of different designers and brands besides H&M, and the magazine doesn't forget about the boys because every issue has a male fashion spread.

Recessioners Find Your Nearest Bah

It can't be a coincidence that there's a recent surge of alcohol and cigarette promotions at bars. Alcohol and cigarette companies must think a recession is the best time to boost marketing, because recently I've been racking up a ton of FREE stuff (and shots) at T's Pub, Sunset Cantina and White Horse.Clockwise from top left:

1. Zippo lighter from Marlboro + my license scanned (aka identity stolen)
   
2. Absolut Mango-flavored chapstick + 2 Absolut Mango shots
   
3. Presidente bottle opener + 1 unfortunate shot of Presidente
   
4. Malibu tank top + 1 Malibu coconut shot
   

The lighter and bottle opener is a clever way to boost product sales, but I would never smoke like a cowboy or buy Presidente because it tastes like urine. This post is dedicated to my good friend Larissa.

It's the FINAL COUNTDOWN

I must say I admire BU's recent efforts to get me to donate money to the class gift. The Class Gift committee wants to raise $30,000, telling us graduates to "Define '09"... well, basing on personal circumstances, I'm predicting we'll be defined as the poorest class to ever graduate BU.

However, the NEW Class gift site "Define '09" may have just convinced me to spare $20.09. Check out the live Countdown to graduation... the only reason why I love it is because '11' is my favorite number. I was born on November 11 (11/11) and I turn 25 on 11/11/11... so why wouldn't 11 be my favorite number in the whole wide world.

Well guess what? I caught the countdown at 11 days 11 hrs 11 min 11 sec. Call me crazy, but I bet you wished you witnessed this moment with me.

Found my dream job, Boston Bruins Advertising

The past couple years, I've been a fan of Boston Bruins commercials. Beginning with the "I'm into Bruins" commericals (and the little kid version).  Recently the Bruins has topped themselves and combined my two most favorite things in the world: Hockey + Great Advertising.

Check out the 'Bruins Hockey Rules' commercials that are airing now on NESN:

There's a couple more on YouTube.  I love seeing the garden in the background, reminds me of Beanpot and Hockey East... wish I had money to go to a Bruins playoff games.  But I'll settle for a Stanley Cup! Go BRUINS. 

Let's Get More Chucked!

One of the coolest/craziest people I know is art director Danny Lowe from Digitas NY, who's recent Converse project launched today! It's the Converse consumer site, and definitely much easier to navigate than the old one.
I've always worn the basic black, low top chucks until they were disgustingly dirty with holes, but now I can MAKE MY OWN CHUCKS. It's like NikeID where you choose what color, style, shoelaces, etc. I made these for my roommate Marisa (Styleze blogger):
She loves pink and zebra print. No really, our plates have zebra stripes and mixing bowls are pink.

BUT THE COOLEST PART of the new Converse site are their SKATE shoes... who knew Converse made skate shoes. I say it's about time, not just because I love skateboarders, but because I've always thought Emerica shoes looked a lot like chucks:
Converse's Skate shoes:
Congratulations D-Lowe on the site! Once again, Converse is proof that a recession is no time to stop innovating and ad spend.

Kream of the Krop

I haven't been living up to my dailyness, but I promise to make it up with more letters to college. As for all you creatives out there, here's a great online portfolio hosting site and job database--Krop.

I created mine today:

I like the simple layout, apple-esque design and drop-down feature. The only downside is the FREE version only allows you to upload 10 images... bummer right? It costs $9.99 to upgrade to pro. Sites got to make money some how. 10 images will have to do until I get my portfolio site together.

Medieval Times at Higgins Armory

I've been M.I.A. the past few days working on my final school assignment--portfolio for art direction class. Below are print ads and a billboard for Higgins Armory Museum in Worcester, MA.

I would have loved to visit Higgins if I had more time and A CAR (and the skills to drive). This place has live sword demonstrations and knights. Pretty cool huh, medieval nerds.