Monthly Archives: January 2012
My First Week as a Business Student
“A story should be remembered for its soul, & not its bell & whistles” – Bernajean Porter (From Wiki Brands)
I’ve finally enrolled in University! It’s only part-time but it’s a big step for a 34 year old with a family. I had my first lecture on Monday night and learned about a lot of different aspects of the business world. My favorite facts include:
- 42.7% of Canadian families have no children and therefore would be good to market to.
- There is much, much more diversity these days
- The comparison of mature workers & Gen X’ers
- The importance of heeding to the legal & regulatory environment.
All of the reviewing I’ve done of the first chapter has gotten me thinking more like a business man too! I had my first client last week as a “website advisor” (check out Now n’ Zen’s improved online look, there’s a few changes to go), I attended a seminar with Suzanne Scott of Village Pottery on the importance of social media (lots of great advice btw), had a great interview with a local comedian, author, and fundraiser extradinaire Patrick Ledwell, & weighed the pros & cons of switching a local radio format on Hot 105.5 from Classic Rock to Top 40 on ONRPEI.ca.
http://wiki-brands.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/get-yours-sidebar.png
Other than that I’m reading Wiki Brands by Sean Moffitt & Mike Dover which talks about company reinvention, brand evolution, and how talking with customers is much more important in this age of social media that talking at them. One point I really like from that book is that marketers are should think of the game as less like a war, church, or school than a party and don’t be a general, pastor, or a teacher, be a good host & mingle!
On the news last night…
I’m not American or a military man, but I used to be in army cadets in junior high, so I know there’s a lot of team pride when it comes to the armed forces. I’m sure a great many who put on the uniform for their country feel another soldier’s pain when they go down whether from a bullet or a legal dispute so here’s some sympathy to all that feel pretty shaken up about this not to mention their families who miss them too.
When I saw the story on the news last night about soldiers peeing on dead enemies the first thing that popped into my head was this must be psychological warfare. What kind of grown men would do such a disgusting thing in a country where they’re supposed to be “peace-keepers” & put a video on the internet about it? I’m not even gonna joke about it, it’s pretty disrespectful.
I’m not going to speculate too much but I’m sure that an act like this doesn’t represent even a small fraction of those that leave their families behind to put their life on the line and definitely not the people of the country they’re “defending”. Anyways, I’m in no position to speak on their behalf but here’s an apology, I’m sure they weren’t thinking about the long-term & that they must feel terrible for the sake of their loved ones. I for one can forgive…
Like this:
And the Winner Is… Me???
“Time waits for no one. Tom Waits is not for everyone.” PLHolden (I think)
Does this qualify as a "Triptych"?
Over the holidays I found out that I had won an award for blogging! I have to admit I was pretty surprised since I have been neglecting wishiwerethere7 for quite a while but when I was looking back thru the posts of last year it was a pretty good variety of topics I’d covered and I rather enjoyed reading it myself after having time to forget it. Here’s the rules of the 7×7 Link Award and I plan to follow thru. Special thanks to Melissa at play101.wordpress.com it feels great to be appreciated and I think this’ll give me enough inspiration to get at least one post a week going. After all, I love blogging and why not take the time to enjoy it.
The Rules
1. List your top posts (of all you’ve ever written) under the 7 categories below
2. Pass the award on to 7 of your fellow bloggers and let them know you did so
3. Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to his or her blog
Here’s the 7 Categories & Posts that I’ve chosen…
Most Beautiful
Happy Earthday to you I really tried to come from the heart on this one since it is so important to appreciate the earth that is our home.
Most Helpful
A List of Apathy I got some great comments about this one which was actually written one a day when I was feeling a little hopeless about being able to get people to care about my thoughts.
Most Popular
The Artwork Page I was so grateful for the comments on this one, people really seem to love it. I have to admit I’m still feeling like an amateur as an artist because of having done so few originals but if I can push myself there will be some on the way.
Most Controversial
Wipe That Smile off your Face On this one I challenged the notion that men who don’t smile are more attractive, not necessarily for my cause, but for the young men who saw the same story on the news about a study that was done who might feel inclined to walk around with a big-ass snarl and expect their life to turn into an “Axe” commercial. In my opinion smiling is the cornerstone to expressing happiness (& it’ll keep your face looking younger too).
Most Surprisingly Successful
Birthday Wishes Last year I dedicated my birthday wishes to people who have it rough. I have been so blessed in life and I bet that the one’s I’ve wished well are at least 90% better off than they were back then.
Most Underrated
The Fundamentals of Planking I hate to be so cocky but I honestly thought that my first YouTube vid was going to go VIRAL!!! It was the first ever “Planking Day” and I saw stuff on TV about it. Low & behold I didn’t even get 100 hits on it. Oh well, maybe some day somebody famous will tweet about it “Just saw a video of some idiot from PEI falling off a swingset. #fail”
Most Prideworthy
Shadow Runners & A Campus Tour This one was about a seminar I attended about writing for kids. Although I haven’t taken the time to put a children’s book together yet, this was a very proud day for me.
Here’s my Favorite 7 (actually 9) blogs in no particular order, please check them out and don’t forget to look at their about page…
- http://jaredblakedicroce.com/ Tell it like it is man. This Actor/Author guy gives proactive solutions for social, environmental, and personal disfunction. And the “photoshopping” is admittedly amateurish. Most posts are pretty mindblowing & if he lived in a place that embraced oppression any more than his does I’m sure he’d be leading the rebels.
- http://sisterearthorganics.wordpress.com/ The kind of health advice your sure to learn from with a dash of humor thrown in. She give very encouraging comments too!
- http://acleansurface.com/ I just stumbled across this one recently, but I love the topics that remind me of the importance of feng shui and stuff.
- http://play101.wordpress.com/ Not only for caring enough to pass along the award, but her blogs put thoughtful parenting into perspective like no other.
- http://sayitwithmusic.wordpress.com/ I have to admit this one was very imspirational for me since I got the idea to finish most of my posts with a video of a song that fit the mood. (sorry for being a copycat)
- http://jessicabarlow.wordpress.com/ Jessica has a heart of gold and wears it on her sleeve. I haven’t checked her blog in a few months but when I was reading it on the daily she went from mucho frustration to absolute social herione! I have to admit that her speaking out about being more human is something I jumped on the bandwagon about.
- http://analyfe.com/ Analyfe is like sitting next to an honors student in psychology class. Although I’ve never taken a course at University, I’ve definitely read my share of books on the subject and the posts she writes apply these lessons to everyday life in a big way.
- http://leadershipfreak.wordpress.com/ I had to add a few more favorites and this one showed me the importance of keeping posts short and spreading the word about new posts. It’s a daily dose of leadership perspective not only for business men but leading yourself into any situation.
- http://thefitacademic.wordpress.com/ This one is about staying in shape on a busy schedule, being a teacher, and fun recipes. Earlier last year she let me guest post which was a huge confidence builder!
T.H.E. Top 5 Mick Jagger Duets
Jan 19
Posted by PL Holden
I finally got a chance to hear T.H.E. by Will.i.am, J.Lo, & Mick Jagger on the new Hot 105.5 the other day. I couldn’t believe my ears man! Wow, what an unlikely trio. The chorus goes something like this for all of those who haven’t heard it yet: “You can go hard, or you can go home, you can go hard, or you can go home…” sung by J.Lo which reminds me of the old saying in poker “Go big or stay home”. Then there’s Will.i.am’s rhymin’ about how hard he is & in the video (which I couldn’t resist checking out) he definitely shows why as he runs, texts, cycles, drives, flies, and rockets his way through seemingly impossible obstacles like a running back in a futuristic spacesuit. And yes that beat was definitely The Hardest Ever.
I don’t know how he did all that stuff without getting killed, but somehow he made it thru until he eventually launches into space and then things get really freaky, not only is there giant kaliedeiscopic shapes out there (how the hell did they manage to budget an actual spaceship?) with larger than life J.Lo’s repeatedly flying toward Will.i.am’s spaceship wearing several different outfits and striking multiple suggestive poses until he finally reaches the final frontier! Mick Jaaggggeerrrrr!!!!!
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/68/Licks_Tour_Sheryl_Crow_Mick_Jagger.jpg
Is that really the kind of stuff that astronauts have to contend with out there in the depths of space? Personally, I would’ve probably died of shock:( Anyways, after I got my bearings I thought about Mick’s lyrics in (as far as I know) his hip-hop debut.
Hard like rock ‘n’ roll
Time bombs tickin’, explode
Vivid as a dynamo
Better move back now
It’s ’bout to blow
Hard like geometry,
And trigonometry
This is crazy
Psychology
Yeah baby
I’m ’bout to win
Watch out now
I’m going in
That was some hard-core rappin’! My favorite part was “HARD like Geometry & Triganomatry, this is CRAZY psychology” It takes a big man to admit comprehensive difficulties in subjects like that, The only thing I was disappointed with was that he didn’t do his signature “Chicken Dance”, but I will give him kudos for wearing a cape. WHOOOOHOOOO!!!
Top 5 Duets for Mick Jagger
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Posted in Commentary, Music
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Tags: Duets, Hot 105.5, J.Lo, Mick Jagger, Music, Rap, T.H.E., The Hardest Ever, Will.i.am