The Cultural Alchemist

Is Burger King Back on The Throne

2008-02-13T23:36:00.000-08:00

It seems the "King" is making a comeback—Burger King that is—with its hilarious series of commercials filmed last November at a Midwestern Burger King.

The setup goes like this. Customers are told that Burger Kings's famous 'Whopper' has been discontinued due to its over popularity. Hidden cameras film the customer's reaction to their beloved hamburger’s demise. Needless to say, most customers where bewildered to downright dumbfounded at the fact their favorite fast-food hamburger was no longer offered.

Beyond the hilarious reactions from unsuspecting customers, the marketing behind it is genius, getting customers to proclaim their loyalty to Burger King’s product over their archrival McDonalds.

America's love for the hamburger dates back more than one-hundred years and has its origins from German immigrants. Now it has become an American icon, and like fine wine, people are finicky about its taste and even how it’s served to them. Who would've thought that a cooked pattie of ground beef would cause such emotional trauma to a hungry patron.

Video Source: YouTube

The British Soul Invasion

2008-02-02T11:17:00.000-08:00

Lately, the return of soul music is getting an interesting rebirth, not from its American roots, but from the motherland of good ol' Britain. Could this be the era of the white, female soul singer? It sure sounds like it with the likes of Joss Stone, Amy Winehouse, and recently Alice Russell.

Alice Russell

They are such phenomenal singers, and they do it with style, envoking that angst and emotion that makes soul music so therapeutic. And It's refreshing to see an African American music genre embraced across the pond and worldwide. From its roots in the 70s till today, soul music continues to make an impact among an era of commercial pop music, rock, and hip-hop.

Soul music always maintians a blip on the commerical radar from decade to decade. The evolution of American soul today is known as neo-soul that has developed many faithful followers over the last decade. Artist like Eryka Badu, Jill Scott, Angie Stone, Leela James, and others continue to garner praise from mainstream critics. But it's the unlikely source of the soul genre from Great Britain that strikes a cord of respect from even the most diehard.

White female singers with a soulful urban sound. The likes of these British singers had their beginnings like most artist, in the underground, which gave them a lot of street cred by the time they hit the mainstream.

Amy Winehouse

Channeling the voices of the 60s and 70s era of singers like Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight, Donny Hathaway, Steve Wonder and many others the new generation keeps alive the distinctive soul sound. Over the last decade we've had an American movement and now the British want to invade. From my standpoint, this might be one of the most welcoming invasion yet. Keep it coming.

NeoSoul Singers:

Angie Stone, Macy Gray, Eryka Badu, Goapele, India.Arie, Davina (R&B singer), Pru, Raphael Saadiq, Jazzyfatnastees, Adriana Evans, Ursula Rucker, Rhian Benson and Martha Redbone. Lucy Pearl, Glenn Lewis, Res, Bilal and Dwele.

More Recent...

Alicia Keys, John Legend, Emily King, Chrisette Michele, Musiq Soulchild, Anthony Hamilton, Floetry, Jill Scott, Ledisi, Conya Doss, Julie Dexter, Hil St. Soul, Laurnea, N'Dambi, Gaelle, Joy Denalane, Joy, Aya, Divine Brown, Teedra Moses and Corinne Bailey Rae

Link Source: Wikipedia
Photo Source: Artist Websites and Wikipedia

Microsoft Bids for Yahoo!

2008-02-01T20:51:00.000-08:00

Today, cash heavy software company Microsoft, made public its whopping $44 billion dollar bid for search engine giant Yahoo. Microsoft is notoriously known for being stingy in spending or investing any of its enormous cash reserves, but with this eye-popping bid, in an effort to take on goliath Google, they are ready to crack the piggy bank and splurge on what will play a large part in their future growth--search technologies.

This could be perfect timing for Yahoo, as their shares have been slipping lately while Google's shares continue to remain steady. A few years back, Yahoo failed to take advantage of the lucrative advertising dollars of search, where Google gobbled up the market. Now as advertisers look to increase spending to a projected $80 billion over the next two years, Microsoft needs what market share Yahoo does have to capitalize on the growing popularity of the internet for news and entertainment where once mediums like radio, television, and newspapers ruled.

It's a strange time in corporate world. With the battle over being number one, It seems everyone wants a piece of anothers pie to get there. Because as Microsoft attempts to acquire Yahoo to capitalize on the lucrative display Ad market, Google looks to get into Microsoft territory with its own free office applications, Google Apps Team Edition.

While Microsoft's bid is monumental, they still have many hurdles ahead like possible antitrust laws, Yahoo shareholders, and the likely hood of other bidders. The internet business reminds me of the movie Dark City, where the everything changes overnight. Hopefully, what emerges in the morning will be a landscape beaming with new amazing options for the consumer.

Emerging web based mediums:

Entertainment: Hulu.com, YouTube, Fox On Demand

Newspaper: Craigslist

Photo Source: Paul Sakuma / AP file

Isuzu Calls It Quit in America

2008-02-01T19:21:00.000-08:00

R.I.P Isuzu

After 26 years of selling commercial vehicles and passenger cars, the latter more than a decade ago, Isuzu America is no more. With only two truck models carrying the struggling car manufacture, the Ascender and I-series pickup, both based off General Motors' platforms, sales have declined drastically to just 4,138 units in 2007.

The writing on the wall was visible for some time, even as far back as 1993 when Isuzu stopped selling the popular Lotus-tuned Impulse (photo above) and Stylus sedan to focus on light trucks and SUVs. Even attempts to resurrect the brand in the public's mind with fictional 80s commercial icon, Joe Isuzu, didn't do much to improve sales or America's perception of the brand.

With so many companies trimming the fat of slow selling brands or models, it's sad to see Isuzu wasn't able to bring some innovative cars to our shores beyond the less stylish GM clones.

Hulu.com Is Here!

2008-01-26T01:00:00.000-08:00

Back in November 2007, Hulu.com announced that it would be beta testing its new website that offers premium programming in popular television shows, movies, and video clips among other media. Several popular networks like E! Entertainment, FUEL TV, SciFi Network and USA Network and others have partnered with Hulu to provide a full programming experience.

If you were interested in becoming a beta test participant, you were able to do so by providing your contact information for access to the site when it launched.

Only a select few, according to Hulu, would be chosen for access to the site. I signed up, hopeful that I would be picked to participate. Yesterday I received an email confirmation from Hulu with a login and password.

Here are some initial thoughts.

From the get go, I was pleased with the quality of the streaming video. Having looked at hundreds of videos on the web with grainy, pixelated quality, Hulu's video quality is refreshing with an HD look in normal viewing mode. The variety of popular shows they've managed to lineup so far is impressive--even offering programs that viewers could only watch with cable or satellite.

Hulu provides several viewing options to enhance your media experience with features like full-screen or pop out mode for a more cinematic look. Viewers can dim the lights of surrounding site, leaving the crisp video stream even more engaging.

Like YouTube, users can copy embedded code for placement on their website or blogs and share video with others. Hulu offers a users feedback section to flag video problems, or inappropriate content among other possible issues.

So far, I'm impressed. And for me, one of Hulu's greatest benefits is that it allows busy folks like myself to catch up on missed shows or when you've reached the maximum amount of programs you can record in an hour on your DVR.

For those who don't yet have access to Hulu's programs, I've posted a popular TV show from Hulu's site for you.

Episode 10 - Prison Break on FOX

Video Source: Hulu.com

Gawker Spills The Beans on Tom Cruise

2008-01-19T10:03:00.000-08:00

Patsy Cline's hit song, "Crazy" popped into my head after watching Tom Cruises' latest performance released by Gawker, now appearing on YouTube—Scientology's man of the year award. If you haven't seen the video, spoiler alert! Tom ingratiates himself and Scientology as the Rosetta Stone for the entire world.

In Tom's crazy, wild-eyed babbling discourse full of non sequiturs, he insinuates only a devoted follower of Scientology's principles can effect change on the world with their masterful ability to see a problem cosmically and somehow know what needs to be done.

Admittedly, I'm not that knowledgeable about Scientology's principles and practices, but I do believe that from Tom's perspective, the non-Scientologist is glib and the world is beyond their understanding, at least without the expensive guidance of a Scientologist auditor.

Other Cruise Moments:

Cruise Tangles with Matt Lauer

In order to be one-up on the world around you, you got pay—dearly. A session to get enlightenment can run as much as $750 to more than $8,000 dollars. That's a lot cheese for what could be looked at as intangible results.

I think Tom's celebrity probably has done some damage to Scientology's quest for new assimilates. And strangely enough we never hear of other high profile members like John Travolta, Kirstie Alley, and others getting entangled in such media mishaps dealing with Scientology. Why? Because they'd all like to keep their careers.

Tom the Scientologist has been public knowledge for years, but I think now we know that insanity and Scientology is a dangerous mix that could blow at any moment.

P.S. On second thought maybe Scientology causes insanity. Hummm?

Famous Scientologist:

TOM CRIUSE
JOHN TRAVOLTA AND KELLY PRESTON
FOREST WHITAKER
ISAAC HAYES
KIRSTIE ALLEY
ANNE ARCHER
MARY BONO (wife of Sonny Bono)
BECK
LEAH REMINI
JENNA ELFMAN
CATHERINE BELL
LAURA PREPON AND CHRISTOPHER KENNEDY MASTERSON
GIOVANNI RIBISI
JASON LEE
CHAKA KHAN
PLACIDO DOMINGO
SOLEIL MOON FRYE
JULIETTE LEWIS
BRANDY
MIMI ROGERS
PATRICK SWAYZE
GRETA VAN SUSTEREN
ROB THOMAS
KATE CAPSHAW
GLORIA GAYNOR
LEIF GARRETT

Hyundai Ask Are You Committed

2008-01-17T15:45:00.000-08:00

Back in September Hyundai began a new marketing campaign called
"Think About It". The campaign was conceived by Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, a marketing agency Hyundai recently tapped to redevelop their image in the mind of American customers. In Hyundai's press release, VP of marketing Joel Ewanick states, "Our new 'Think About It' advertising campaign is designed to be thought provoking."

After watching several of the aired commercials and reading ads placed in a few popular car magazines, I can affirm that the ads definitely have unearthed some latent thoughts I've had for years. One specific commercial, "where is the commitment," links our society's obsession with instant gratification to problems with commitment—something I think is a dying attribute in the American mind.

In this commercial it talks about physical appearance, our jobs, and our relationships as things we discard when we tire of them, regardless of our original commitment. The question is have we become so recklessly cavalier in light of the instant gratification modern society provides us?

As thought provoking as Hyundai's commercial may be, it can only provide a spark for self-examination of one’s commitments in life. How can we take the momentum of this marketing piece to a deeper personal level, leading us all towards change?

A starting point would be commitments close cousin—integrity.

Pop Star Lunacy

2008-01-17T09:51:00.000-08:00

In light of a recent well-known pop stars continual public melt down, the question of her mental health is becoming the talk of entertainment news shows and tabloid papers. Unless you've been living at the center of the Earth, you know we're talking about Britney Spears. No one could possibly screw up this much in public and not have some type of mental issues at play.

Allegedly, Britney calls paparazzi to clue them in on her whereabouts, she constantly shows up at local gas stations, drinks endless amounts of Frappuccinos from Starbucks, and misses court cases for custody of her children, yet recently stages a 3-hour holdup in her home with her youngest child. And don’t forget the bizarre British accent she spouts at parades of paparazzi occasionally. This is all strange behavior pop star or not.

The purpose of this post is not to add another celebrity report on Ms. Britney, but to highlight what some think is possibly postpartum depression causing her bizarre behavior. Horrific and very public incidents over the past few years of postpartum depression at its untreated extremes have had outcomes with mother of four boys, Andrea Yates drowning her sons in the bathtub.

More recently, celebrity Brooke Shields went public with her battle with postnatal depression and how she had thoughts of committing terrible acts to herself and child, but had the mindset to know that she needed help, which she eventually sought.

With all this being said, I have a different take. From reports that I've heard through the news and read in papers, I believe Britney is possibly suffering from bipolar disorder. The excessive spending-estimated in the tens of thousands per month, the blatant dismissal of custody cases, and the bizarre relationship with one of the paparazzi, and her continual bating of other paparazzi, all speaks to a person who is impulsive and destructive.

According to WebMD symptoms of Bipolar disorder can include:

Act impulsively or do reckless things, such as go on shopping sprees, drive recklessly, get into foolish business ventures, or have frequent, indiscriminate, or unsafe sex.
Have a very high opinion of himself or herself (inflated self-esteem).
Feel extremely happy or very irritable.

WebMD list several other symptoms that are indicative of bipolar disorder, many of which seem to fit Britney's recent behavior. It could be true that postpartum syndrome escalated what might have been mild at one time bipolarism.

My hope is that eventually this once lofty pop star will get the right people around her to find the road to recovery. I hope this continuing story doesn't have a tragic ending.

Photo Source: WorldofBritney.com

A Search Engine For Job Seekers

2008-01-13T10:37:00.000-08:00

At any given time there are millions of Americans searching for a new job. Whether you are a new graduate just starting out, or looking for a career change, or just a better gig, the old saying is certainly true--looking for work is like having a full-time job. However, today with the Internet, there are many options available for job seekers.Over the last decade, dozens of online job boards have sprung up offering their services to job seekers.

Two major job boards that appeared early on in the Internet boom were Monster.com and Careerbuilder.com, which are now joined by dozens of job boards offering a broad listing of openings and others that are tailored for specific careers.

While it is great that there are now many options, searching every big and small job board can be time consuming and overwhelming.Job seekers now have available to them a powerful new search engine called Indeed.com that is dedicated to extracting all those open positions from major and minor job boards and even corporate employment pages and presenting them in one location.

Visitors of Indeed.com can even leave comments and questions about a particular position or posting, which further helps visitors decide if a particular company is right for them.

After recommending Indeed.com to many of friends, I've received positive feedback on how the search engine has streamlined their job search. So the next time you’re looking for a new career, check out indeed.com. You might be surprised; your dream career could be just a click away.Image

Source: Indeed.com

Ford's Steep Climb To Move Way Forward

2008-01-13T06:15:00.000-08:00

It's no secret that Ford is not doing well at selling its cars lately. With the decline of pickup sales due to high gas prices, long in the tooth model refreshing, and quality issues of the past that seem to repeatedly plague the manufacture, it's a wonder they still have hope that a bright light even exist at the end of the sales tunnel.

The Ford Americans have known for the past decade, has forgotten how to design desirable vehicles for the American public, putting out models that are years behind in design and quality of its competitors. The last desirable car, the Focus, was allowed to age and wither in sales, before that was the Lincoln LS.

As of late, Ford has taken measures to improve the quality and reliability of its entire vehicle line. But the question still remains, is it a little too late to save this dying American icon. While that ending is still yet to be written, Ford executives are busy cutting cost, aligning its global designs and platforms and working hard to sell off its premium brands Land Rover and Jaguar.

While these measures will go a long way to slow the hemorrhaging of sales and revenue, Ford needs the new blood of its fresh European kinetic designs along with excellent quality to bring back American customers to its dealerships. A glimmer of the possible future was shown at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show with the introduction of its Verve Sedan concept vehicle, which is still two years away.

General Motors, the world's largest automaker was in the same shape not long ago, but quickly figured out how to infuse some life into the company by dumping many of its underwhelming American models for models from its German brand Opel to renew interest.

If it sounds like I'm down on Ford, I'm not, I want the company to survive and better compete in the market. To compete, Fords way forward is going to entail scaling the Mt. Everest of American opinion.

What's Right:

Improved Realiablity
Lower NVH
Microsoft Sync Technology
Ecoboost Engine Technology

What's Not:

Slab-Sided Designs
Unimaginative Interior Designs
Hard Grainy Plastic Interiors
B-Pillar Quarter Windows

2008 Detroit Auto Show Begins

2008-01-13T04:15:00.000-08:00

America puts its best foot forward with the annual Detroit Auto Show starting today. Undoubtedly this will be a big year for GM with multiple new offerings in midsize family sedans and with fresh new designs with much improved quality throughout its vehicle lineup.

Even though gas prices continue to rise, Ford and Chrysler will introduce redesigned large trucks to compete with GM and Toyota's full-size trucks. Out side of American steel, manufactures like Hyundai will possibly be introducing some very important models like their new Genesis Sedan and Tiburon sports coupe that will give us a look at their future design direction.

I'm watching much of the auto show coverage from Autoblog.com, which always provides great hi-res photos and commentary on industry news. I'll post links to many of the new models as soon as they are available.

PHOTO GALLERY

2009 Ford F-150 / Ford F-150 LIVE reveal

2009 Dodge RAM / Dodge RAM LIVE reveal

2009 Cadillac CTS-V

Cadillac CTS Coupe Concept

2008 Mazda RX-8

2010 Ford Verve

2009 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1

2009 Hyundai Genesis

2009 Volkwagen CC (4-door Coupe)

Mercedes Benz GLK

Saab 9-4X Concept

2009 Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart

2009 Subaru Forester (US spec)

2008 Cadillac Provoq Concept

2009 Toyota Venza

Companies That Soared and Some that Nose Dived in 2007

2008-01-02T12:57:00.000-08:00

Here is a great article from BNET that I discovered that list 2007 companies that soared in flight or took a dive for one reason or another. After reviewing the list, I could not resist adding my two cents worth of wisdom in bold.

This week, we’re highlighting PRWeek’s very good summation of the year past in their 2007 Book of Lists. Here are their brands on the rise and brands that “sunk” in 2007:

Brands that “soared” according to PRWeek:

Apple: Thanks to the hugely successful launch of the iPhone and introduction of the iPod Touch Apple continued to be a darling of Wall Street, with its stock prices reaching an all-time company high of $192 a share.

Apple buyers are like Honda buyers--loyal to the core. Even when Apple launched it's iPhone at a ridiculous price, apple cronies defended it and bought the iPhone in droves.

TMZ: The celebrity Web site separated itself from the pack this year by launching a TV show. It also continued to break a number of stories about celebrity breakdowns, divorces, and deaths.

It was only a matter of time until the virus of salacious celebrity reporting jumped from print to the airwaves.

Nintendo: The launch of the still hard-to-find Wii gaming system at the end of 2006 set Nintendo up for an all but can’t miss opportunity to have a wonderful 2007. It didn’t miss.

Sony Playstation 3 didn't see this coming. Nintendo is resurrected from obscurity.

Wal-Mart: Aside from its usual financial dominance, the retail giant also won a slight reprieve from critics by concentrating on its environmental program to reduce waste and promote sustainability - one that has served as a model for the rest of big industry.

Hummm. Last I heard Wally World was in trouble. Going green isn't going to be enough to get back in the good graces of consumers.

Facebook: The social networking site hit its stride this year, becoming a must-join among business people. It was able to address users’ concerns about privacy swiftly and managed to preserve its loyal following, as well as snag a $240 million investment from Microsoft.

Ok...so I'm a Facebook member--they got me. What else can I say.

And those that “sunk” in 2007:

Sears Holdings: This year, the owner of the Sears and Kmart retail stores announced a 99% drop in third-quarter profits from $196 million to just $2 million year over year. It will certainly have to do better if it ever hopes to compete again with the likes of Wal-Mart and Target.

Is Kmart still around?

Mattel: While its stock price wasn’t severely damaged by this year’s toy recalls, the hit to its reputation is inevitable.

Forget talking to strangers kids. The predator is sitting right in your playroom.

Ampd Mobile: One of the worst tech collapses since the dot bomb, the cell phone company filed for bankruptcy in June, letting a $360 million investment go to waste.

Never heard of them. Maybe that's why they aren't doing so well.

Britney Spears: Spears made such a mess of her life in 2007 that a judge awarded unemployed ex-husband K-Fed custody of their kids. Lowlights include numerous panty-less exits from cars, a head shaving, and the infamous dead-in-the-eyes performance at the MTV Video Music Awards.

The image on her homepage is not one of virtue. This is one sad example of a life and career in trouble. My suggestion is to clean up your act or at least do your dirty deeds away from the cameras. Moving out of Los Angeles would be a huge step forward in restoration.

Citigroup: Getting caught up in the sub-prime fallout, it not only posted a $6.4 billion loss, but CEO Chuck Prince was forced to resign. It announced plans to lay off more than 40,000, and its stock continues to tumble.

Their websites says home loans are easy as 1, 2, 3. Maybe they gave them out a little too easily.

Article Source: BNET
Photo Source: Flickr.com

Prying Eyes on Facebook

2007-12-09T12:28:00.000-08:00

At one time, one of the great allures of surfing the Internet was that one could do it with complete anonymity. Today, the anonymity we all enjoyed while surfing the web are long behind us.

Advertisers caught on long ago in how to increase their sales by finding out our secret search habits.Over the years, privacy issues have been a major concern for consumers and consumer advocates who look to maintain users right to privacy from marketers seeking information about every site a consumer visits.

On November 6, 2007, social networking site Facebook added a privacy-busting feature called Beacon that tracks sites that Facebook users visit. The motive is to place advertising in front of the members based on the sites they visit. Facebook has already signed up several participating companies for this program.

Originally, Beacon was deployed without the owner’s consent. Now after all the controversy, users can opt out of the feature. Even more alarming is how Beacon gives Facebook's members a heads up on participating sites their friends visit. For example, if you searched a participating site to buy your spouse a gift, your secret wouldn't be such a secret once Facebook emails friends about your purchase.

I'm amazed. Nothing seems to be sacred anymore in this age of information. Many believe the government and private sector are encroaching on the privacy of others an inch at a time. Whoever knew that Big Brother had a little brother waiting in the wings.

Photo Source: Gadgetell.com

Robert Sutton's Vision of a Civilized Workplace

2007-12-04T21:44:00.000-08:00

Trou·ble·mak·er: a person who consciously or unconsciously causes trouble.
-Merriam-Webster Dictionary

The A-word. I didn't say it, but Robert Sutton has with his upfront perspective on ridding the workplace of bad employees. We've all experienced them--the office troublemaker that cost companies thousands of dollars in turnover and many of its employee’s sleepless nights.

BNET highlights a timely new book, "The No Asshole Rule" by Robert Sutton that guides employees and companies in how to deal with rogue employees. This book will undoubtedly strike a nerve with many hard working Americans today.

A few years ago, after venting to a close friend, not associated with the company, about the indignation I felt concerning some actions a senior manager had taken with regards to company policies, and how oblivious it seemed upper management was to their schemes, a friend made a poignant statement that he believed the worst corporate managers know how to allude getting reprimanded or even getting canned.

His observations lead me to do a little research in the areas of workplace politics and management. There is a litany of books on this topic. All had a similar conclusion that bad employees and managers are a major cause of turnover in most companies. For a more detailed posting on what the expert’s reveal, look for a follow up posting soon.

Also, see BNET Video.

Source: BNET

The Metropolitian $30K Millionaire

2007-11-29T12:24:00.000-08:00

Every major city has them. Often they lurk in trendy areas of town with newly constructed lofts, frequent upscale restaurants and bars with avant-garde names like lime or oxygen, and frolic with dolled up ladies in stilettos standing around with parched throats searching for a free drink from any bloke that'll take the bait.

They're called the 30K millionaire. A sub-culture of young, metropolitan dwelling, American society that desire the life of the wealthy, but are wealth less, in turn they try to emulate what they don't really have--money.

Although woman do apply, the 30K millionaire is mostly associated with men between the ages of 25-40 years of age—give or take a few years, who work hard to impress everyone around them--especially woman.

The Urbandictionary.com explains it as "a person who earns roughly 30 to 40k a year but acts like a millionaire in front of their peers. Someone who maxes-out their credit cards, leases everything and hangs out at trendy bars in order to impress and ultimately score with the opposite sex. It's not what you make... it's what you fake. "

As for Dallas, I'd place the 30K Millionaire's income around 50-60K a year. Because let's face it you can't lease a $30-35,000 BMW 3 series or inifiniti G37 on an income of 30 grand—well unless you living with your mama. That's a whole other subject in the category of pretenders. About ten years ago was the first time I heard the term $30K millionaire as a new transplant to Dallas, Texas, one of the nation’s top 5 metropolitan areas.

Coming from a small town, there wasn't much of a social scene or hot bed of visible wealth looming enough for young up and comers to emulate it. Funny enough this term was shared with me by a person who I would have considered to be among its followers. I worked in the advertising business at the time, which seemed to be a magnet for wannabes of all types.

An afterhours get-to-together was usually at a popular bar hot spot with expensive cars valeted outside, and inside guys displaying worked out physiques, and girls wearing the latest of- the-rack outfits--letting everyone know they were fashionable. Not much has changed in the ten years since I arrived in Dallas--it actually might be worse than before.

Dallas is not the only large city where urban dwellers like these nest. I think this is a phenomenon across the nation. Large cities on either coast have had scenes like this for decades, but is seems out of place in the south, were people are said to be less pretentious and more genuine. This is true, except when it comes to Big-D.

If you drive just 35 miles west of Dallas, you'll find a very different atmosphere in Ft. Worth. How did Dallas get this way? I think the late 90s technology boom, and the influx of outsiders, more than 500,000 in ten years has pushed us to put on airs.

P.S. In searching for photos for this post, I found a great site that caters to the pretentiousness of Dallas. 30 Thousand Dollar Millionaire

Photo Source: [Dallas Observer] [30kdm.com]

Scribd.com | A New Way to Share Documents

2007-11-25T13:09:00.000-08:00

If you've got some great original work, written today, yesterday or even ten years ago, and think the rest of the world would benefit from reading it, but don't have the time or money to publish, try Scribd.com. Scribd.com is a free online document publishing site that makes it easy to share your work with the rest of the world with a simple upload.

In 2006 Trip Adler and Jared Friedman, Inspired by their desire to publish school papers online, launched their idea to create a place where people could share their writings with the rest of the world.
Using Scribd.com, readers can publish all sorts of writings from publications, articles, poems, presentations and more, as long as it is their original work.

Posters can submit their documents in various formats like word files, PDFs, TXT, PowerPoint, Excel or LIT files. Scribd does state that they do not endorse any documents containing hate speech and any content considered illegal in the United States. Similar to Wikipedia, Scribd users are watchdogs for content violations. Users may flag content that is suspect for Scribd to investigate and or remove from the site.

I find Scribd another great example of Web 2.0 in practice, where users connect with each other and share information. If you're looking for some exposure to your writings, Scribd.com is definitely worth a posting.For more information and questions about Scribd, visit their FAQ page.

Image Source: Scribd.com

A Glimpse of Hell at a Store Near You

2007-11-25T12:30:00.001-08:00

Hell. A sore and controversal subject throughout the ages can now be seen in a glimpse through the eyes of Bill Wiese. 23 Minutes in Hell is a chilling book I recently came across at my local Borders book store. From his account, God took Bill to a place that believers and skeptics alike would all agree they'd like to avoid!

This is definitely a more abstract subject for the Cultural Alchemist, but I think the topic of hell holds a prevalent position in the mind of our culture. This book is worth a read to find out just where you stand personally on where the Bible states many may end up. I'd be happy to hear your comments.

Also Reference: bibestudent.net, Scribd.com

Hulu is Coming!

2007-11-20T09:31:00.000-08:00

Yet another social media site comes alive to rival the famed YouTube. This past Monday from network media giant NBC and News Corp. launched a site called Hulu, now in beta testing, to provide top rated television shows, movies, and media clips of all sorts to viewers. According to Hulu's site, "Hulu is designed with a singular focus on providing an exceptional, online video viewing experience. You can customize the experience to fit your viewing preferences."

Like YouTube, Hulu will allow users to share videos or embed them into their own sites. Users will also be able to view streaming video at their partner sites like Yahoo, MSN, MySpace, and AOL to name a few.

All of this sounds great if they can get potential viewers to show up. I signed up to be one of the hopefuls to receive access to during beta. I do watch many of the programs they've listed on their site as screen captures. I usually not at home when many of these programs air, and I don't have the luxury of TiVo, so having access away from home is a major convenience not to mention a great way to play catch up on missed shows. I'll let you know when and if I am one of the chosen for Beta.

The Rise of The Millennials

2007-11-16T13:00:00.000-08:00

It seems now that generation X is off the watch list, a new generation termed millennials are taking the spotlight. If you were born between 1980 and 2000, you are now coded as a millennial. Like the baby boomers and generation Xers, millennials are characterized by their social environment, how they are parented, technologies available, and major trends and events of that generation.

There may be reason to worry for us who were born before the millennials. Some look at millennials as less resilient, lacking work ethic, and attitude of self-entitlement that may or may not be deserved. If this is true, the question is, do we have ourselves to blame for this strange new generation?

Taking the millennials perspective, we see young adults who've grown up with social media pitching instant gratification for all your desires, the birth of the Internet, cell phones, computers everywhere, and new age parents who are concerned more about their children as friends than subordinates. And don't forget, millennials seem to be the least loyal and committed of any generation--it's all about them.

Considering everything involved in shaping a generation, how do you reach the millennial generation? Though each generation adds its own positive effect on society, there are some tried and true personal characteristics of pass generations that keep society moving forward. Do millennials lack this? If so, how do we teach them.

This is just one perspective. Some believe millennials are hard working and have a strong desire to succeed and shape the world around them. So much so, that much of our social marketing is being driven by millennials desire to leave their indelible mark on society. Trendwatching.com describes this cultural phenomenon as gravanity.Watch and exclusive 60 Minute report on millennials.

For great articles on dealing with millennials in the workplace visit about.com.

Video source: 60 Minutes

Killer Apps To Keep You Wired

2007-11-13T21:15:00.000-08:00

In this age of constant connection, several well-known companies continue to pump out new applications and gadgets to keep you wired and connected with the world that surrounds all of us. Work, recreation, or just an insatiable need to stay informed is fueled by a plethora of choices so you'll never get bored.

An article in Fast Company by Robert Scoble, a video podcast pioneer and blogger, clues us in on some of the latest applications that can make our busy lives easier. Robert gives no less than six great ways to stay update.

Checkout some of these killer applications:

Grand Central: Send calls to any phone and listen to messages from any web browser.

Callwave: Can convert voice mail into text messages.

Jott: Send message to yourself and have them emailed to you in audio and text form.

Fring: Send instant messages through Gtalk, Skype, and ICQ using your mobile.

ShoZu: Allows you to upload images to photo-sharing websites.

EditGrid: Spreadsheet program that can be used on iPhone.

Source: FastCompany

Americans Too Fat for Disneyland Rides?

2007-11-11T10:19:00.000-08:00

It seems that Americans are becoming fatty boom booms. In an article posted on Wired's blog, Americans increasing rotundity are causing cute little Disneyland boats to lose their float. Literally running aground in the water.

Many have argued that we live in a bloated, capitalist society, but now we visibly wear our success on our fannies. Ironically, when you go to theme parks or vacation spots like this, you are met with a cornucopia of eats and treats that have little to no nutritional value.

Is Disney literally feeding its guest into the proverbial ground? Here's the scope as posted on Miceage.com

If there's a sadder commentary on the state of American society, we can't think of it –we've grown so fat we sink the boats of It's A Small World. According to Miceage.com, the boats routinely bottom out under the weight of super-sized riders, bringing the popular ride to a grinding—literally—halt.

That's increased the wear and tear on the fiberglass boats, which have been in use since the ride opened during the 1964 World's Fair, when Americans, on average, weighed 25 pounds less than we do today. It's a big problem.

Other rides, including the drop in the Pirates of the Caribbean, face the same problem, Miceage says, but nowhere is it more of headache than It's a Small World. The ride features several twists and bends where overloaded boats easily bog down, including the "S" bend through the Scandinavian room.

Employees—Disney calls them "cast members" —have been aware of the issue for some time now and so discretely leave empty seats in boats carrying heavy riders. But backups persist, and in some cases, no one realizes there's a problem until boats stop emerging from the ride.

Disneyland is putting the ride in dry-dock for 10 months to make it ship-shape again. The boats will be replaced with more buoyant models, and the new flume will be one inch deeper. Work will begin in January.

Source: Wired Blog via Miceage