Then You Stand- Mom Story

Go to http://www.pilotinyourhands.com/ and click on "Be Inspired". Go Mom.

Or click on the image below to make it larger and read our story.

I can finally call Tim McGraw "delicious" and not get weird looks

Tim McGraw is getting his own flavor of Fritos. Starting today, Tim McGraw's Spicy Jalapeno Fritos can be picked up at your local Wal-Mart.

Twitter away: PR pros mix business and pleasure

"What was once the domain of self-described geeks and in-the-know college students, Twitter has metastasized and inundated a public relations industry seeking the fastest and most effective way to get the message out. " -Boston Business Journal, April 25, 2008

PS- Follow me on Twitter!

Four days 'til Freedom

It's Monday morning. I have a four day week... don't the shorter weeks always go by slower than you'd expect?

Last night I lost my fifth straight game of Scrabulous to my boyfriend. Anyone have tips on how to win at Scrabble? Even if he is a Scrabulous phenom who shows no mercy, I still think he's an alright guy. Check out the latest article he wrote after interviewing rock legend, Joan Jett.

I was amused by this AdRants posting, particularly because my agency has enforced a strict dress code for all staff (creatives included) and this code by Leo Burnett is more lax than ours and... best part... a joke.

Fox Field of Trash

I attended the Foxfield Horse Races in Charlottesville yesterday. I had an absolute BLAST! It was my first time in attendance and myself and a few good friends set up shop in the outer field and watched the races while illegally placing $1 bets on the horses with the coolest names. A good time was had- I mean we had beer, gambling, sandwiches, friends and horses- how could it not be awesome? However about halfway through, my friend told me that we had to venture to the inner field because I couldn't go to Foxfield without seeing what it was like. What I saw inspired me to write the following letter. The JMU student newspaper, The Breeze, shut down for the semester due to finals so I didn't have a chance to try to get it published. Therefore I've decided to post my Letter to the Editor on my blog.


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Fox Field of Trash

The Foxfield Races on April 26 provided a great excuse to wear our fancy clothes, drink a beer at 11:00 a.m. and socialize with family and friends. As a JMU Alum I was excited to walk from my plot on the outer field to the inner field where the colleges flew their flags and the Greek life was in its zone: popped collars, big hats and mimosas. However I was severely disappointed at the absolute disrespect the people on the inner field showed for themselves, each other and the environment.

I could not walk two steps without crunching an empty beer can. The "no glass" rule was apparently disregarded as I avoided broken shards while weaving through the passed out girls seemingly "sunning themselves" on the lawn. I even watched as a drunken daredevil hopped the fence of the outer field and ran across the horse track- do you not realize you could have ruined the races for everyone? While staring at the acres upon acres of litter strewn about I was reminded of the ASB trip I took my Senior Year at JMU. We went to Biloxi, Mississippi to clean up after Hurricane Katrina. One day, myself and the other participants walked around a large sports park picking up litter that the Hurricane had tossed around so carelessly that children could no longer play there. The Foxfield inner field was 10 times worse than what Katrina did to this sports park. For the first time in my life I can say that I was ashamed of JMU for flying their flag there.

I understand that JMU wasn't the only college acting up at Foxfield- but we should be the first college standing up for what's right and representing ourselves well. So here are some tips, from me to you, Foxfield attendees of JMU:

There are HUGE trash cans everywhere. Use them! It's despicable, at this time in our life, to think littering is okay. Foxfield should have recycling but in the mean time: throw away your trash.
1. If you're going to fly your Sorority or Fraternity flag on your truck, I recommend not standing on top of it chugging a bottle of liquor.
The Police aren't there to hassle or arrest you. That's more paperwork for them. If they come up to speak with you- just comply and you'll probably be alright.
It's really inappropriate to booty dance and grind to country music at 2:00 p.m. At least wait until it's dark so no one can see you.
If you're going to rock a JMU hat, cozies or flip flops, don't look like a drunken idiot. That just fuels the fire that JMU is a "party school". We do have awesome parties, but we shouldn't act like fools.

For those of you who were in the inner field, behaving and being respectful, I applaud you. Please feel free to find my group on the outer circle next year and we can chill. You can actually see the horse races from there! For those of you who acted so offensively: I hope your parents, after reading this letter, instantly regret funding your "education".

Respectfully,
Meghan
Class of 2006

Recap of today's interview with my next potential boss...

Hi, My name is Carol. Yes I’m a man. Your company likes you to interview people with names that break gender barriers (Carol, Dana, Lindsay, George, Fred, etc.). How would I describe myself? Hawaiian Tee shirts. What do I know about social media? It’s a sham, there is no such thing as new media. You know what I think is funny? That women use The Facebook. There are a lot of women in our industry- probably because it’s a low paying industry and men know they should make more than women. What would you say I look like? A mix between Ron Burgundy and Bernie (Weekend at Bernies). The most important thing to remember when talking to a reporter is their name. I told that to Todd—I think that’s his name--- the guy with the beard. You mean Nate? Yes, yes Nate. So I’m from Utah and no I’m not a Mormon. I like to use Mormon jokes in an interview to make people feel awkward--- oh I also like to talk about politics and Veeagra. Do you get a lot of the spam in your email? I do. They’re always trying to sell me Veeagra. So if I decide I want to work here and I’m offered the job I’ll write you a letter of recommendation after you’ve served two years here because I know people don’t stick around. I’m an excellent writer though and my letter will get you a job anywhere- just not with me- because you’ll be gone after two years, remember? What do I know about PR? I know about TV and that is PR. TV is new media- it used to be new and now it’s old media. Understand? No. Oh well. So I’d ask you about yourselves but I don’t know if I’ll ever see you again so I’ll talk more about myself. I’m great. I have a mustache. My wife dresses me. We have a cat and I drive a Pontiac.

Names have been changed to protect the innocent.

Animal Love: Penguin and Monkey Edition

Pierre, a 25-year-old African penguin, was balding and thus too cold to swim with his friends. California Academy of Sciences turned to dive company for a solution. Since getting his suit, Pierre has gained weight and grown more feathers (CNN).

How great is that story? "One concern was that the other penguins would reject Pierre in his new duds, but, they accepted his sleek new look." That's what friends are all about.

Another awesome animal site is http://www.monkeyhelpers.org/. I recommend watching Monkey College. This is my dream job.

You like big whats...?

I was just interrupted by Sir Mix a Lot.

Tuesday's Cup of Love

Randomness for Tuesday, April 22, 2008.

HAPPY EARTH DAY!
I think I'll walk to work today-- and get there tomorrow.

BLOG of the DAY
"it’s nice to create a big warm groovy space to revel in" -Tristan Prettyman on SheKnows.

INSPIRATION of the DAY
Robin Roberts retires her wig on national TV. She said she made the decision as "a way to take control after so much had changed in my life." Amazing.

IDEAL BITE OF THE DAY:

Click here. Oh, and two of my favorite things joined forces today: Ideal Bite and Good Morning America. Check it out.

WEIRD Conversation of the DAY:
Me: Hey does TP work?
Boyfriend: Not to my knowledge.
Me: You haven't tried it?
Boyfriend: No, I'm old school.
Me: You know I'm referring to the Tristan Prettyman CD, right? TP.
Boyfriend: ...... no I did not .......
He thinks he's soooo funny.

I'll melt the world and stop for you.

Jason Mraz at the NorVa

Me and Chris Richardson

Me and Bushwalla

Tuesdays I Get a Little Sideways

I'm not sure what I've been doing differently to my coffee this week but for the past two days I've been caffeinated out of my mind upon my arrival to work.

This morning my officemate had to suffer through the playlist on Miley Cyrus' MySpace page. I found that Hannah Montana is a good way to channel my over the top energy. Ravon Simone only revs me back up. Go Teen Disney!

Boyfriend sent this article to me. His favorite part:
Flocke (FLOCK-uh), whose name means "snowflake" in German, was born at the zoo in December. She gained international attention in January after zookeepers said they had taken Flocke away from her mother because of concerns she would eat her. To which he commented : "I can understand the mother. I too would try to eat a polar bear cub"

I have already been complimented on my hairstyle today. And I'm undoing the bad clothing style choices that have been brought to my attention. I feel good about this progress. But still I wear no shoes. Who needs em? Well okay a lot of people need them, for instance eskimos because I'm sure their feet get cold. But I'm no eskimo.

Who has two thumbs and is excited for free pizza at lunch?!? This girl.