Advertising

I have never taken a marketing class, so I'm no expert on how advertising works. However, I find it really interesting how many companies have infiltrated consumers lives to the point where they are advertising on our own identities.

If I start a business, one of my largest expenses would be advertising my product and business name. I would spend money on various forms of advertising, in exchange for name recognition, and hopefully some sales.
So the burden of advertising falls on me, as the business owner. I take that burden, because it's worth the effort and expense.

That sounds reasonable. What I find amazing though, is how marketers have made it so consumers voluntarily take part of that burden upon themselves, to advertise to themselves.

Probably the most common form of this is the selling of T-Shirts. People pay money to see an attraction, then they pay money for a T-shirt that advertises the attraction. This advertises the attraction to the buyer each time they put the shirt on, and it advertises to everyone who see's the shirt. So, the consumer volunteers to pay money to advertise to himself and others.

My car insurance company offers a free logo t-shirt to any customer who brings in another customer to their business. Isn't that nice? They give me the privilege of advertising for them if we advertise enough to give them a sale.

I was teasing a friend, because she became a Facebook 'fan' of dozens of different consumer products. Alot of these 'fan' sites are not even sponsored by the product they're advertising. That means some average person went through the effort to create a fan-site with the logo, and get hundreds of people to attest that they're a 'fan' of this product. All of these people provided a service that a marketer would normally have to pay for, for free. On top of that, fans get regular updates on that product. So they volunteered themselves to be exposed to more advertising of a product they already consume and advertise.

I'm not saying I'm immune to this. I get excited about products and tell others about them as well. I've even bought T-shirts from places I've been. I think the motive for the Facebook 'fan' thing is usually just a way of decorating our profiles. It's not out of a desire to provide a free service to a gigantic corporation.
Yet, the profile is our online identity. In effect, we are advertising anything we put on it, be it ourselves, or for corporate entities. Remember the woman who was going to get a corporate logo tatooed to her forehead to the highest bidder? Profiles can be the online version of the same thing. Except we don't get paid for it.

Baker Park

Jr ran into Justin while he was taking Filip to Baker park. Justin happened to have his camera on him, and took a bunch of pics.

Sci-Fi

I had a Sci-Fi dream last night. We all lived on starships, and some of us realized what the true nature of our universe was, and some just lived in the universe oblivious to it.

I was trying to find out who knew, and who didn't through casual conversation. If a person understood what I was talking about when I said "get up to the top", they knew what our universe really was. If they just dismissed the remark as something that fit in with their ordinary day-to-day life, I knew they we're going to be in for a reality check at some point in their life.

The true nature of our universe in my dream was pretty interesting. It looked like we lived our existence on starships out in space. Actually, we were very tiny, so small that our ships lived on the back of a mangy dog. 'Outer space' was just all the hair and fleas all over him.

Craft Party

We had a craft party last night. We did a little bit of crafts at first. I worked on my rag rug. Agata and Stephanie worked on some cross-stitching, while Leeza knitted. Brittany worked on some jewelry designs, and looked up Saree's on the internet. Anitra and Jennifer didn't bring projects to do, so they just hung out.

After that, we went outside, because the weather was so nice. Jon went out and bought us pizza and beer. When it started to get dark, we built a fire in our pit. It was alot of fun. I think we should have another outdoor picnic.

Sustainable

I'm always trying to add habits to make my lifestyle more ecologically sustainable. I don't do anything too radical, but I try to be as conservative as possible. Here's some hippie stuff I like to do.

Reusing:

Egg Cartons: I return these to the farm where we buy our eggs.

Plastic Bags: I don't use cloth bags at the grocery store, but I do save the plastic ones. I use them for my small bathroom trash cans.

Plastic Cups: You know those big 32oz cups you get at McDonalds? They're great for making sure I drink enough water in the day.

Candle containers: I only buy candles where you can reuse the container. I've gotten some cute bowls this way. Just wipe out the excess wax when it's still soft and melted.

Plastic Take Home Boxes: They're perfect for packing a lunch for JR.

Freecycling: At www.freecycle.org, you can sign up for a local Yahoo group where you give stuff you don't need away for free. Plus you can sign up to pick up free stuff.

I have posted ads to get rid of alot of recyclables that people want. I save my salsa jars, and when I saved a box full, I never have a problem getting rid of it on Freecycle. I even have a person that will pick up my draft printer paper, because they don't want to use fresh paper for their unimportant stuff.

Sorting Trash: Doing this is a little more work. It's nice though, because the amount of trash we produce is greatly diminished. We can go 2-3 weeks before we have to take the bin down to the street on trash night.

Paper:I throw paper trash away separately from regular trash, and burn it in my backyard fire pit. Filip loves our weekly fires.

Recycle: Duh

Composting: I keep a compost bin in the back yard, and save all our food scraps for it. Because our food trash is out of it, our regular trash never smells.

Substitutes:

I use toilet paper instead of paper towels for small spills in the kitchen. For the larger ones, I use a wet rag.

ITunes instead of CD's. Everyone does this anyway.

Netflix instead of buying movies.

Internet instead of buying cookbooks or instruction books.

Whenever I get a liquid soap that I can't use on my skin, I use it to clean the bathroom. Just sud up a mesh sponge and scrub the tub and sink. It's less toxic chemicals than most bathroom cleaners.

Workout at home instead of the gym. Saves gas, time & money. Of course, if I didn't have a kid, I would be going to the gym.

I would love to hear your conserving ideas. Comment and let me know.

I'm up

It's 5:30am and I already hear birds outside.

Filip fell asleep in the backyard at 4:45pm yesterday for 6 hours. I brought him inside and put him on the kitchen floor at sundown. He woke up a little before 11pm, when I was about to go to bed. So he went to bed with me and slept until 4am.

That's why I had to wake up with the birds, and make him a 'moosie' and eggs.

Today, we're taking JR to work at 7am. I think I might come home and see if he'll take a nap with me until we go to our call at 11am. Then, some friends are having an open house for us to see their new baby goat. I want to take him there. By then, it should be time to pick up JR again. Then, it's my turn to go to work.

It's going to be a long day. Not because it's a hard day. It's just going to be long because I got up extra early for it.

Strength

Have you ever noticed that some foods are too hot to touch with your fingers, but they're okay to put in your mouth? Isn't that weird? I would think that my mouth is much more delicate than my fingers and therefore would not be able to withhold the temperature. However, it's the opposite.

It's the same with men and women. Women are more delicate than men, but they're the ones that endure the pain of childbirth. The only time a man would endure a similar pain would be when something is wrong, not in a normal, natural process.

Or it's like Formula 1 and Nascar. Nascar is more delicate, because they have to make the track perfect, with no turns (besides left) and the race is cancelled if it rains. Yet, they go faster on the races than F1.

Compare the strength of an ant compared to our own strength according to size. You'll notice that an ant can lift much more than their body weight. For humans though, it would take a great deal of strength training to be able to lift half our body weight. Yet, it takes like 2 seconds to squish an ant.

Spider webs are stronger than reinforced cable (when accounting for it's size). A person can destroy a spider's home by accident, and not even notice it though.

The most vulnerable people we know (our children) also have the most energy.

It makes me think of how Jehovah chooses 'the weak things of the world' to fulfill his purpose. It shows up over and over in nature. That's why Paul could say "When I am weak, then I am powerful."

Cinderella

I had a really nice dream last night. It was animated and everything.
I was Cinderella (the Disney version) dancing with the prince at the ball. Then, at midnight I had to leave.
However, instead of me actually getting away from the prince, he followed me down all the way to my step-mother's house, because I couldn't run that fast. He kept saying:
"How will I find you again?" It was dumb, because he was at my house. So he knew where I lived.
So I took my shoe off and gave it to him.
Then, in the fashion of the story, he put my shoe back on my foot right there, to 'prove' that I'm the one for him. That was totally pointless, because he never left me. So I took the shoe off, gave it back to him, and told him to come back tomorrow when my step-mother had me locked in a closet or something.
I couldn't let it be that easy for him. He had to save me from something.

The most romantic part of the dream was when we were dancing and walking in the moonlight. I was thinking "He's even taller than me! How romantic!"

You Know What I Mean?

I looked at this online chat board about an emotionally charged subject. Since it was such a hot topic, it generated over 300 reader comments with-in a day. I thought it was interesting that people bother to comment after that many other comments, when there is little chance of getting any feedback from another reader, unless of course, they insult another reader.

I think many people just comment for the sake of expressing themselves. They don't necessarily need a listener, just as long as they 'get it off their chest'. It's so much more satisfying though, to have a listener who actually takes time to comprehend what you're saying.

I think I'm pretty in tune to whether someone is interested in what I'm saying or not. Whenever I sense someone is not into what I'm saying, I just stop talking. Sometimes mid-sentence. Every once in a while when I do this, a person will notice that I've stopped and say something like "what were you saying?".

Some people don't seem to need someone to display active interest while they talk. Sometimes, I purposely show dis-interested body language the whole time they're talking to see if it changes the pace of their story.

The most challenging thing to do is to show active interest in what someone else is saying. However, it's an enjoyable challenge to show how another person's words have affected me. It shows honor to the speaker. Plus, when you show someone's words have made an impact, they're less likely to keep saying the same thing over and over.

Memorial Pics

Us before the memorial. Do I look pregnant yet?

Art Impressions

There's only two 'true' art galleries in my town, besides the many gallery shops that are everywhere here. One is the Delaplaine, on the Carroll Creek Promenade. That place displays various nice-looking pieces as well as an area exhibiting art work of local children. I never see anything spectacular there, but I still enjoy seeing the work locals have produced.

The other place is called the Blue Elephant. This place tends to be on the 'controversial' side. In there, you'll find exhibits that display things like baby dolls with nails hammered into their faces, or pictures of small dogs drowning, or anything resembling the crucifix.

My first visit there was the first time I saw 'controversial' art. I left the place disappointed. I thought it was awful and creepy. It made me wonder what kind of 'sickos' make stuff like this. I imagine it was the intent of the artist to make me feel that way.

A long while later, a friend of mine asked me to go see his exhibit at a special show they were having there. I thought I'd give it another shot. I had forgotten how creepy the exhibits were the first time. It had not changed. There were still displays that linked children to suffering, and a bunch of sacrilegious things. This time, I walked out of the place thinking "Oh yeah, the creepy place." It no longer shocked me. Basically, you just have to take something people feel strongly about (like protecting children, or their religious beliefs) and do something disgusting or horrifying to it. Then, you would have something worthy of that display.

Now, if after two visits to a gallery like that, I'm no longer scandalized, what about 'contro' art buffs? I appreciate art, but am very unfamiliar with the whole industry. Regarding people who live for art: Do they get shocked everytime? Or is it just an appreciation that grows through exposure?

I guess I would understand if I acquired a taste for contro-art myself. I don't think that's going to happen, when there are so many more savory studies to pursue.

More mommy stories

Filip had 'bell jeans' (jelly beans) for the first time. Now he loves them. Whenever he asks for them, he says "Want bell jeans''
That causes me to confirm what he's saying: "Jellybeans?"
"Ok" he says, as if I'm offering them. I think that's a pretty slick move of his.

I also disappointed him today. My midwife was coming over for an appointment. I told him the 'baby lady' is coming. When she arrived, he was looking behind her at her truck. "Where babies?" I had to tell him we're looking at Mommy's baby. I didn't think that he would expect the lady to bring babies. That would be logical though if she's the 'baby lady'.

Exercise

I have to get back into an exercise routine. I really think the reason why Filip's delivery was so easy was because I was going to the gym 3x a week during most of my pregnancy.
I don't belong to a gym anymore, but there is some stuff I can do at home. I try to focus on my 'core' muscles, since I believe that's the best over-all exercise I can get.
Here's my list of exercises on my routine:

20 minute walk

Large Exercise ball:
Crunches, while leaning on top.
Lifting it with my feet to meet my hands.

8 lb medicine ball:
Crunches, while holding the ball in front of me and up.
Obliques, moving the ball from one side of me to the other while lying down

Weighted Bar:
Place on shoulders, bend over and straighten up
Hold it from side to side

Free Weights:
Bicep crunches

Perfect Pushup:
'Girly' pushups against the wall

Filip:
Upside-down squats. Lay on back, put him on my feet and lift up and down
Calf bounces. Lay him on chins and lift up and down

Myself:
Cycles
Various stretches

Zoo pics

These are in the 'Asian Trail' section of the Zoo. Pandas are so cute!

Washington DC

We took Filip to the Zoo and Natural History museum today. It poured rain this morning, so we had the idea to do the museum first. So did the rest of Washington DC. The place was packed.

We just did the dinosaur and primitive life section. The exhibits are pretty impressive, but the educational value is disappointing. All the speculations there assume that evolution is a proven fact, and not still a theory. The one variable this theory takes notable advantage of is the passage of time. Everything takes millions and millions of years to evolve into something else. It's possible that the earth is that old. However, I question how scientists date when which animals showed up on the scene. Is it all the study of fossils? Or are these dates influenced by the belief that it takes millions of years for an animal to change into another animal? The museum portrays everything there as a fact, so there is no way to know there.

So, on one hand, there was a mix of dinosaur skeletons and models, which were neat to see. But then they also had all these murals of made-up animals that just look like a bunch of hybrids, to show the supposed 'link between the species'.

The zoo was fun. We got to see a red panda, a giant panda, elephants, these little cute monkeys, a cheetah, leopards, hippos, and a bunch of things I never heard of.

We didn't pack a stroller, so Filip had to walk alot. He was so worn out, he kept saying "Sit, chair, sit chair" every time we passed a bench. So JR had to carry him for most of the walk out of the zoo to the metro. Poor little guy, he slept all the way back to Mom mom's.

Immortal Look

JR

Today, someone posted on their site an old picture of a friend who died about 15 years ago. Craig has been pretty much immortalized in the Frederick area. He was a great guy, lots of fun, and ever-stylish. He had tons of friends all over, back in the day. That's how I always remember him.

When I saw a pic of him today, I thought ''Whoa, he had a flat top. That's so 90's". I realized that in my head, I keep updating my memory of him to be in style today. In reality though, Craig died with a flat-top.

I know I digress, but I actually like flat-tops on black guys. The above pic is a flat-topped JR when he was in his 20's. I think it would be so cool if JR could grow one again. If everything else about his look was up-to-date, I think a FT would make such a cool statement. Like, "I have a flat top, because I know it looks good, not because I'm stuck in the 90's".