AllThingsUnderTheSUN

Kid in UK Tries out a Tape Walkman

2009-07-30T20:35:00.001-07:00

So this 13 yr old kid in the U.K. gives up his iPod for a Sony Cassette Walkman for 1 week. The article is hilarious, and definitely worth a read. Check out some of the highlights from the article:

"From a practical point of view, the Walkman is rather cumbersome, and it is certainly not pocket-sized, unless you have large pockets. It comes with a handy belt clip screwed on to the back, yet the weight of the unit is enough to haul down a low-slung pair of combats."

"

It took me three days to figure out that there was another side to the tape. That was not the only naive mistake that I made; I mistook the metal/normal switch on the Walkman for a genre-specific equaliser, but later I discovered that it was in fact used to switch between two different types of cassette.

I managed to create an impromptu shuffle feature simply by holding down 'rewind' and releasing it randomly

Another notable feature that the iPod has and the Walkman doesn't is "shuffle", where the player selects random tracks to play. Its a function that, on the face of it, the Walkman lacks. But I managed to create an impromptu shuffle feature simply by holding down "rewind" and releasing it randomly - effective, if a little laboured.

I told my dad about my clever idea. His words of warning brought home the difference between the portable music players of today, which don't have moving parts, and the mechanical playback of old. In his words, "Walkmans eat tapes". So my clumsy clicking could have ended up ruining my favourite tape, leaving me music-less for the rest of the day."

"When playing, it is clearly evident that the music sounds significantly different than when played on an MP3 player, mainly because of the hissy backtrack and odd warbly noises on the Walkman.

The warbling is probably because of the horrifically short battery life; it is nearly completely dead within three hours of firing it up. Not long after the music warbled into life, it abruptly ended."

To read the full article, go to "Giving up my iPod for a Walkman"

Who do consumers trust?

2009-07-09T13:04:00.002-07:00

Aaccording to a recent article in Brandweek, consumers trust 'Recommendations from people known' more than anyone else. Presumably known people include friends, family, co-workers, etc. However, what's striking is they trust 'Consumer Opinions posted online' at 70% trust level with 'Brand Websites' also at 70%. If this is the case, then these findings create strong case for business models wherein products are hawked via branded websites, featuring product reviews, and sold direct to consumers.

With the economy down, and purchases of private label products rising, this makes for a great opportunity for brands selling direct to consumers.

Following is an image showing the degree of trust placed in the various forms of advertising.

One brand that's begun implementing many of the findings above is a Walking Shoe brand called Kuru Shoes. This brand features the most anatomical Active Shoes in the marketplace offering high quality support and comfort. They also have shoes suitable as Travel Shoes.

For example, check out the Kruzr II travel shoe and you will find the following:
-Product Images
-Add to cart box on the right side
-Product Description
-Product Video
-Recent Press/Buzz
-Customer Reviews

Giving your visitors more information about your products is critical in today's information rich culture. The internet allows us to get all the information we want, when we want it, instantly. This is powerful as it enables the consumers in ways formerly not possible. But, the onus, now more than ever, is on brands to offer the information most relevant, important, and transparent to those customers.

Reebok's Run Easy Campaign is Poor

2007-11-22T01:29:00.000-07:00

I was just contemplating Reebok's (herein referred to as rbk) Run Easy campaign. I admire rbk for many of it's accomplishments over the years, for it's overall size, etc, but the brand has definitely been refocused way too many times.

The latest example is the Run Easy campaign. The basic premise is to market rbk running shoes to those that aren't serious athletes. Rather, those that go out for a wimpy "jog". Now, why would anyone who's trying to at least appear fit want to wear a product that screams "I'm not that serious about what I do". The whole Run Easy concept suggests that rbk is confused about their running category. Here are some possible interpretation scenarios we can conclude about their run easy campaign and rbk running shoes:

1. Rbk running shoes simply aren't as good as the competition. As such, you can only run easy in our shoes. Run hard, and they just aren't up to snuff!!

2. Those who wear rbk running shoes aren't that serious about fitness. Hey, at least they're willing to readily and outwardly admit it by wearing rbk. But, if you want to be categorized in the poseur running department, wear rbk. This is similar to buying fitness equipment, only to use it for a few weeks before it begins collecting dust. Almost all home fitness products, particularly those via infomercials, end up very quickly in the back corner of the house, under a bed, in the attic/garage, or thrown away. People are as committed to fitness equipment as they are to eating healthy. They just don't do it very long!!

3. Rbk running shoes are actually as awesome as the best Asics or Saucony running shoe!! That's right, they're just as good. But, rbk wants to give you, the customer, more value, so they market it as a run easy product, which means it should cost less. (i admit, this scenario is confusing, but, so is the Run Easy campaign, so at least were in good company)

4. Maybe rbk is trying to grow the running category as a whole. If they're doing this, then arguably this campaign could be very effective, albeit in the short term. Why only in the short term? Consider this. If rbk is successful at "growing the category", then they will convert customers to running. But, as we've noted in some of the other interpretations, this creates a bigger problem. As soon as the customers are truly converted, they'll drop rbk products like a bad habit since their running shoes are only designed for poseurs, wannabes, or those who really aren't committed. And, if someone's truly committed to the "category" then they'll start buying product that performs. Once again, it's always great to build the category. But, with rbk's short-term product positioning strategy, as created by their ad campaign, their shooting themselves.

5. Arguably rbk is simply being honest in their marketing by admitting most people who buy running shoes simply don't run, aren't into it, and when they do, they run easy (i.e. to catch the bus, into the donut shop, out of the rain, etc). For these duties, I'm sure rbk shoes will perform quite admirably. However, is this how successful product should be marketed? Honesty and transparency should be paramount. However, this kind of honesty from rbk simply loses all the romanticism, dreams, and aspirations of those who run, or would take up running.

A few years back, it appeared that rbk was trying to transition to a more urban, lifestyle brand with athletic influences, all but conceding to Nike the reign of performance footwear. With this run easy campaign, it's as if they've reneged and decided they weren't quite ready to concede. Or, maybe this action is a result of the whole urban trend being in a slump more recently. Either way, it's symptomatic of major marketing confusion. But, the rbk consumer should be used to that, at least in the performance category, as it seems like rbk has been trying to figure out what they stand for over the last few years. And, during that time of confusion, Nike has continued to grow quite nicely and steadily.

Nike = committed
RBK = not committed

A simple marketing principle. Stay committed to your strategy, in both the up and downs. Now, if you are to stay committed to your strategy, that means you better pick a strategy that is sustainable over the long haul. Or, sell out before your trend goes in the dump!!!

Visceral, Behavioral and Reflective Design and Branding

2007-10-31T15:06:00.000-07:00

I was reading the Diego Rodriguez's metacool blog and came across a post from a couple months ago. I'm in the process of developing and launching a new urban outdoor footwear brand and found his post very helpful and insightful. It seems like you either intuitively get certain things about business, marketing, design, or whatever other discipline you're in, or you don't. If you don't, you should find someone who does, such that everything's done properly. With that in mind, here's the basic gist of Donald Norman's model of human Cognition.

"If you want a successful product, test and revise. If you want a great product, one that can change the world, let it be driven by someone with a clear vision. The latter represents more financial risk, but it is the only path to greatness." -- Donald Norman

As Rodriguez summarizes, "a quick outline of his [Donald Norman] model of human cognition. First, we take in our external environment using two channels, one Visceral, which is the realm of things like looks, feel and smell; the other Behavioral, which is what allows us to create movement and take action. Operating on top of those channels is our Reflective processor, which Norman describes as the “… level that conscious and the highest levels of feeling, emotions, and cognition reside.” Most of what we call “branding” happens at the Reflective level".

Therefore, the three primary steps in human cognition:

Visceral - the aesthetic
Behavioral - action
Reflective - emotions, feeling, and pure consciousness

So, for effective writing or tools of persuasion, you have Logos [Logic], Pathos [emotion], Ethos [credibility]. are the three steps in human cognition/design the same? I suggest that Visceral=Ethos, Behavioral=Logos, Reflective=emotion. Now, I must admit I've never read the book. I'm only going based on a couple blog posts I've read on the topic. Visceral appears to be Ethos, or Credibility, because as soon as someone witnesses good design, instant credibility is formed. All of a sudden, the viewer expects the designed object to meet a certain standard of intuitiveness, ease of use, efficiency, etc. Once this credibility is established, there's a logic behavior that must occur (i.e. Behavioral=Logos). The viewer then has to interact with the designed object. If the interaction validates the initial Visceral impression of the viewer, then the viewer experiences a reflective moment where they are validated on numerous levels. They have then connected to the designed object, brand, experience, etc.

The tough thing is design is constantly evolving. What was cool design a couple years ago may appear mundane now. I'm reminded of an article I read years ago about Oakley and their design process with their sunglasses. The designer would stress for weeks and months over the minutia. They would move design lines less than millimeters in various directions in order to ensure the most perfect fitting pair of sunglasses. This over zealous focus on product design has created an empire wherein Oakley is the definitive brand and product. Oakley, by far, is definitive emotional brand in the sunglasses space. No other brand even comes close.

Windows Haters Unite

2007-10-21T00:31:00.000-07:00

I must admit, my first exposure to computers was on two different macs. But, for all intents and purposes, I am a very well-versed Windows user. I love how Apple has influenced different trends including product design. However, my cheap soul just can't justify the expensive entry price into a Mac machine. At least not yet. But, for anyone who knows what a computer is, and has ever used a Windows machine for longer than an email break at the Public Library, then you'll enjoy this gif. CLICK HERE to see the animation.

Worldwide Obesity

2007-10-20T23:59:00.000-07:00

I found this interesting graphic that shows obesity levels in the top 27 "fattest" countries. Of course, we (the USA) are at the forefront. I'm actually surprised to not see more South American countries in this list. The obesity trend in the US is quite alarming. Every time I travel outside of the country, I'm always amazed upon my return how "fat" Americans are. I'm also amazed at how large the portions are at restaurants.

(source and drawing by: www.wellingtongrey.net)

iTunes Killer??

2007-10-19T10:18:00.000-07:00

Amazon recently released their mp3 service. The catch? There are none. In fact, it's almost better than the iTunes store in most ways. Why? Well, because it DRM (digital rights management) free. I know, I know, iTunes offers DRM free songs to. Albeit, their DRM free prices are 50%+ higher than Amazon's. And, any mp3 you download from Amazon is fully compatible with iTunes and your iPod. Basically, Amazon mp3 offers you more songs for the same money.

Will Amazon's service kill iTunes? No. I'd be willing to bet a lot of money it won't. But, it gives all you frugalites out there a way to be smart and enjoy your music for less.

Mobile Phone Deals

2007-10-19T09:26:00.000-07:00

I'm a sucker for good deals. I mean, really good deals. I get a kick out of talking to others and they say, "I'm buying a new laptop, but I'm getting one through my dad, he gets great deals". Or, "I'm buying it through a friend, they get a company discount". I'm sure we've all heard this. Then, you ask details about the purchase, the specs, and you find out they paid more than had they walked in to their local Best Buy or CompUSA. With a laptop, it's one thing.

Now, fast forward to mobile phones. It is absolutely stupid to pay much for a mobile phone these days. You can even get a the newest Blackberry Curve 8320 for TMobilefor free right now via Amazon. Now, we bargain shoppers know Amazon.com is not always the best place when it comes to price. But, when it comes to mobile phones, I have yet to find a source that is anywhere near as consistent as Amazon when it comes to deals.

I'm going to list a couple pros and cons about using Amazon for mobile phones.

PROS:

-It's Amazon, not some flaky fly by night.
-You know the rebate is legit
-Shipping is reliable in relatively fast order
-You probably already have an account with Amazon
-Amazon always has steals when it comes to cell phones. It's a pretty good bet that if the phone is Free, or they pay you after rebates, on Amazon, then there's no way you'll find a better deal elsewhere. This makes it simple, check out the phone on Amazon. If it's free or less than free, no reason to shop elsewhere, you've found the best deal.

CONS:
-Make sure you comply with the rebate terms. Well worth reading the fine print. Note that amazon has really cleaned up the fine print on their phone rebates. It doesn't take more than a couple minutes to read all the print.
-You have to wait for the phone to be shipped
-Defects/problems with the phone have to be handled via the service provider. You can't just walk in to the "store" where you bought the phone.
-Sometimes they don't offer all the phones that other resellers do.

I'm sure there are other Cons and Pros. But, over the years as friends have come to me for deals, when it comes to mobile phones, Amazonhas always come out on top as the best deal. Hopefully this helps!!

It's Definitely been awhile!!

2007-10-17T17:05:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been a long while since I've posted to this blog. I'll admit, it's hard to keep motivated. Tell you what, start clicking on my Google AdSense ads, and I'll instantly become motivated. How does that sound?? [does it always have to be about money]

So, in contemplating what to do with my blog, I realized I should start writing again to improve my communication and writing skills. After all, I did minor in English in school. And, I chose English because I liked the tools of writing and persuasion. So, for my first post in over a year, I've chosen to update all with some great websites I've found, perused, and visit.

Here are some:

FURNITURE
Ikea Hacker Blog - Here's a cool blog that features DIY twists on existing Ikea furniture. I love the design language of a lot of stuff at Ikea. However, i struggle with the apparent poor quality of their products. I must admit, i don't own anything from Ikea (other than the less-than-stellar shrimp, egg, bread, lettuce leaf concoction I ate last time I visited their store). But, I've helped friends move who own some of their furniture. Every intimate, as in the side of the dresser is smeared against my face as I attempt to heft it up some stairs, interaction I've had with Ikea furniture (e.g. Dressers, Shelves, Tables, Beds) has revealed poor, particle board quality. Sub-par faux wood prints, and furniture failure under nominal moving loads. Alas, their design language still rawks!

BluDot Furniture - Wicked cool, tres moderne furniture. This company was started by Charlie Lazor, also known for his flatpak prefab home. Bludot features some really cool furniture with, at times, beautiful lines. I'm not overly keen on contemporary stuff that loses functionality. But, I think a lot of stuff on bludot manages to balance functionality with minimal design intrusion. Good design is something that blends and doesn't stick out. In some ways, though, BluDot looks like a premium Ikea. Hopefully the price is indicative of quality. Something not found too often in Ikea stuff.

ARCHITECTURE
Flatpak House [see also Dwell by Empyrean] - The whole prefab architecture movement is awesome!! Too bad it's still very expensive. Another really cool prefab home, that is much more affordable, is the Rocio Romero LV and LVL home. The biggest drawback of this, though, is the price. You'll easily pay $150/sq. ft. with these homes. Arguably, you're getting real, modern architecture design for that price. But, it's still not cheap. A few homeowners may find it less expensive. There was one family, though, that built a Rocio Romero LVL home for under $100k. And, the home looks quite nice. I haven't looked into this, and if anyone knows, please update me, but it looks like they sanded the Plywood floor and finished it for the flooring. Which raises a good Eco question: IF you're building a home and trying to be sustainable in the process, why put down flooring on TOP of the wood plywood? As you can see here, the plywood can be finished quite nicely. How sustainable are you really??

Some other PreFab Highlights:
WeeHouse -small, almost rinky-dink type homes. Ready to live in a shoe box?? But, combine a few together, and you've got a comfortable pad.
Eds Shed -prefab home in London. Very, very modern design. I like the wood. But, it has such few windows, i wonder how much natural light comes in. This is one thing I like about the Rocio Romero design, there's gobs of natural light. I like the idea of positioning your home such that when you wake up from the Sun washing over you in the morning.
Napa Prefab - LV home extremely nicely finished.
Move Modern - great resource for modern, contemporary designs, features, for sale, etc. Includes prefabs.
Royal Homes, CANADA - More prefab, modern coolness
Euro Prefab the LoftCube - here's a very expensive (given it's 420sqft size) prefab in europe. They just finished building their first proto overlooking the skyline of Berlin.

SHOES/FASHION
Since I'm in process of launching a footwear brand, see placeholder website, I guess that makes me somewhat in the fashion, trend, consumer goods coolness side of things. So, i present to you a list of blogs focusing on such things.

Sartorialist I love the layout of this blog. Super simple, very few words, but pictures that really capture the essence of the blog, which is to showcase real life people, wearing real-life fashion. As he says, "I always felt that there was a disconnect between what I was selling in the showroom and what I was seeing real people (really cool people) wearing in real life". Hence, the Sartorialist.
Freshness Mag - The sneaker craze continues.
Shoebum - more outdoor oriented blogger.
CoolHunting - more sneakers from the hunter himself, Josh Rubin's Coolhunting

BUSINESS BLOGS

I love business and have to keep up on the latest. As a start-up entrepreneur, I wear a lot of hats. Since my education was in Finance and English, I needed to learn about branding, marketing, etc. So, I frequent these blogs:

Brand Autopsy - This is a great blog with continual mini-case studies.
AlarmClock -fairly comprehensive blog on dealflow, usually in the tech area. It seems like if it's hot in Silicon Valley, AlarmClock covers it. If it's not hot in the Valley, good luck.
AdAge- I subscribe to their newsletters which are always highlighting various Ad/Marketing campaigns, their effectiveness, opinion letters, etc.
Springwise-Another newsletter I subscribe to. Absolutely awesome newsletter for those that love to come up with business ideas. Chock full of new ideas, this newsletter features new, innovative business concepts that are launched worldwide.

Hopefully this is a good primer for learning and linking.

Match your Toyota Car with a. . .Toyota Home?!?

2006-06-16T20:54:00.000-07:00

That's right, Toyota makes prefabricated homes. They're on track to manufacture 5,000 homes this year growing to 7,000 homes in the next couple years. Not bad, considering the average price is $227,000. Do the basic math, and that's a $1.1 billion business!! Not bad! The article, found in the Detroit News, states that a typical home can be assembled by cranes and a roof placed on top in less than 6 hours!! Not too shabby. Just if I could start importing these bad boys.

Check out these images courtesy of The Seattle Times article:

Seth Godin, Creative Funding

2006-06-14T08:09:00.000-07:00

Check out this post from Seth Godin, suggesting a creative, and good, way to fund a new project within a business. It's not totally clear how this funding solution would work in a true start-up that has yet to produce anything (other than the funding received would be exclusively for the original product, and not spinoffs therefrom). Traditional VC or angel terms can be, as Connect magazine warned, stifling to management attaining true greatness with the organization. As such, funding the project, instead of giving up the whole company may make sense.

Check it out: Seth Godin's Blog

BYU Business students win at the Utah Entrepreneur Challenge

2006-05-07T10:33:00.000-07:00

Well, here's another article regarding our big, 1st place finish at the Utah Entrepreneur Challenge. Get ready for "Mountain Life Comfort".

Link to article: BYU students win at UEC

WE WON!! WE WON!!

2006-05-05T19:47:00.000-07:00

First, we were announced as finalists in the Utah Entrepreneur Challenge, or UEC. Then, we prepared our pitch, presented to the judges approximately two weeks ago. And, what happens?!?

First, we arrived, rather belatedly, to the Awards Banquet which was held on Thursday, April 27. And, when I say belatedly, I mean 40 minutes late. You know, my mom purchased this book for me titled "Never Be Late Again" and, you'd think after having read half of the book, I would begin to implement some of the techniques and principles from it. The only reason I haven't completed the book is because I figured I would be better off stopping where I was and trying to implement some of the techniques, rather than read the whole thing, with some unreasonable hope that I'd actually remember everything I'd read. But, I digress. . .

So, we show up at the banquet/mixer, and begin chatting with the big shots. We're talking the movers and shakers of Utah. The investment community of Utah is growing, and maturing into a much better environment to raise capital. So, we're networking the floor, trying to become further acquainted with all the folk. Dinner is served, which was very underwhelming. Nothing like cold Beef and tasteless mushroom sauce drizzled over the top. We were hoping our Advisor, John Knab of Phonex Broadband, who has rendered incredible support and feedback thus far, was going to make it. But, alas, he had family duties to attend to.

So, we're sitting at the table, getting progressively more nervous as they prolonged the announcement of the winners by recognizing all the sponsors, supporters of the program, etc. At last, 35 minutes after the planned announcement, they bust out the top three winners. And, the third place winner was Precision Surveying Solutions. A great company with a very promising technology for surveyors. The second place winner, Five Star Painting, a franchising concept. And. . . . .

At this point, I was nervous but, as a team, we were confident as we felt our presentation was solid. And the Grand Prize winner of the 2006 UEC Challenge is. . . Core Footwear^TM!!

Needless to say, we were pretty excited with this result. Not only does this award validate the direction we are headed, but we feel it's a reflection of the solid team we have assembled. Keep posted, as we continue to develop Core Footwear^TM and bring our patent-pending technology to market. Soon, you will be able to learn more at CoreFootwear.com.

We just want to thank all our mentors, advisors, and those who have rendered incredible support in helping us get this far. We would like to especially thank John Knab for his amazing insight and feedback. Truly, without him, we would not have gotten this far.

Amazon.com: JL421 Badonkadonk Land Cruiser/Tank: Everything Else

2006-03-30T21:20:00.000-07:00

Are you ready for your personal tank?!? Get it now at Amazon.com. Do people really buy this stuff? Come on, it has a 6 hp Tecumseh engine, claiming 40 mph top speed, with up to 5 passengers. Yeah right!!!

.:Design for Africa:.

2006-03-12T09:32:00.000-07:00

I just stumbled upon this project, and find it incredibly inspiring. Design for Africa is a project by two recent Design graduates, one from Germany, the other from Sweden, who are on a quest to leverage design principles to improve the lives of impoverished people. After almost 2 years of preparation and fundraising, they are finally on their way. Their goal is to meet with local communities, villages, governments, etc, to identify ways where design can improve the lives of the people. Traditionally, design is expensive, and therefore inaccessible, to poorer people. But, Design For Africa has a goal to find ways to solve problems with cost effective solutions. It will be interesting to see what they come up with; but, check out the site, and read their Diary.

CouchSurfing - The world is smaller than you think!

2006-02-04T20:30:00.000-07:00

Are you ready to get your travel on?? Check out Couchsurfing.com. This is one of the coolest websites of which I'm a member. Basically, it's a networking site for all you frugal travellers that love to meat new people in new places. You go on couch surfing, and you can find other people that have a spare couch, floor, room, bed, or otherwise virtually anywhere around the world. So, say you are travelling to New York and want to stay somewhere. Well, go to couchsurfing.com, do a search, and find someone with a spare couch. Then, you get to crash at their place and get to know some locals in the whole process. I've already hosted a few different people and have had a positive experience. So, check it out:

CouchSurfing - The world is smaller than you think!

State of the Union Address 2006, the Best Yet!!

2006-02-03T00:07:00.000-07:00

This is perhaps the best parody on Bush yet!! As the good man says himself, "For those of you who say we don't need the patriot act, I say, I have to question your patronism". Or, better yet, Bush lets us know that he "won't put all his eggs in one biscuit."

OK, these are just a couple teasers, so do yourself a favor and click on the link to view the video for yourself. I don't want to spoil it for you.

Come on, click the link.

Why? "Because our children must be literized".

WARNING: Do not watch this video with food, fluid, or anything else in your mouth, unless you want to shower your computer screen with masticated food.

The REDNECK ROLLERCOASTER is Hilarious!!

2006-02-03T00:00:00.000-07:00

I can't explain it, but you need to watch this. I couldn't help but laugh like a litte kid. I wish I had this when was a kid. Then again, if I had it, I probably wouldn't be alive today to write this.

Click here: REDNECK ROLLERCOASTER

Those Russkies

2005-12-25T16:50:00.000-07:00

This guy is the Russian Jackie Chan!!! Fo, real!

Click this link to watch the vid: RUSSIAN CLIMBING

Watch out, it's a TREEEEEEEE!!!

2005-12-23T10:45:00.000-07:00

This is funny. But, kinda reminds me of my crazy escapades, including the time I rolled my old Subaru Legacy Wagon in the beautiful National Forests of Colorado. Watch, and laugh: Truck Crash - Google Video

CAR DESTRUCTION - PT CRUISER

2005-12-23T10:41:00.000-07:00

Want to see a crazy nut!? This guy is outta control. For one reason or another, he's pissed off at the world. So much so, that he runs over to a car at a stop light and starts destroying it. Pretty out of control. Check it out: YouTube - CAR DESTRUCTION - PT CRUISER

BuriedCar.com

2005-12-22T16:02:00.000-07:00

Wanna get a 1957 Plymouth Belvedere Coupe, virtually brand new, never seen the light of day since 1957? If so, go to BuriedCar.com to learn more. Tulsa Oklahoma buried a car back in 1957 in a Time Capsule, along with other memorabilia, pictures, etc. But, one thing they buried with the car is a 5 gallons of gas. Now, this car was buried in a concrete time capsule. It will be unearthed in 2007. So, it's been officially marinating in the fumes of gas for 48 years, and will continue for two more before being released. As much as I'd like the car, could the paint, let alone everything else on the car, have held up to those fumes???

As a note, the reason they buried fuel was in case the internal combustion engine was no longer existant in 2007, the day to exhume the car.

Win the Boston Marathon in Spira Shoes, get $1 Million

2005-12-09T16:20:00.000-07:00

Spira Footwear, a company in Texas, is offering $1 million to the person that can win the upcoming Boston Marathon in their shoes. Why? Well, first, because they are a small company and this is a great marketing gimmick to garner eyeballs to their website, technology, and product offering. But, another reason is to persuade the sanctioning Track & Field Governing Body to relinquish an "antiquated" rule stating that springs in shoes are not allowed in competition. Spira Footwear was launched by two brothers about 5 years ago. Their technology consists of literally a metal spring in the heel and forefoot. No, these aren't those funky Z-Coils you may have seen. These springs are a lot lower profile. It's pretty cool technology. And, in independent tests, their shoes have produced impressive results. The results were so good that they claim that, at times, the springs may return over 90% of energy.

Compared to a few years ago, their product design has come a long way. Their original design was for a walking shoe, and it was horrendously ugly. Granted, most walking shoes are very geezer like. I hope this company does well, as I'm in the process, myself, of developing a footwear technology. And, on that note, look for an upcoming blog that will track my progress through the patent, sourcing, production, and marketing of the technology.

Your Luxury Airline has arrived - ENTER "Eos Airlines"

2005-12-01T15:45:00.000-07:00

Talk about uber-luxury! It doesn't get much better than this. Approximately 48 total passengers on one Boeing 747. That's not too many people, for those of you who have never flown the Jumbo Jet. In fact, that's virtually no one on a plane this size. I'm very interested to see how EOS Airlines does. They already have 3 Jets in service and only one route of service. London (Stansted) to New York (JFK). And they already have three Jets in service!! Considering they Launched in mid-October, this either signifies that their concept works, or they are very, very well funded (well, they are probably well funded regardless. After all, they are in a capital intensive industry). The airline industry, as you well know, is fraught with, sorry for the pun, turbulence. With the bankruptcies of Delta, United, etc, I think it has become obvious that the airline industry is evolving. Southwest and, arguably, JetBlue have shown that the low-cost route can be successful, assuming good management and execution. And, with the proliferance of the Travelocity's and Orbitz's of the internet, most consumers have shown that low-cost works. But low-cost isn't the only place to compete.

Yet, no one has focused on the higher-end-only segment. Sure, Virgin has reclining seats, Singapore Airlines too; however, as far as I know, next to fractional jet ownership, EOS is the only airline to be so exclusively high-end. And, for a price of $2,500 from New York to London, only the high-end will fly this airline. So, for 4x more money than a standard coach fare, you can fly to London, sleep on the way there, and eat world-class cuisine before you land.

Let's look at the numbers real quick. Given a flight from JFK to London is roughly 8 hours, EOS is realizing $15,000 in Revenue/hour, or $120,000 for the whole flight (assuming all the seats sell). Compare that to a standard 747, with 212 passengers. Let's assume the average sales price for the flight on a standard 747 is $500 for the same route. That's only $106,000 in revenue for the same flight. Assuming both flights are full of passengers, EOS stands to make 13% higher Revenues on the same flight that any major carrier makes. All this, with less cost for baggage handling, cabin cleaning, etc. In the ultra-competitive landscape of the airline industry, 13% explains why EOS appears to be so well funded. It's a no brainer for investors.

You know, disruptive technology, and/or innovation arguably drives and creates new industries. It's funny how the large carriers failed to innovate. Instead, they responded to innovations that start-ups proved to be successful. Hence, Delta's Song, United's Ted, etc. But, the big boys, with these offshoot "low-cost" carriers, are only responding to, and replicating, what Southwest had been doing for years. Yet, they failed to trump other start-ups in other aspects. Such as EOS Airlines and the Uber-luxury market.

I don't know, but this EOS stuff smells like Disruption.
Eos Airlines - Home Page

Custom Streaming Radio - Discover New Music

2005-11-28T10:36:00.000-07:00

I stumbled upon Pandora, part of the Music Genome Project. (That's marketing speak) But, this system is absolutely incredible. Type in any artist or song, and it will produce a custom radio station with other artists, many of which you may not know. Click play, and start enjoying the endless stream of new artists. In my opinion, it's pretty impressive how extensive their database of music appears to be. Best of all, the music stream is FREE!!

One cool feature is you can pause the streaming music, and, when you come back and hit PLAY, it picks up right where you stopped. Basically, it's streaming radio, only better, much better. Even streaming radio seems to have some kind of playlist. Not on Pandora, each time, you get a new, original playlist.

From their 'About Us' Section:

For almost six years now, we have been hard at work on the Music Genome Project.
It's the most comprehensive analysis of music ever undertaken. Together our team
of thirty musician-analysts have been listening to music, one song at a time,
studying and collecting literally hundreds of musical details on every song. It
takes 20-30 minutes per song to capture all of the little details that give each
recording its magical sound - melody, harmony, instrumentation, rhythm, vocals,
lyrics ... and more - close to 400 attributes! We continue this work every day
to keep up with the incredible flow of great new music coming from studios,
stadiums and garages around the country.
We've now created an interface to
make this available to music lovers so they could use this musical
'connective-tissue' to discover new music based on songs or artists they already
know.

Discover Music - Pandora and listen to streaming music for FREE

ourTunes - Maximize your iTunes Aural Experience

2005-11-15T13:38:00.000-07:00

Check out ourTunes, a slick hack for iTunes that allows you to access music in iTunes folders on anyone's computer, assuming their computer is on the same network as you. *read* College Campuses, Large Corporations, etc.

Basically, if your network consists of home, you'll only get other computers within your home. So, in this scenario, not too exciting. However, get plugged to a network with many computers, like most at work, school, etc, and you now have wonderful access to everyone else's music, assuming they, too, have ourTunes.

The hack was created/programmed by a bunch of college students with an opensource mentality. So, customer support is virtually nill, updates are being constantly created to fix bugs, and there's probably not much of a guarantee on the performance.

But, then again, we all seemed to get over the issues wtih other open source, file-sharing, peer-to-peer programs.

Click here to visit the ourTunes site, along with downloads.

Blog Use and Reading at Work

2005-10-24T10:43:00.000-07:00

Adage.com has a great article regarding the use and reading of Blogs at work. Basically, we're all a bunch of technogy, internet, information junkies. Right? The article states that, on average, 3.5 hours are spent reading blogs each week while people are at work. Yeah, we're all junkies that need our fix. At least we're not taking a smoking break!!

However, I really liked this last part of the article:

"Technorati, a blog search engine, now tracks 19.6 million blogs, a number that has doubled about every five months for the past three years. If that growth were to continue, all 6.7 billion people on the planet will have a blog by April 2009. Imagine the work that won’t get done then."

Yeah, imagine the unproductiving then?? You know, is there a way to leverage the power of online content to further motivate employees to work harder, more effective, and more efficient? For example, could managers allow a company-wide 20 minute daily break where everyone hits up their favorite blogs, then they are required to do a quick write-up of what they read and how they can use that to improve the company? This way, employees get their cake, and management gets to eat it.

Ford is "dramatically recommitted" to Hybrids

2005-10-21T13:07:00.000-07:00

In an article posted yesterday on AdAge.com, there is an article regarding Ford's shift in Advertising strategy to announce that, drum roll please. . ."FORD SHIFTING STRATEGY TO EMPHASIZE HYBRIDS, SAFETY".

Really, are you now doing that. That's wonderful Ford. Thanks for not focusing on safety before, as noted by the recent $4 million a South Carolina jury has ordered Ford to pay in a Rollover Suit. Why should Ford pay for a woman who was killed when her Ford Explorer Rolled Over? Well, as the article states, because:

"As far back as 1989, Ford Motor Company knew that this Explorer had rollover
problems," Ed Bell, the Hayward family's lawyer, told jurors in Charleston,
S.C.
"Ford knew of potentially fatal defects during the development and
manufacture
of this vehicle and chose not to remedy them."

Now, this lawsuit represents one of hundreds if not thousands of lawsuits against Ford right now. In fact, as I write this, I recall an accident I saw last summer, wherein a Ford Explorer, going no more than 35 mph rolled over after hitting a car. Now, I'll be the first to admit that even cars in the proper circumstances could easily roll when going 35 mph if conditions are right. However, what was bothersome to me was the roof and how the A-pillars collapsed, rather than supporting the roof. Please see this picture I took at the scene.

Now, the real kicker is the other car that was involved in the accident. It was barely damaged. The Exploder side-swiped the car and rolled in response. Look at the minimal damage on the other car.

But, I digress.

The point is Ford has failed to prove that Safety ever was an incredibly, sincere, pervasive-in-their-culture concern. Look, we're talking about deliberate disregard by Ford executives when given information that the best-selling SUV in the US (the Ford Exploder, errr, Explorer) has poor engineering in the roof-structure and could be prone to rollover.

Now, I'm not necessarily saying that Ford doesn't make good cars, or that the Exploder isn't a good vehicle for some people's needs. However, I am saying that the U.S. carmakers continue to flop where it really matters.

I fear that Ford, with this "innovation" campaign strategy may be getting suckered into the same PR garbage GM has been pumping out the last 5-6 years.

Now, to quote the article from AdAge:

The campaign’s “Innovation” theme reiterates the Ford heir’s recent speech on
the topic. “Innovation will be the compass that guides this company going
forward,” Mr. Ford says in both the 60- and 30-second spots. He adds that Ford
has “dramatically recommitted” to hybrids, technology and safety.

Now, let's analyze the statement, "Ford has "dramatically recommitted" to hybrids, technology, and safety". I'm sorry, but the word recommitted draws up a bunch of quizzicall looks without any answers. Ok, mr Bill Ford, so what you really meant to say was, "we really kind of just dragged our feet along for a while. You know, we didn't care too much about safety, the environment, or safety, but you know, we all make mistakes. But, one day, I, yes, me Mr. Bill Ford had this great idea. Let's become innovative, recommit to developing hybrids (since Toyota and Honda have been kicking our butt with hybrids since their introduction in 2000)."

So it has taken Ford a while to respond to the competition. Granted, they do have some hybrids in their lineup, such as the Hybrid and Mariner. But, come on, who's kidding who? Why do you have to recommit? Surely you've been developing all this technology from the beginning. Right?

I'm not stating that Ford isn't developing their Safety, Technology, and Hybrids. However, why do you have to remind us about this through a PR/Advertising campaign. Why don't you spend your limited funds (given their most recent $1+ billion quarterly loss) on more valuable things such as new product, that will entice buyers.

Most customers these days are tired of the hyped up crap of automotive companies. What matters most to the customer is what they can buy on the lot, today, tomorrow, or in a couple months. We don't want to be told about some Revolutionary Strategy Shift in your company that you're going to start offering products that adress the issues I care about. Give me product and prove it, not some commercial stating such. And until then, I'll drive my import car; because, though it may not be as efficient as a hybrid, it is safer, more reliable, and at least equals all the "technology" any domestic vehicle offers in its class.

All I have to say is: Wow Ford, I can't wait to see what all this dramatically recommitted strategy is going to produce next. Yay!!

China Business and Censorship - Free Information for All!!

2005-10-16T23:45:00.000-07:00

Well, we have all experienced, have been influenced by, or have lost jobs to China. The country is a veritable powerhouse that refuses to sit down. I visited China earlier this year and was taken back by the incredible entrepreneurship I witnessed (though, "eagerness to make a quick buck" may be more appropriate). Now, I think, in the future, the Chinese will wisen up and begin to more effectively communicate and deal with Western Civilization. But, right now, the Chinese are eager to "buy low, sell high", regardless of what brand may be on the product, regardless of who the buyer of the product is. In other words, as long as they are selling the Nikes for more than cost, they could care less who the buyer is, even if it isn't Nike. The counterfeit industry is enormous, and is continuing to grow.

But, China isn't the only culprit, recently, Spyder Ski Company intercepted counterfeit product coming from Russia. My conclusion on China is this:

China is full of eager factories and people ready to produce goods. However, these people lack the formal business management education in the West. Hence, they are trying to play in a formal business environment without the proper skills or knowledge of how this environment functions. BUT, as soon as they get the proper knowledge and education, WATCH OUT, because they could clean our clocks.

See, the Chinese see America as their opportunity to make it big. It's as if they have this idea that, "Just if I could get an American to import my product, I'll become rich". And, the basis of their thoughts are from other manufacturers they've seen becoming overnight millionaires from some American contract.

Where they fail to see the point is the true competitive landscape of America. In addition, they don't understand competitive advantages. What I mean is: Unless the Chinese supplier has a competitive advantage compared to other factories in China, then they don't have any advantage in the U.S.

They argue that a competitor Factory XYZ is selling thousands of Widget A. Therefore, if you, American, buy thousands of Widget A from me, then you can sell them in America just like Factory XYZ's customer. They don't understand that if Factory XYZ's customer is buying product from them in volume, then that customer already has the distribution channels set up in the States. They have the connections, the brand, the distribution, the marketing. So, I'm on a level playing field as soon as I import the Widgets. So, unless the factory in China has a competitive advantage to Factory XYZ, and therefore sells to me at a lower cost, I have no advantage in the States.

I know, I know, this sounds incredibly rudimentary and basic. You know what, it is!! There is nothing novel with what I just explained. Yet, for the Chinese, that logic just doesn't register. They just don't get it. At least not yet. But, as they become more educated, it will register. Boy will it register!!

But, alas, their government once again attempts to censor their information. But, there is hope for them. They can achieve their knowledge, albeit rather dangerously. As Marketing Vox blog reports, the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders has released a new handbook for the "Cyber-Dissidents". This handbook offers information on how to get around China's "clever mix of investment, technology, and diplomacy" censorship efforts.

I sure hope this made sense, because it is late, and I'm tired.

John Koten at Cleveland Ohio

2005-10-16T11:32:00.000-07:00

John Koten - Editor in Chief of Inc and Fast Company addressed business owners in Cleveland Ohio. You can find the podcast HERE

Following are some of my notes from listening to this podcast:

Only two things that kill a business

· Ego
· Fear

Their opposites are:

· Excellence
· Humility

Entrepreneurship views the world marketplace as a blank canvas rather then a fully developed picture.

Entrepreneurship is both Concept and Execution

Entrepreneurs are sometimes:
· Impolite
· Frustrating to deal with
· Talk more than they listen

Entrepreneurs see the world as they want it, they don’t like the word ‘no’, they don’t like authority when it is forced on them.

If a business owner’s business hankerings do not make his/her spouse nervous, he/she is not an entrepreneur.

Cultures have come here to help us develop our entrepreneurial and capitalistic model. Only America has a cross-cultural model of entrepreneurship.

There is a triangle with the creative class on one side, the entrepreneurship class on the other side, and small-business on the bottom.

In Vietnam & China, there is a unique coop mentality where they avoid conflict, and they’re in each other’s business. They don’t need to keep their property separate. The U.S. allows us to own property, capitalize on that property, and keep that property as our own. In China, they think property belongs to the world. They don’t see a need for protecting individual property. If the property, technology, etc exists, then anyone should be able to use. Things in the world belong to everyone. This is a major problem, and how we solve that problem will affect how successfully we work with China.

Massive government regulation in the US undermines the American entrepreneurial capitalistic model by unwittingly encouraging giant businesses which then become bureaucratic like Microsoft, with a lot of money, but hasn’t created anything overly innovative for a long time. We’ve done this because of our fear that if we turn the power over to large, massive, powerful organizations, then they will hurt people. And we feel it’s up to the government to stop these organizations from abusing their power. As a result, these regulations are onerous for small entrepreneurial organizations and only huge corporations have the resources and lawyers to comply with such regulations. An example, Sarbanes-Oxley has created enormous red tape for small businesses to comply with. As such, many small businesses are spending millions just to comply with Sarbanes-Oxley.

We don’t have the model or the metrics to understand why one entrepreneurial model works and another fails. Academia still hasn’t truly identified how to assess any given entrepreneurial model. There really is no defined science to analyze entrepreneurial ventures to determine which ones will be successful and which ones won’t.

Click HEREto listen to the podcast.

Grocery Stores

2005-10-05T21:49:00.000-07:00

As if the margins aren't slim enough, grocery stores, and Discounters like Target and Wal-Mart, insist on having upwards of 50 checkout registers at the front of the store for decoration . When was the last time you had to wait in an incredibly long line at a grocery store, yet 85% of the cash registers remained unused? It happens to me 99% of the time I go to the store. It happened to me less than 3 days ago. It is ridiculous if you ask me. It is an epidemic shared by all the grocery stores.

I can only think of a few reasons they put so many cash registers in such stores:

1. To give customers the perception that they get a lot of business, so they need a lot of registers.

2. Because all their competition does, and we need to look like everyone else (great differentiation strategy, eh?).

3. For the once in a year sale-a-thon when they actually schedule a sufficient number of employees to man most of the registers.

4. Because Corporate feels like it.

5. Because they got a volume discount on buying more registers.

Seriously, Corporate, do you really think any of us (your customers) are really suckered into your ways? Whatever happened with efficient floor planning. Folks, having a long line of customers behind the few registers that are open is nowhere near efficient. And it pisses me off that I have to go into a store, such as Albertsons, and then stand around waiting to pay for the milk that is freezing in my hand because my purchases are so nominal that I only used a basket. Even the so-called Express Lanes aren't much of an express anymore.

If these stores, including the whore, would realize the level of untapped customer satisfaction capacity they have, and then unlock that capacity, they could leapfrog their competition in customer satisfaction and retention. After all, when margins in the grocery business are a paltry 3.4% anything to increase customer retention is valuable. Welcome to differentiation, a simple strategy many businesses fantasize and profess but few effectively execute on.

It's not that differentiation doesn't exist between competitors. Seriously, we live in the land of differentiation, variety, and choices. But, many companies fail to effectively and properly educate their customers about what their Unique Value Proposition is. As a result, customers simply don't "get it" about the truly superior products. Because management fails to effectively communicate their Unique Value.

I am talking about an opportunity so simple, so inexpensive, so obvious, that when a company has the opportunity to effectively differentiate themselves, for essentially minimal cost, any decent, worth his/her salt, executive should jump on that train.

OK, now let's walk through my point step-by-step:

1. Executive management issues a decree that all grocery stores will increase the number of open registers during the 8 busiest hours of each business day. (In my experience, this means approximately 3-5 more registers will be open)

2. This decision will increase the daily payroll by a nominal $200-400. Which makes a monthly increase of $6,000-10,000. At gross margins of 26% in the industry, same store sales would need to increase approximately $24,000-40,000 to cover the increase cost of the additional registers. (and this is assuming a generous $8.50/hour wage).

3. Customers come to the store, and check out is quick, easy, and painless. They don't have to stand in line behind the fat lady that can't find her credit-card and is breathing restlessly because she just finished loading her eighteen 2-liter bottles of Diet Coke on the checkout belt. However, it is highly unlikely the customer will notice this increased speed through checkout immediately.

4. The customer now goes to a competitor who has not implemented this change, and they now are stuck behind the fat lady with the eighteen bottles of Diet Coke. They now recall how fast checkout was at the your store.

5. The next time around, the customer is willing to spend extra time driving back to your store, because they didn't have to stand around forever to check out.

6. Wammo!! You now have a loyal customer who will evangelize, on your behalf, about the wonderful, quick, customer-centric checkout experience they had at your store.

It's funny how a loyal customer will spend twice as much time travelling to the store they like, as opposed to the store that is most convenient. Arguably, the more customer focused the store is, the more convenient it is, regardless of travel distance.

Let's analyze my above, step-by-step direction. The true cost to the Executive is The Company. After all, they are competing in a commodity market. The Company is at stake! All they have to do is hire a few more employees to check people out. For crying out loud, how much does it cost to train someone to run a scanner, swipe a credit card, and get a signature?

Nada, Zilch!!!

What does it cost Corporate to then educate the market about their new strategy?

Nada, Zilch!!!

What's the return on investment?

A ton of more loyal business, boosting same-store sales, and having more satisfied customers.

Grocery stores are constantly trying to fudge their margins higher by mixing in a TV here, or sandals there. But, if they'd just focus on their core competency of providing food, maybe they could do something with that!!

To you Grocery Execs, I've got a little secret: The only reason we go to the grocery store is because we have to. Because we need to eat (well, here in America, our ever growing waistline suggests we want to eat, also). Because we can't buy food that will tie us over for the next year. Hence you Execs find yourselves in a commodity business.

So, how can you boost your business. You can't diversify the product offering. Every store has all the same brands, products, foods, etc. But you can diversify on the customer experience. And, if you aren't convinced about how important the customer experience really is, why not head over to learn about Starbucks' rabid insistence and focus on their customers' experiences.

Folks, we live in the 2000s, not the 50s. Let's get with the efficiency program that actually increases customer interaction and satisfaction with the company. People are busy today but still need to go to the grocery store (unless, of course, you are Paris Hilton, then you just go to the nearest fast food).

. . . .Drive through grocery shopping, now that's a concept. (that didn't work)

Inventor Makes fuel out of Rubbish, and Cats??

2005-09-15T20:51:00.000-07:00

So, an inventor, patent-holder, in Germany claims he has created some form of refinement process wherein he can take ordinary trash, including rubber, paper, textiles, plastic, etc. to make biodiesel at 1/5 the current cost of a liter in Europe. His firm, Alphatek GmBH, owns the patents to the technology.

Obviously anyone would love to see this technology, should it be legitimate, be scaled up to a large scale to reduce our fuel costs everywhere. However, I have one small problem with the technology, it is only diesel fuel, as far as I can tell. I'm not quite ready to get rid of the "Premium Sipping Ride" (i.e. my Outback, see previous post).

The CNN Article: Inventor denies dead cat fuel story - Sep 15, 2005

My Deal Blog

2005-09-15T12:38:00.000-07:00

Folks, I've started another blog that posts daily deals. These deals combine various coupon codes, sales, and other promotions to get you killer discounts on the items you love best. You should check it out:

Critical Mass Deals Blog

As time goes on, I will continue to tweak and modify the blog to become more comprehensive and easier to search. But, as we all know, you have to start somewhere. Right?

2005 Subaru Outback 2.5XT 5-spd Manual Review

2005-09-15T11:20:00.000-07:00

Fresh off the lot.

I am a self-admitted car nut, more specifically, a self-admitted Subaru addict. There are only a couple things I'm addicted to and SUBARU is one of them. Despite my persuasion, I will attempt to give a somewhat objective review on the rocket I've been driving for the last year.

Given that the end of August marked my one-year relationship with my car, I thought I'd celebrate with a review.

I purchased the Subaru Outback 2.5XT at Doug Smith Autoplex in American Fork, UT. The overall experience at the dealership was positive. However, there were a few hiccups as I waited, ever so patiently, for my $500 deposit to make interest for the dealership. . .err, I mean, for my car to arrive 2 months after promised.

The car finally arrived, and I was able to commence the gruelling 1,000 mile break-in period. (I actually tried my hardest to log 1,500 miles before really romping on the engine, as I figured it could only help)

Having come from my previous machine-beast of a car (a 1995 Subaru Legacy), I was fairly content to deal with the break-in period. Not to mention that even under no or light boost, the new XT thoroughly destroyed the Legacy in all aspects of performance. (Note in the pictures thorough scuffing on the drivers side body panels. Well, as an aside, I decided to try my mad-tyte skills at rally driving. In other words, I tried to further enhance my already well developed drifting skills. Despite my best attempts, I successfully rolled the car onto its side on a very moderate bend in the gravel road in a National Forest road. I ended up using a Suburban to pull the car back onto all fours, as my cousin and I were unable to roll it back over, despite our brute upper body muscular structure. Despite rolling it onto its side, the Legacy performed like a champ right after and gave an additional 30,000 no headache miles. The car was eventually traded in earlier this year with over 165,000 miles on it.)

In quick measure I broke in the new Outback and began to put it through its paces. When I used to have a job, I would commute through a mountain pass that allowed me to really put the Outback through its paces. Where the Legacy puttered out in 4th gear at 6,000 rpm, the Outback tore up, without even downshifting from 5th gear. This car was amazing!! It would pull on a 4-5% grade at 120 mph, no problem. The turbo really shines in the altitude with this car. The vehicle seems to have gobs of power throughout most of the power curve, and when driving within reason of the speed limit. The engine runs extremely smooth and quietly. At a stand still, the engine is so quiet that, if you listen carefully, you can hear the nicely tuned grumble of the dual-exhaust tips in the rear.

The overall fit and finish of the vehicle is very impressive. Subaru did an excellent job at stepping up the interior aesthetics of the dash design. The dash feels like one coherent whole, as opposed to the choppy feel of the previous generation. One drawback, however, is the integration of the audio system. This integration prevents simple aftermarket upgrades. In addition, the stereo system does not have mp3 capability, or digital input capability (such as plugging in an iPod). The stock stereo system has more-than-acceptable sound, and the 6 disc in dash feature is a plus for long road trips.

Earlier this year, I went down to Moab for a week of decompression. During this trip I slept in the rear part of the car. With the rear seats folded down, there was sufficient room for my 5' 10" frame to cuddle up with my sleeping bag. Given the miles of off-road trails and roads in Moab, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to try out my 8.7 inches of ground clearance. The car handled nicely off-road, but the tires are definitely designed for the road.

I'm sure the automatic would be a little nicer for starting out on steep terrain. But, with my manual 5 speed combined with the gearing, I had to rev the engine to get the car moving uphill after a stop. This revving resulted in a pungent stench coming from the engine (this smell seems to be exclusively shared with all Subarus for at least the last decade). The gearing could probably be changed to help with offroad performance; but, then you'd have to say good-bye to the turbo performance that makes this car so fun to drive. However, the AWD (All Wheel Drive) works flawlessly and transparently. Perhaps the best AWD on the market, definitely the best AWD in this price range.

Many will say that this car wasn't made for offroading anyways. Well, you may be right, but why then did Subaru tempt me with 8.7 inches of ground clearance? I may never know, but I like the combination of the turbo and the ground clearance, so I'm not complaining. If I didn't I would have purchased the Legacy GT.

I love this car in crappy weather. The 4 stage heated seats are wonderful for the cold women in my life, and the heated windshield and wipers work perfectly. The rubber floormats do a great job keeping the carpet clean and keeping any fluids contained within the mat. They don't look the best, but they work wonders.

Given my active outdoor lifestyle, this car is a perfect blend of sport, off-road prowess, power, and pure driving enjoyment. The ride inside is quiet and solid. I've added Yakima Destination Hardware to the roof to transport all my toys. Nothing beats two or three bikes on top of a Subaru, and a bunch of camping gear in the cargo area. All you crunchies out there know exactly what I mean. OK, maybe a Volkswagen Westfalia beats it, but that's about it.

Overall, I absolutely love this car. It is a blast to drive and most people appreciate it, especially after they ride around in it and experience it. I'm pretty anti-SUV in most instances -- Who really needs to get 14 mpg to buy groceries, go to work, and take the kids to soccer? With the Outback, I get better ground clearance than many SUVs, better gas mileage than most, and performance that competes with the Porsche Cayenne.

I'm definitely not complaining. (OK, I am complaining about the premium gas and I would like a little better gas mileage)

A beautiful sight, 4 Subarus in a row. (Spotted at REI, duh!!)

Vehicle:

Subaru 2.5XT 5 spd AWD
2.5 Liter Turbocharged
250 HP, 250 ft-lbs Torque

Cloth interior, Auto-Dimming Mirror w/ compass & Homelink, rear cargo nets, rubber floor mats

Current Miles 18,356 miles and counting

Mileage
EPA 19/25 city/hwy
Actual 20/22.6 city/hwy

Warranty Issues:
-Driver's Side door pull rubber texturing flaked off (fixed under warranty)
-Slight engine hesitation under moving acceleration(hesitation appears to have disappeared, maybe I've just gotten used to it)

Gas Prices

2005-09-15T10:17:00.000-07:00

Here is probably the closest thing we will get to being able to buy fuel online: Gas Buddy

But, the real kicker comes from the following telephone number: 732-829-1249

This guy is outta control. But, thanks to him, you will always know where the cheapest gas is located.

Thanks to The Jewish Blogmeister for the information.

Extend your Wi-Fi by building a better antenna

2005-09-13T22:52:00.000-07:00

OK, so my computer is tied in to our Wi-Fi network that never fails to piss me off!! The router is very spotty, even though I'm less than 40 feet from it, my signal says it is low. Given this less-than-optimal situation, I was very pleased when I came across this article in Popular Science Magazine. Basically, with some tape, cardboard, and aluminum foil, you can boost your Wi-Fi network/router to perform, in my experience, significantly better. I mean, we're talking going from a Low signal strength to an Excellent signal strength. So, in a quick 20 minutes, a bunch of gidiness from the increase in performance, and a blog later, I'm now enjoying speeds closer to what I've been paying my service provider to give me.

I've attached pictures for your viewing, and idiot-proof pleasure.

The tools needed. You will need a piece of cardboard, scissors sufficient for cutting, Aluminum Foil, Tape, and the cut-out template. You can get the cut-out template HERE.

I first placed the template over the cardboard. With scissors, I perforated the cardboard on through each 'X' on the template.

Here is the perforated half-circle section.

Here is the culprit, a Belkin wireless router (I don't remember the model). It is critical, as the article states, to have the hole for the antenna, or the focal point, in the proper location. Otherwise, the signal won't be boosted as effectively. So, test fit the "focal hole" over the antenna to ensure it will fit properly.

Here is the taped foil over the cardboard (backside is pictured). Ensure that the foil is as flat against the cardboard as possible.

Here is the final product, mounted on the router. You will probably have to mess with the booster and aim it properly. But, once completed, you should notice significant improvement in performance.

French Fry Holder

2005-09-12T19:28:00.000-07:00

YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING ME!!

French Fry Cup Holder

If this invention wasn't inspired by our Fast Food Nation, what is?!?

LOTOJA Classic Bike Race

2005-09-12T15:58:00.000-07:00

Claiming to be the longest 1 day USCF sanctioned road race in the U.S., the LOTOJA Classic got off on a great start on Sept. 10, 2005. However, not long after the race began, the storm clouds rolled in and the rain and snow began to fall. Since I didn't get to race this year in LOTOJA, my brother and I went and volunteered with the race. For those unfamiliar, the LOTOJA Classic is a race that begins in Logan, UT, and ends in Jackson Hole, WY. In the process of the race course, the racers ride in three states: Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming.

For the last 4 or so races, the course actually ended in Swan Valley, ID, and never made it into Wyoming. This was due to road construction in the Snake River Canyon going up to Jackson. As such, the race was roughly 184 miles long on those years.

This year, the road construction was completed in time for the race course to end in Jackson, effectively increasing the total distance to 204 miles long. That's right, 204 miles in one day, on a bike. This year, the snow pelted the ill-prepared riders. So much so, that they ended up bussing approximately 4 buss loads of riders down Strawberry Canyon. Many riders began experiencing the early stages of hypothermia. Though 1,000 riders registered to race, approximately 700 actually showed up to race (presumably because of the weather forecasts). At nightfall, approximately only 360 riders had crossed the finish line.

This year, given the conditions and elements, the race tested the true ability of the riders. But, had the riders been more prepared, hypothermia wouldn't have been as much an issue. Even this Performance Gore Windstopper Shellwould have done wonders in keeping the riders warm.

New Blackberry 8700 "Electron"

2005-09-12T15:30:00.000-07:00

Folks, it is coming, real soon. Due out sometime in Oct/Nov, based on what others are saying. The new Blackberry 8700, or "Electron". Based on the info I've gathered, it has:

Speakerphone
Bluetooth
Full Keyboard
Polyphonic Ringtones
EDGE highspeed wireless access
GPS capable
IM built in
Faster processor, including 64 MB of RAM

Possible Drawbacks, however, include:

No Camera
No WiFi
Lacks VOIP capability

Check out The Unofficial Blackberry Blog for more info. This thing should be pretty awesome in functionality. The only problem/question I have, is that it will only continue to blur the workplace and with your personal life further. It is only a matter time before technology will require that employees always be available. That time will suck!!

Why people hate fat Americans

2005-09-09T13:04:00.000-07:00

Here is a very interesting article regarding consumption, obesity, America, and some of the issues we face. I think it is important to note that we, as Americans, are all Fat and Obese in our own right. It may not be in the proverbial spare-tire waist that is so common throughout our country, but it may be in our consumption, attitudes, lifestyles, vehicles (read SUVs), clothing, enetertainment, etc. From the article, it states:

"According to the latest Pew Global Attitudes survey, a comprehensive opinion poll of public attitudes in America and 16 other countries, the USA is routinely seen as greedy by Western publics. For example, 67 per cent of the Dutch, 64 per cent of Britons and 62 per cent of Canadians see Americans as greedy. Perhaps most striking of all, 70 per cent of Americans see their fellow compatriots as greedy (10)."

This survey result is striking, yet understandable. I've travelled throughout Europe and Asia, and I've been in discussion with folks about our consumption. Our consumption is synonymous with greed in a lot of the world. And, I can't necessarily dispute that assertion. It is true, we, as a society, have become very greedy. We consume like there's no tomorrow. The amount of waste a given individual produces in a year in the U.S. is phenomenal. I don't know the exact numbers, but I recall articles I've read that cited the tonnage consumed per person, and it is high. However, I have to agree strongly with the article that consumption truly is the mark of a better standard of living, not worse. As such, as the article says, all should "aim to be fat Americans".

But, it is still critical that we ask ourselves if all our consumption is necessary. Can we curb it? Should we curb it? Is there an argument that an increase in consumption isn't necessarily bad; however, that increase needs to be in moderation. Excess consumption is not appropriate, regardless of our standard of living, and how Fat or Phat we try to live.

In reference to the issue of world hunger cited in the article (namely 815 million of the world populous received insufficient nutrition in 2002), I think the greater issue is not the ability to produce enough food to solve world hunger. World hunger will be solved, not by the developed world producing food and shipping it over (as there is an inherent flaw with this theory), but in growing the food in the respective countries, and teaching the local people proper farming techniques. The inherent flaw with shipping food over from the developed to the undeveloped world is the lack of infrastructure. The undeveloped third-world countries simply do not have the necessary infrastructure in place to distribute the food and get it to the people who need it most. And, until a better infrastructure is put in place, the problem will persist. When governments are corrupt, and guerillas intercept food supplies, and the roads simply suck, and there aren't sufficient vehicles to transport the food, and the heat spoils the food, and there is no orderly distribution network, how can we ever expect to solve the problem by growing more food in the developed world!? It doesn't make sense.

However, teaching proper farming techniques, and then empowering the farmers to implement the techniques, will have a lot more powerful effect on solving the problem of hunger. In addition, and I know this is a sore spot for many, GMOs promise a level of solution yet to be realized. Today, crops can be modified to be more resilient, stronger, more productive, in a shorter time through genetic modification and manipulation. But, the caveat with GMOs is the increased price of the seed. In these third world countries, farmers simply don't make the proper margins to be able to afford GMOs.

So, once again, the wheel continues to spin without moving forward or back.

The Article

New iPod Nano

2005-09-07T15:30:00.000-07:00

Apple has done it once again. They've introduced their new iPod Nano. Much cooler than the shuffle. Frankly, I think the shuffle is kind of a joke in many ways. It leverages the iPod brand name, but that's about all
it does. It really is no different than any other flash player out there.

Now the iPod Nano, on the other hand, is saweet!!

Available in 2GB and 4GB models. They will retail for $250 & $200 respectively. It incorporates the wonderful click wheel on the larger iPods. In addition, it has a color screen allowing for viewing of photos, or the current music album you are listening to.

Apple owns the mp3 player market with 53% of the market, and with the new Nano, they'll probably hold on to that lead.

Pics courtesy of: Apple and Cnet

Age Expectancy

2005-09-07T15:27:00.000-07:00

I'm supposed to live to the age of 87.9 years old. WooHoo!!!

Check out this site by Aging Research

They have a quiz you can take that will then calculate your life expectancy based on current habits, trends, gender, ancestry, etc.

Hopefully this quiz will motivate many to take better care of themselves.

Katrina Blog, from Downtown New Orleans

2005-09-06T13:34:00.000-07:00

Here's a blog by the CEO of DirectNIC.com who's offices are located in downtown New Orleans. They have a myriad of photos and an ongoing blog about the progress, developments, etc. in the massive cleanup after Katrina.

Here are the photos
Here's a link to the Blog

Future Retail Business Opportunities

2005-09-06T10:48:00.000-07:00

I was visiting with a friend the other night, and we were discussing the developments in the retail space and the ramifications of ecommerce on more traditional brick-and-mortar. Now, we all know that the internet craze of the late 90s was a little left-of-center when everyone was forecasting the doom of brick-and-mortar. However, I think there will continue to be some level of doom for the traditional brick-and-mortar as we know it today.

Think about it, I'm in my mid-20s, and I make over 50% of all my consumer purchases online. Why? Because it is faster, more convenient, 95% of the time cheaper, and I don't have to pay for gas (see my rants below on gas prices). But, even more important with my purchases, I many times still physically experience the product before making a purchase. In other words, many times I'll visit traditional brick-and-mortar retail locations to learn more about the product, handle it, and look it over. Then, I go home, on the net, and find the lowest price and make a purchase.

Come on, this behavior is nothing new. Almost everyone I know does similar things with their purchases. Many brick-and-mortar mom-and-pop shops complain of this kind of behavior. But, in my mind, this behavior presents a business opportunity. Consumers will always want to physically interact on some level with the product before making a purchase. So, if many brick-and-mortars are going to struggle because of increasing purchases online. Then, where and what is the way to allow consumers an opportunity to touch, feel, taste, smell etc. the product before making the purchase.

How can you blend the benefits of the brick-and-mortar, with the convenience and price of ecommerce. Perhaps offering a line of credit to customers, allowing them to "demo" a product for a period of time before choosing to buy it or return it? I can see it now, an ecommerce retail site offering their customers the opportunity to order, receive, and experience the product in person before having to decide whether or not if they want to purchase it. If, after a set time, say 15 days, the customer doesn't return the product, the ecommerce site automatically bills their line of credit. Otherwise, the customer returns the product. Or, even better, the customer then ships the product to another customer, who has requested the same product and wants to "experience" it before making a purchasing decision. Thus, creating a community where customers "share" with eachother.

Customizable, community-driven, customer experiences. Just think!!

Customer Made is huge!!

GM still not seeing the light & Gas Prices

2005-09-06T10:31:00.000-07:00

GM still doesn't seem to quite get it. They have now successfully introduced a vehicle, the HHR a successfully whopping 4 years after its competition was introduced, the PT Cruiser by the in-its-own-right infamous DaimlerChrysler. In fact, I've read that the development & design of the HHR was actually headed up by the same guy that headed up the PT Cruiser. At any rate, welcome to the table, GM, 2.5+ years after the hot demand for the PT Cruiser has tapered off.

To add further hurt to the whole situation, GM is now readying the launch/introduction/further downward spiral/self-suicide of their redesigned, next-gen gas-hogs, their SUVs. And, Katrina definitely doesn't help the situation given the incredible jump in fuel prices. GMs own research suggests that "gasoline prices must rise to $2.50 to $3 a gallon for a sustained period to change vehicle-buying decisions" (source). Well, GM, welcome to Katrina, a dip in oil supply, and an ever-increasingly-consumption-driven US consumer who demands more and more, at lower and lower prices. I'm sorry, but SUV sales simply won't be where they were before given the economic conditions we are in. Seriously, average gas prices have been well over $2.50 for over half a year now. GM's nonluxury SUV sales are off 27.2%. That's over 1/4 of their total sales!! Let's do the math, full-size truck sales has grown 16.7% over the last 6 years. Naturally, GM's revenues and profits from that segment have increased in-line with the growth. However, in less than one year, their sales in the same segment is now off 27.2%.

OK, come again. It took 6 years for the segment to grow less than 17%, yet, in less than a year, GM's sales are now off by 27.2%. What it took 6 years to grow, in less than a year GM has dropped by 150% off the respective growth.

GM (and Ford) wake up!! The SUV craze appears to be finally dwindling. Consumers are now regaining their brains, and buying vehicles that actually make sense.

Don't get me wrong, I like many aspects of SUVs. But, it's only a matter of time before American consumers realize they don't need to experience 13mpg to go pick up their obesity-rich McDonalds Value Meal (supersized, nonetheless).

2005-09-02T15:20:00.000-07:00

I found this AD in a magazine rather funny. Hope you like.

2005-09-02T15:13:00.000-07:00

C'est Moi

BzzAgent Research

2005-09-02T08:55:00.000-07:00

I don't know if you are familiar with BzzAgent, but it's a slick WOMM (Word Of Mouth Marketing) firm that has legions of evangelists who go around proselyting for various products in a "marketing campaign". The firm leverages the power of word of mouth through their evangelists, and, as such, are able to help companies introduce or push products in a more unique, personal way. After all, you are more likely to receive product advice from a friend to influence your purchasing behavior than you are a magazine or TV ad. Well, for you technical folk out there, here is a link to a white page, research done by Dr. Walter Carl of Northeastern University.

Link to the White Paper THE VALUE OF MANAGED WORD-OF-MOUTH PROGRAMS

Katrina

2005-09-02T08:44:00.000-07:00

There is some intense damage happening from Katrina. Check out this pic from TextAmerica.

Dad's Birthday

2005-09-01T08:47:00.000-07:00

Today is my dad's birthday. I just wanted the world to know that he's the coolest dad in the world. He is an incredible example to me and I really look up to him in so many ways.

Climbing Kings Peak in Utah

2005-08-29T09:15:00.000-07:00

So, I just returned from a weekend trip climbing Kings Peak in Utah. Kings Peak is the tallest peak in Utah, sitting at a phenomenal 13,528 feet. Yeah, I know, I'm hardcore. Actually, the climb is pretty straightforward, and not overly difficult. Other than being in decent physical shape, there really aren't any other requirements to climb this mountain. The round trip is anywhere from the low 20s to about 29 miles, depending on which route is chosen.

While hiking out to Dollar Lake, my brother spranged his ankle. So, the following day, when we hiked out to ascend Kings Peak, we decided to climb up the shortest route, or Anderson Chute. Anderson Chute takes you up to the saddle that then leads up to the Peak. It took us approximately one hour to ascend the Chute. The chute is the most technical of the three options for getting to the saddle. However, after having done botht he trail and the chute, let me tell you, always do the chute. The trail simply takes too long. We finally summitted the peak, only to find storm clouds overhead and quite a bit static. We were shocking eachother, the rocks, and our hair was buzzing. Needless to say, we got off the summit ASAP. The weather was very sporadic. It was quickly alternating between sun, rain, and snow. But, sure enough, once we got off the peak, and started hiking the trail back, and the sun came out to bake us all the way back to camp. Once we arrived at camp, however, it started to pour rain. The trail back, which loops around the backside of the mountain simply takes phenomenally too long. I strongly recommend both ascending and descending through Anderson's chute. Considering my brother had a spranged ankle, he commented that he would have been able to descend the chute.

The image is taken from Summitpost.org. This image is taken of in the valley where dollar lake is. The trailhead is north of this area and you hike south into the valley. In the image, you can see Andersons Chute on the left, right below the peak furthest left. The peak furthest left is Kings Peak.

It's a sweet climb, and I highly recommend it.

The World

2005-08-24T13:02:00.000-07:00

Check this out. A land development company in UAE is master planning/developing a set of 300 islands in the shape of "The World ". These islands will consist of various resorts, hotels, fauna, villages, homes, etc. Hurry up, and you too can be an investor in this unique development. I've never been to UAE, but, from a friend, the sand there is incredible. I wouldn't mind my own unique island retreat on The World.

What money can buy. . .

Postsecret Blog

2005-07-17T00:47:00.000-07:00

Well, I've been away from my blog for a little while. Sorry? That is, if anyone even reads it at this point. (all indicators point to "no") At any rate, I found this incredible website of mortal people experiencing mortal life realizing mortal issues, and yet being so human in their expression. Essentially, it is a blog where people mail in secrets they have never told a soul. For many, it is a release from the secret as soon as they share it. While for others, it appears to be an ever darkening fall into their depression, addiction, disorder, etc.

Check it out: Postsecret Blog

Follow up on my Hip Hop Marketing comment below

2005-06-03T13:18:00.000-07:00

Hip hop is truly a veritable force for marketers to be reckoned with. Hip Hop culture pervades our society on so many levels. If you notice, most new cars have rims at least 16-17 inch in diameter. Now, I'm not saying that Hip Hop culture is the sole cause of this. However, surely big rims, dubs, daytons, etc. have pushed the envelope of how big rims can go. Arguably, auto racing motorsports have pushed larger rims, but not to the sizes we see today.

But, the whole image of Hip Hop has revolutionized everything from fashion, automobiles, to design. If you watch MTV , VH1, BET , and other programs, they have many Hip Hop influenced threads throughout their programming.

Marketers need to stand at attention. However, and more importantly, companies in all industries need to become aware that segmenting out target markets with Hip Hop elements can prove very fruitful to their ability to capture new customers.

I think as we move forward, we will see an incredible amount of "niche markets" being successfully exploited and developed. This means new opportunity for new businesses. Small businesses tend to be significantly more agile and responsive than larger businesses. Less than ten (10) years ago, hip hop culture was just starting to come up as a force of influence. Now, it pervades many aspects of everyone's life. What has happend with hip hop on a macro scale is the example of what is going to happen on a more micro, niche oriented scale.

Some of my supporting reasons for my "niche markets" claim include:

1. The internet. The internet is incredible in its scope and power. It can truly change the world, and has. Get a computer in the hands of a Citizen of a Communist country, and they will see, through the internet, that their Communist way is not the best. The internet, thus, will allow more and more companies to market their products to more and more segmented niches for a lower and lower cost.

Shoot, TV advertising is losing its luster and effectiveness with the advent of TiVo. Not to mention that men aged 18-24 spend more time online than they do in front of the tube, plasma, liquid crystal, or whatever you watch.

2. Trends of consumers. As the world becomes one global marketplace through various technologies, including the internet, there will be an increasing demand, by consumers, to have unique product that sets them apart. In many ways, it is beautiful how we are becoming one global marketplace. However, this globalization will somewhat sterilize the once-uniqueness of brands, and result for more uniqueness.

Recently I was reading how the demand/sales for pro-athlete footwear has gone down. Have consumers become numb to the marketing line of "If a pro wears it and endorses it, then I should too"?

3. In Seth Godin's book, "Purple Cow" book, he argues that all the big products that satisfies the whole nation and/or world are already here and done. We need to specialize, differentiate, and find niches to exploit. Stay focused on a niche, and screw the rest. If you can't conquer a market niche, what makes you think you can conquer the whole nation as a market? Maybe your product that you are married to isn't as good as you thought.

In visiting with a friend on this topic, he mentioned a story about a Q&A session Harley Davidson hosted at a recent trade show. Many of their avid, loyal fans questioned their marketing strategy and complained that Harley could get a lot more business if they'd quit solely targeting baby boomers and go after the whole motorcycle crowd. The senior executive for HD replied, "We haven't even converted 5% of the baby boomer market, let alone the rest of the motorcycle crowd!" Duh, there's a reason HD struggled until lately. Because they didn't have a target, niche market to exploit.

As an aside, baby boomers are a great opportunity. You have a market retiring with more money than any retirees previous, with more disposable income, longer life expectancy, and a higher level of health. All those attributes combined result in a very lucrative market with a lot of opportunity.

4. Technology, combined with globalization, will allow more products, produced in lower quantities, available to solve more unique problems. As more of the world converts to the web, the ease of inventors, entrepreneurs, and others will ease the connection of high-quality IP with a capable manufacture in a developing country to manufacture the product.

You can see that the basic thrust of my argument is that technology, namely the internet, is going to further revolutionize the consumer, how they live, and what products they buy. As such, figuring out a way to create more unique, niche oriented products can open an enormous window of opportunity for entrepreneurs, visionaries, and business.

My Rant on GM

2005-06-02T11:15:00.000-07:00

I'm sure most of you know that GM, and Ford's, credit rating has been downgraded to Junk. Surprise, Surprise!! As a somewhat avid automobile enthusiast, alright, I'm an addict, but don't even start me on Subarus, seeing their credit score plummet through the floor is no surprise. I think the problem can be directed to a few causes.

1. Uninspiring design. Seriously, who thinks the new Chevy Malibu is a smash hit? Fleet cars, here we come!!! Again. And what about the incredibly hideous, almost on par with the Asstek, Uplander . Until GM beefs up its design, they ain't goin' nowhere. Cadillac simply can't carry the whole company. (At least they are moving in the right direction by removing their underperforming brands like Oldsmobile.

2. Too much overhead. Now, I'll admit, I haven't pored over their financials, however, GM spends in excess of $3 billion a year on advertisements. That's advertisements alone. OK, now I understand that they are the World's Largest Automobile Manufacturer, but come on, that's $3.5 billion trying to push crappy product on a consumer that won't buy it. Not to mention the current ad campaign pushing the 1 million+ people that rely on GM (retirees included) for an income. But, if they have 1 million relying on them, maybe the problem was developing long before now. Management just failed to figure things out.

But, alas, the U.S. government will probably bail out the Big 3, or 2, if necessary. Though, Bush recently said that he wouldn't help because "the big 3 need to learn how to compete with the competition" (this is paraphrased, as I can't find the article where I read this). But, and I can't remember where I read this, over 10% of the U.S. population's jobs rely on the automotive industry. Which means that the Government, for sake of national security, would probably do something to help out the ailing big 2. At a minimum, Kudos to Chrysler for having such a successful smash with their 300C and Magnum. I mean, this stuff is bling, it's even showing up in Rap videos.

All together now, "Hip hop culture is here to stay and a veritable force for fashion, trends, and lifestyle." At least most marketers are now realizing this.

2005-05-12T11:10:00.000-07:00

Moi, at the Llama Temple in Beijing

Howdy, this is my start

2005-05-09T10:37:00.000-07:00

Hello world. Here's the beginning of a blog that I hope will be helpful, insightful, and very informative. I am a nut for knowledge. I tell people that I have an insatiable craving for constant knowledge. But, truly, knowledge doesn't do much for you until applied. Once applied, it becomes wisdom that can then be used over and over again. But, enough philosophy for now.

I'm currently an unemployed vagabond with many ambitions, ideas, etc. I'm currently developing a few business ventures of my own. These include:

1. A footwear technology I invented early on (read, when I was in 5th Grade). And,
2. Outsourcing business to China.

Hopefully, through this process, I can get the ball rolling and make some career progress.

I recently returned from a trip to China where I visited with various manufacturers, including visiting a shoe manufactory. Needless to say, understanding the manufacturing process of shoes helped to alleviate the apprehension I have regarding my idea. See how powerful applied knowledge can be!?

So, I'll keep ya'll posted on the progress and development of the technology. USPTO , here we come!!