I really can't wait.

October 10, 2010 will be a great day for those of us geek-types who seek "The Answer to Life, the Universe, and Everything".

Why, you ask? Well October 10, 2010 in shorthand is 10/10/10, the binary of which is 101010 or 42.

Jelly Fish

On a recent family trip to the West Coast we stopped in at the Vancouver Aquarium for a day of aquatic fun. Our family has always loved the ocean, despite our prairie roots, and it was certainly a marvelous day that did not dissapoint.

I would highly recommend a visit for anyone who finds themselves in Vancouver with kids and a need for something to do. Make sure to check out the Jelly Fish exhibit and don't miss the hands-on with the sea anemones,...gloriously gushy fun for everyone!

What's that smell? Oh its a General Election

I received this from a colleague asking if I thought it was just political spin...

Here is my reply:

It’s all spin. Both parties have flip-flopped on the issue of Income Trusts. To be honest I think that the both the Government and Opposition Finance people are just experimenting,… it’s scary but I don’t think they have the slightest clue of how things work. I thought I’d never say this, but I really miss the days when Paul Martin was the Finance Minister and things felt stable and just worked.

I have been a regular reader of the Market Guy, he is a Econ Prof and sporadically produces newsletters about his investment strategies and the financial market. He wrote an article on the Conservatives decision back in January that is still a good read today: http://www.marketguy.ca/

What worries me about the email? It’s the line that says:

"the Liberal plan will return at least 2/3 of investors’ money by replacing the 31.5% tax with a modest 10% tax paid by companies"

Just what in the hell does that mean? Do the Income Trusts have to pay that 10%, or is it the US companies that have purchased the trusts (smacks of G.W. Bush himself!). Or worse, do all Canadian companies have to pay a “bail out” fee through corporate taxes to all the investors who were too greedy to make sure that their portfolios were diversified enough?

Hmmm, I feel a rant:

I guess I am getting fed up with the blatant partisan political machinery here. Are party supports so closed-minded that they can’t see they are being taken for fools? I do not support any parties financially, I have had PC and Liberal signs on my lawn, I have voted for Yogic Flyer's, Marxist-Leninist's, Reformers, Blue Tories and Passionate Liberals. I have a Political Science degree, which if nothing else, has made me politically skeptical and put me in the “most un-likely to vote category”. But I am sorry Mr. McCallum, you’re scary email won’t do the trick…, if you want $100, or even $400 from me your going to have to do more than show a declining red line superimposed over a well fed Stephen Harper peppered with ominous undertones of "American Takeovers”. If you are really interested in scaring potential contributors to the Red Machine might I recommend some devil horns on the First Minister next time, or maybe a bonfire with Mr. Harper forcing senior citizens to empty their wallets and purses into the pyre (think Lord of the Rings bleakness).

Don’t get me wrong here, I am not saying that the Liberals are the only perpetrators of this low-brow campaigning,.. all parties, yes even the lowly NDP and the wayward Green’s. Stop treating us like idiots. If you would like to work for us, take a serious look at how you are spending our money, tread lightly and please do not insult our intelligence with this asinine drivel. The majority of Canadians are NOT party faithful, we are reluctant participators in a wonderful democracy. Get it wrong at your own peril.

Here endeth the rant.

Photo Blog: Home

Home is safe, warm and familiar.

Home is love, laughter and life.

There is no more important place in your heart, in your life, or in your mind's eye.

Photo Blog: Car-Car

OK, so my almost-two-year-old boy is nuts about cars, trucks, trains and airplanes. Which is so very different from his sister, despite recycling all of her old books and toys for him. So what gives?

I'd have to check, but I swear his first word was "car", and for several weeks he would finish a blathering sentence with the word "car", like it was some form of universal punctuation. However, above all motorized methods of transport, to him the Car is King.

We were out walking this weekend and every car that he could touch he would, feeling the fenders, running his fingers over the tires, and tapping the lights with his little knuckles. It was really cool to see this tactile relationship form.

I like cars, and I was nuts about them for a good ten years before realizing that other things like paying for groceries and having heat were probably more important that owning the fastest Porsche in the world. But hey, maybe this little guy has helped to rekindle that lost love of wheeled things, and maybe you'll find us working together on a classic someday not too far down the road. Car.

How to Fish in Advertising

I was speaking with a colleague the other day trying to explain my thoughts on a print ad when I came up with an analogy that seemed to work. At issue were the competing ideas of including all the available information into a print ad in order to inform the reader about all of her choices, versus leaving the print ad intentionally vague so as to entice the prospect further into your net (i.e. website) where you could provide a more immerse and information rich experience to her.

So the scene is set, and no this really isn't the forum to debate the merits of print ads, suffice it to say that our audience is both tactile and largely traditional engineering,.. although even that is changing. Where was I,.. oh yeah the analogy,... fishing.

I said to my colleague, "you would never show the frying pan to the fish, would you? You show the fish the worm, and keep the frying pan to yourself for the time-being".

Now I am not advocating frying your prospects, or even clubbing them with a frying pan, and to be honest the end result for the fish isn't in his best interest. What I am advocating within the narrow bounds of a print ad is that it is a bit of a risk-reward game. You want to provide enough information for the prospect to take the next step down the path, or to say "Yes!". What you do not want is to provide so much information that they are able to make a snap decision in the "No" direction. Or loose their interest, a truly cardinal sin!

The great thing about my work is that it involves no absolutes. We are all beings with unpredictable emotions, despite what pollsters and economists tell you!

Things I’ve Learned

I saw this in a Veer catalog and really, really liked it:

Things I’ve learned:

• There’s no shame in a house, a car, a picket fence.
• The world’s the size of a fingernail – if you want it to be.
• Expensive food just tastes better.
• Whether the glass is half full or half empty, it’s best to shoot it all back.

Check out Veer, very cool company... remeber ImageBank or EyeWire?