July 2008

I don’t know if Lane Bryant has made a huge ad buy of banner ads on the internet or somehow I’m being targeted by this maker of plus sized women’s wear, but I’ve been seeing these ads everywhere!

In the New York Times

In three, yes three banner ads on a Macintosh news site, Macnn.
It’s kind of strange to see these ads on a Macintosh website.
Pundit Kitchen:
Who are you, you temptress?  And why are you haunting my web experience?

While I was researching whether or not other people are seeing these ads, I came across this classic Lane Bryant ad.While I’m on the subject of Lane Bryant, I recently saw a lingerie store called Cacique.  It turns out it’s a store concept/brand owned by Lane Bryant.

Two problems with the name Cacique.  No one knows what the name is and and no one knows how to pronounce it correctly.  Lane Bryant even knows that- that’s why they even have the pronunciation on the actual sign itself!

Miriam-Webster has the definition of Cacique as:
1 : a native Indian chief in areas dominated primarily by a Spanish culture
2 : a local political boss in Spain and Latin America

An Indian Chief or a Latin American political boss.  Now, that’s making me think about buying some plus sized panties!

From ESPN.com: Report: NFL to review tape for evidence of on-field gang signs

The NFL has hired experts to study game footage to determine whether players are displaying street-gang hand signals as part of their on-field celebrations, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Man, the NFL is seriously becoming the “No Fun League”.  First, fining for celebrations, and now banning street-gang symbols?  I guess the players will have to turn to celebrating, partying, and being involved with criminal elements after the game.

From NYTimes.com: In Paris, Burgers Turn Chic

Beginning a few years ago but picking up momentum in the past nine months, hamburgers and cheeseburgers have invaded the city. Anywhere tourists are likely to go this summer — in St.-Germain cafes, in fashion-world hangouts, even in restaurants run by three-star chefs — they are likely to find a juicy beef patty, almost invariably on a sesame seed bun.

“It has the taste of the forbidden, the illicit — the subversive, even,” said Hélène Samuel, a restaurant consultant here. “Eating with your hands, it’s pure regression. Naturally, everyone wants it.”

“A hamburger is the architecture of taste par excellence,” she explained. “The meat needs to be a mix of fatty and lean. Not raw, not rare. It must be medium rare. At the same time the bread needs to be smooth, tepid, toasted on the sesame side. I like to brush the soft side with butter. There needs to be a crispy chiffonade of iceberg lettuce. Everything plays a role.”

Just as long as it isn’t a little tiny burger in the center of a gigantic plate.

From Gizmodo.com: 115 More Pieces of Amazing Iranian Technology Created with Photoshop
Thanks to Doug for sending me the link.

iTunes works well for music, but not so well for selling iPhone applications.  Or at least not yet.  My main problem is trying to figure out what each application does.  For example in the category of photography:It’s difficult to figure out what any of these applications are just from the icon and the name.  Because of this, customers are forced to click on every application just to read a description.  There should be a one or two line description of the program and maybe a rating to make things easier.

The “New” section is kind of a strange category since it doesn’t look like it has been updated since the App Store opened.  The “New” section should almost be renamed “featured” since new apps are not being put there.

Third party websites like TouchArcade are emerging to fill in the gaps by providing useful and needed information about the applications in the App Store.

From NYTimes.com: McCain’s Conservative Model? Roosevelt (Theodore, That Is)

“I count myself as a conservative Republican, yet I view it to a large degree in the Theodore Roosevelt mold,” Mr. McCain said, referring to Roosevelt’s reputation for reform, environmentalism and tough foreign policy.

I wonder if John McCain and old Teddy talked political policy while serving together during the Spanish American War.

Do you have to go that far back to find a Republican that supported reform, environmentalism, and tough foreign policy?

From Time.com: Chess-Boxing Hits it Big

The matches work like this: competitors alternate between three-minute rounds of boxing and four-minute rounds of speed chess with one-minute breaks in between to get the gloves off and hunker down at the chess table.

The winner is determined by knockout, checkmate, or referee decision.

This is pretty funny.  It seems like it would favor boxers who play chess rather than the typical chess players who might box.

From CBS News: New Yorker Obama Cover Sparks Uproar

Barack Obama’s campaign is condemning as “tasteless and offensive” a New Yorker magazine cover that depicts Obama in a turban, fist-bumping his gun-slinging wife.

An American flag burns in their fireplace.

The New Yorker says it’s satire. It certainly will be candy for cable news.

From later in the article:

The magazine explains at the start of its news release previewing the issue: “On the cover of the July 21, 2008, issue of The New Yorker, in ‘The Politics of Fear,’ artist Barry Blitt satirizes the use of scare tactics and misinformation in the presidential election to derail Barack Obama’s campaign.”

From Wikipedia’s definition of satire:

Although satire is usually meant to be funny, the purpose of satire is
not primarily humor in itself so much as an attack on something of
which the author strongly disapproves, using the weapon of wit.

This cover really doesn’t seem like it fits the definition of satire to me.  Where’s the wit?  Where’s the attack on something the artist strongly disapproves of?  It shows the summary of scare tactics that are being used against Obama but it seems to validate them instead of disapproving them.  It looks like the artist is actually saying that this is what will happen if you vote Obama into the White House.

From salsa-caliente.com: Salsa on the Square – July 10, 2008

My Salsa instructor Diana Hoffman of KamaSalsa taught Salsa last night at Fountain Square and she said that there had to be 400 people in her class!  I’m going to have to move my tennis lessons to another night so I can actually go dance.  I hear it’s usually hot, but lots of fun!  Click the link above for pictures.

From Forbes.com: Premier Exhibitions dives after 1Q disappoints

The company attributed the loss to a reduced number of revenue-producing days because many of its exhibitions were traveling, negative publicity for the companies Bodies exhibit from ABC’s 20/20 news show, and an increase in administrative costs as it tries to produce more of its own exhibits.

It’s nice to hear that the growing awareness over the controversy of the Bodies the Exhibition that’s currently being shown at the Cincinnati Museum Center is actually having some negative impact on the company’s profits.

The Cincinnati Museum Center is claiming record attendance for the show, but it is clear this show is drawing at a slower rate than previous record shows.  I detailed this in an earlier blog entry: Bodies the Exhibition in Cincinnati not doing as well as expected