TGI in the trash

This last weekend on the boulevard TGI had a marketing campaign where they handed out $5 coupons to everyone tailgating. We accepted ours from a blond guy who frowned and asked - "are you going to use it?" I was inclined to say yes and take mine, later however I felt negative about his remark and decided that I wont and it ended up in the trash. I was not the only one who got asked that question because my coupon had a lot of other coupon friends in the bin.

I think TGI's marketing attempt was somewhat of a failure, not because it was a bad idea, because their people in the field was bad marketers, with obvious selectivity and arrogance toward the very people they targeted.

However, I would still go to TGI for their volcano chocolate cake, But I won't be using a coupon to pay for it, instead I will feel the guilt afterwards and that my friends are my biggest worry, not the check!

old age....here I come!!

I am so tired of the new break through formula advertisements the cosmetic companies seem to discover a new break through anti-wrinkle, anti aging treatment every week.

First of all, who funds all these experiments?? How many monkeys do they need per week to make a break through?? Secondly, give last weeks formula a better chance to actually break through before you come and spoil the fun for everyone who had just spend $80 on this weeks wonder treatment.

My 20 year old sister has been caught up in this anti-wrinkle-crazed-scared-to-death-from getting -old - phase. She is so naive to believes every company has found the next best thing...taking turns every day of the week. She thus has invested in her young age in so many products you could fill an old age home with them.

I don't know why people are so scared of age.

Why has society condemned grey hair and a few wrinkles to the end of life as we know it?

Grey hair shows experience, wrinkles show that you have laughed and enjoyed life.

We need to embrace who we are no matter what stage of our lives we are in. Let's accept that we will grow old, make peace with the circle of life, and remind ourselves that we are only as old as we feel.

Road Trip

I went on a road trip this past fall break to Oklahoma. As I was driving down 75 past McKinney all I could see were billboards of restaurants advertising specials, pictures of burgers and shakes. I was not hungry at the time because I had just had my yummy salad for lunch, but the sight of those massive -loaded -in -calories- and -saturated fat - items made my mouth water. I think those businesses who advertise out there would be very happy to know that their campaigns are very successful.

Clutter here is the only problem. There are too many, too close and too general in message.

I did enjoy seeing the automated billboards that changed messages.

I wish they could put up big signs to alert drivers like me that the sheriff is parked under the next bridge, this would be a welcome ad in any neighborhood.

HABITAT FOR HUMANITY

This past weekend I attended a house -building hosted by Habitat for Humanity. We started at 8 am and when I arrived at the address (made easy by Google Maps) I was full of energy and ready to put my shot put/discus thrower arms to work. We were greeted by the House Dad, leader, and put to work. We planned on staying the full day (8am till 5pm) but as the sun came beating down on our necks and the once so very easy to lift roofing slabs became 10 times as heavy and the roof 5ft higher by noon (lunch break) we said adios amigos. We will return next week. I don't know how I knew what Habitat for Humanity was, as I have never worked with them before, but their name was familiar to be on some level , and when mentioned I quickly associated them with a prominent charity and not just a waist of time type of group. They do very well marking their trucks that carry supplies as well as the boards they put up in front of the houses that marks them as a Habitat for Humanity Project. I felt lucky to be working with a group of people who reach out to provide the most important human need of all- habitat -