My cousin Elyse is in Venice, Italy right now doing a semester of study abroad. This fact has nothing to do whatsoever with the rest of this post. She is in Venice, the city, and it is not sinking, to the best of my knowledge, but it is very wet due to all the canals and such.

No, this post is about the Athens, GA based band Venice Is Sinking. I’ll clarify below.

Yesterday morning a coworker was doing his normal morning rounds: going to get his tea, smiling and waving. All very neighborly, cheerful stuff for a coworker to do. I like the guy.

Well, I liked him a whole lot more yesterday when he strode into my office and presented me with a gift: a shrink-wrapped CD, “Sorry About The Flowers” by – you guessed it – Venice Is Sinking.

I could use adjectives like “orchestral” or “lush” or “pastoral” or “atmospheric” to describe the band and their music but what does that tell you, really?

I’m no music critic, but all the songs seem handcrafted.

Not overdone.
Not twee (in style or harmony).
Not stark either.

Simple, yes, but equally complex and satisfying.

I’d make some hipster band comparisons but that would be as thin a veil as the adjectives above. Suffice it to say that if you enjoy male-female duets/harmonies, a dash of strings, the jangle of acoustic guitars and an easy, plaintive sway you’ll be dancing in the right sweater, beard and glasses tonight.

Which reminds me, *this* is genius:

I think it's pretty clear from the chart that Venice Is Sinking should earn a few spots on your iPod.

Enough of the tomfoolery. Give Venice Is Sinking a listen.

They were nice enough to follow me on Twitter (and #FollowFriday me too).
They make some nice tunes.
They’ve got a new CD, AZAR, out now.

Enjoy them and your weekend!

I’ve been needing a push recently.

Needing to go outside to run and play.
Wanting to start something new but not knowing what to start or where to start it.
Wishing the stars would just align and get the ascension of damnation over with already, thank you very much.

The push has arrived, mid-back and with an overabundance of force, in the form of Hugh MacLeod’s new book, Ignore Everybody. His crazy deranged fools mailing list and twitter feed are culprits as well.

I’d charge them with assault if I didn’t like the jolt it gave me, popping me right back into the reality of following my creative urge. [Particularly pertinent cartoon to this effect today.]

Last Summer I wrote flash fiction in the form of Ficlet Friday. [Archives]
Last November I crossed the finish line of NaNoWriMo 2008.
Last year is over and this year is half done and what have I done?

So, thanks to Hugh and the always helpful/supportive/creative Will Hindmarch, I’m getting back on the writing train.

Finding an easy outlet (for me) to let my creative juices pool in places online.
Taking care of myself by doing instead of putting off until later (which never comes) when I’m “ready” or I have the “right” tools.
Lowering the barrier to my entry into the things that give me joy and vibrancy and meaning.

For the remainder of the Summer, Ficlet Friday is becoming Ficly Friday (due to the closing of the former/replacement of the latter).

I’m also going to start doing some random 140-characters-or-less poetry on Twitter using the hashtag #poetweet. I think this is practical, clever and productive.

Feel free to join me in either endeavor, if you’d like. We had a ton of fun last year doing flash fiction on Fridays and poetry on Twitter is (theoretically) easy. It makes a great canvas for haiku (nudge/wink).

Anyhow, I think this will be good for me. After a hiatus (too long for me) I’m ready to get back on the horse and start being creative again. Stop taking my inner voice for granted.

Cheers and thanks to both Hugh & Will!

I came to grips with my love (and public embrace) of the show Gilmore Girls some time ago, but I’m not “out” at work. Or, rather, I’m not out with my current group of co-workers because:

1. I’m in a different group since the show has ended
2. People don’t often talk about being fans of cancelled series, even if you work in TV. ;-)

During a meeting with some very fine folks about a week and a half ago the subject of fandom was heartily discussed and I admitted my show-crush on Gilmore Girls to the assembled group.

As a matter of fact, it was more involved than that. The actual topic at hand was how television networks promote digital initiatives and I actually used the phrase “Rory Gilmore Sex Boat“.

In a meeting room.
With my boss present.
And several other VPs.

Hold your applause.

Anyhow, talking about the show in that way has made me nostalgic (if that’s possible for a show that hasn’t been gone long) for the fast-paced, witty banter and esoteric pulp culture references of Gilmore Girls. Eager to get a fix I quickly found out that actress Keiko Agena (Rory’s friend and punk drummer Lane Kim) is on Twitter.

Big surprise there, since Twitter seems to be the de facto home for any and all celebrities these days – big or small.

Keiko isn’t much of a microblogger, but I still feel more connected to some of the quirkier, music-oriented bits of the show for following her.

Bonus points: Gilmore Girls characters on Twitter (run by fans who won’t let the story end): (via Gilmore Girls News/@Gilmore_Fan)

http://twitter.com/starshollowkirk

http://twitter.com/RoryGilmore
http://twitter.com/LukeDanes
http://twitter.com/LorelaiG
http://twitter.com/JessMariano
http://twitter.com/SandwichGil
http://twitter.com/LaneLovesZach
http://twitter.com/Gypsyfixescars
http://twitter.com/Sookie_Chef
http://twitter.com/LoganHuntz

Not all of the accounts are very active at all, but the prospect of even just a little of that old Stars Hollow magic is enough of a spark for me.

I think my fandom for the show is actually quite passive.

I watched a similar show (in my mind) – Northern Exposure – when I was in middle/high school and I have to admit that I never watched Ed, but both of those shows had large, ensemble casts, a semi-outsider lead and quaint, small-town backdrop, so maybe it’s a formula for a “trend” fandom, but if it is, it’s not very trendy right now.

I’m just astounded that after all this time, the cancellation and oodles of web searches, I’m still number one and people still seem to notice, care and give me props.

My one hope – in this blog post and in the job setting that lead to the discussion of the Gilmore Girls – is that I treat fans the right way because, in my heart of hearts, I’m a fan too.

I miss you Stars Hollow and Gilmore Girls, but you’re only a tweet or blog post away.

I might as well jump on in, since everyone else has, regarding the new “social” makeover of Skittles.com.

I’m not one to talk about my day job here, but I have a little bit of experience in the social media space, just don’t call me an “expert”, “maven” or “guru”. I start hearing Carly Simon when people bandie about those terms.

Other folks – Dave Armano, Buzz Marketing Daily, Remco Kroes, Dale Larson – and media outlets – AdAge, MediaPost, AdRants – have done the best job of recapping and providing thorough insight, so I’ll just ask a few questions.

1. What was the goal of this campaign? Conversion to Facebook friends? Gross number of “tweets”? YouTube video views? Publicity/Press?

My guess is the last one. I think the rest is just gravy and not the point of taking your entire brand to a “crowdsourced” model.

2. Will the redesign affect sales and should it be judged against such a “hard” metric?

I don’t think anyone bought Skittles as a result of this stunt, and that’s how I view this: a flash in the pan and not something that’s a part of social media strategy

3. What am I supposed to learn/glean/experience from the redesign?

That some folks really dig Skittles enough to blog/tweet/photograph Skittles? That Skittles has a branded YouTube channel? (Big woop! Who doesn’t? That they don’t have their own Twitter account and encourage the use of a lame web-based feedback form.

I can’t believe I’m saying this actually, but where is Skittles in this conversation? What do they want of their customers? What are their expectations?

Do they want us to buy more? Eat more? Tweet/blog more?

Where is the connection to a contest or sweeps where I get free Skittles if I take “x” action, where “x” is something social?

Where is Skittles telling us how much it loves us/hates us/is ambivalent towards us?

I’m really baffled by the long-term prospects of Skittles in the social space and I’d love for them to prove me wrong.

They’re not a Zappos or Dell or H&R Block (sorry for all the Twitter examples) or any number of companies who use social media to energize, engage, converse and grow with their customers.

This stunt by Skittles.com seems like a thought experiment taken to its illogical conclusion. It says, “we’re going to hold up a mirror to all this social stuff, but don’t look behind the curtain.”

I suppose people who like this sort of thing – and maybe even Skittles themselves – would say that it’s really the customers who were always at the heart of the brand.

I say that what would really make me involved, make me buy Skittles, eat Skittles and regularly tweet Skittles, was knowing that I was really involved in their brand and not just a sideshow act in a social media circus tent.

But what do I know? I’m blogging Skittles where before I wouldn’t have. But I’m still disappointed.

Comments welcome and encouraged. Tell me how/when/where/why I’m wrong.

Before you have to endure all the schmaltzy horribleness of my birthday tomorrow – I’m an introspective guy when it comes to gaining another year (which Jenn dislikes and I hate about myself, that I get caught in the mire so easily) – I thought I’d vent my spleen.

Venting:

1. I’m sick of people who won’t learn

This includes those who don’t want to “get” new technology, don’t want to admit that their industry is changing and those who mispronounce “Sudoku” while claiming not to be a “gamer”.

2. I’m sick of A/B comparisons

I don’t want to hear “cost/benefits”, “casual/fanatical”, or “over/under” for a while. Most TLAs, notably “ROI”, are on notice.

Which brings me to …

3. I’m sick of jargon

Transmedia, social media, social networking, millenials. The whole shebang.

People are people. My “job” at work is helping us reach PEOPLE using technology.

Call it what you want, but remember the fact that living, breathing sacks of meat are at steak, not some pet terminology.

My neck hurts, my tongue won’t taste, I’m still sick, still tired and I have a birthday tomorrow.

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