In Which: I May have kissed a 50 year old (or why wine and I are friends)

So Yeah- You read the headline right. I  went to  a wine centric event the other night.  It was great, on many levels.  I got to try some great wines, got to meet some great people, and stumbled into two great conversations with two very different guys.

Guy A was a young dad, who adored his children.  We had a great time chatting, and talked almost half the night until he had to start heading home.

Guy B was an attorney.  He was also in his 50's.  We got to talking about law and the constitution, and before we knew it, we were closing down the event.  I was going to catch a cab home, but we were still talking so, we walked and sat on a bench, where we talked for another 2 hours.  In this time, I learned a lot about him, and we connected a little bit.  To the point, where we kissed.

Yes, I kissed a 50 year old (or as the BFiC would say Silver Fox). 

In Which: Real Life gets busy

Wow-  my faithful readers, it's been a week since I've updated and I feel like such a spaz.   Let me tell you, last week was one of the busiest weeks I've had in a long time.  I was out every night, and work was ridiculously busy as well.  That said, I'm going to give a quick breakdown of my week, and hopefully I can come back and give you the major details...

In Which:I Try out a blog hop

Do I need socks for this?  Nope-


How it Works

1. Follow the 5 hosts, #1 – 5,  ( leave us a comment & we will follow you back- only leave a comment if you follow please ).
2. Create a blog post about FMBT (you may copy this post if you wish).
3. Follow as many blogs as you would like ( Leave a comment so they can follow you back).
4. When you receive a comment from a new follower  return the favor & follow them back.

http://www.reviewretreat.com/2010/08/follow-me-back-tuesday-810.html

In Which: I decide giving blood is a brilliant idea- until it isn't.

So a little background.  Before today I'd given blood one other time.  My delay in getting it done was for several reasons- some to do with fears (of doctor's needles), but mostly because I just hadn't gotten around to it.

But, about a month before I got my first tattoo (a shooting star on my foot, with the phrase "always there" in German), I decided I better do my civic and karmic duty and give some blood before I became ineligible to give.  

Well today, MyCompany sponsored a blood drive, and so I thought to myself, "Self, what the heck. You haven't given blood in almost 4 years (thanks you tattoo number two- shooting start on my other foot, with the phrase "Have Faith" in Polish), you should do it now!" 


So a gal I work with decided to head down with me, and she was nervous, having never gave blood before.  She was so methodical in how she read every warning that was on the consent form.  I'm thinking no big deal, it'll be great.  I dutifully fill out the form (Which had to remind me 3 times, that I'm not pregnant, nor have I ever been. With my own 20's fears, I almost feared I would also get confirmation with a big smiley sticking its tongue out at me, going nananabooboo you'll never have kids).  

So they do the tests, and I look away from the needle (as opposed to when I get a tattoo and am completely fascinated by the process). 

Well the next thing I know, I'm feel a little queasy. Nothing too bad, but enough that I felt I should let the tech guy know.  So he leans my chair back, and I feel  a little better, especially after he gave me an ice pack.

Did I mention Tech guy was kinda cute?  Well this probably had more to do with the fact, that at this point, I'm steps away from feeling helpless, and he was pretty attractive.  Wish I had a better game...

Anyway, they unplug me, and I thought, wow- I filled that thing quick (only about 8 minutes) and walk out to the waiting room.  I was still feeling the after effects of the queasiness, but figured if I got a sip of water I'd be fine.  So I sat down and this adorable old man, who was volunteering came up to me, and got really close, asking me if I was okay.

Now, my dear readers, this is where I wished someone had taken my picture because I'm sure I looked horrible. And at that moment, I decided giving blood was not a brilliant idea, as my vision folded in upon itself and I felt as if I had been pushed under water. In the recesses of this almost pass out, I felt so ridiculously helpless, and just wanted to cry.  It took all the will power I possessed not to do two things: cry and vomit.  Luckily I did neither, and was rewarded with cold packs, and doting volunteers.  The whipped out one of the donor recliners, and got me back up on one in what must have been minutes.


So, I spent about 20 minutes in the waiting area, just trying to feel a little better.  The elevator ride back up to my desk, definitely was a trying time, and I was worried I was going to faint.  Luckily, I made it back to my desk, to tell you this amazing story.

In Which: I Talk about Inception

Have I mentioned I love Inception?  I know, this isn't a very original conversation.  But I also really enjoy the Old Spice Commercials as well.  I like the Old Spice Commercials, because they are different than so many other commercials out there.  They have a spunk about them, but even more awesome, they don't seem to insult women, in order to sell their product.  Instead, they totally rip on the the Axe commercials of the world. The ones that really boil down my decision to find a man, as wholly related to his body wash (Don't get me wrong, I like a good smelling man).  

Anyway, long story short, I present to you, the best Photo Mash-up.  If it's yours, please let me know, because I can't remember where I found it, and I know it wasn't really credited at the source.

 

Check it out!   Such an awesome little pic to make my Monday awesome!

In Which I Love Vintage Marketing

I'm a sucker for creative marketing, and this takes the case.  The full story is over on Tech Crunch (My Geek Gal idea of a gossip rag)  But I had to post this picture that was on their site, simply because it rocks my world out.

How fun are these? I particularly love that they have the look and feel of the vintage times they come from, including the computer types that were predicted in "future based" shows.   These were apparently put together by a Brazilian Ad Agency (Moma), and they just go to show that vintage is completely in.  But what I think is more impressive, is how these ads really do capture what each of these mediums (Skype, Youtube, and Facebook) help you do.  I could easily show these to my mom or my grandmother and after taking a look at these, they'd know. 

And that, in the end is sometimes the problem with my generation.  We've forgotten how to visually tell in a creative way. My first instinct, to describe these is to show, what exactly these mediums are- after all how would you describe the phone?   The Social Media generation is one that really values the fact that we can just pop on the internet to access information and learn what it means.  We don't even have to be near a computer, we just need to whip out our smart phones.  And while Social Media and instant marketing are great tools that are allowing us to spread information, we definitely need things like this to remind us that marketing can be very creative! These are the things that make me really happy to see.

Keep fighting the good fight, creative marketers across the globe!  Rock On.

In Which: the job is discussed (a.k.a: my job at Mycompany)

So I work for an Internet company, about which, I hopefully will not geek out about too much. Great is my love for Mycompany. There are times, when it is not uncommon for someone to get a singing telegram or a belly dancer for her or his birthday, or for us to get iced, during a meeting. So, what do I do for Mycompany? Well, I work for our marketing and business development department.

Which leads me to my first topic- Affiliate Marketing.

For those of you not in the know, affiliate programs are what keep little blogs like mine, and many others afloat. Great companies like Amazon, Groupon, Netflix, and Soda Stream have affiliate programs that pay “publishers” (hi guys, that’s this blog ) for specific actions you, the reader, take as a result of their advertisement. Now, there are FTC regulations that require publishers to report that they are receiving money for their ads, as well as report when posts are, in layman’s terms “product placement”.


Now, obviously there are many opinions about affiliate marketing. However, I have a few rules that I think about when we talk about our biz dev and marketing.

I start with these two questions first:

• How did you hear about Mycompany?

• What’s the main goal of your website?

I like those two questions, because they get to the heart of why I passionately believe about affiliate marketing. I don’t believe in working with someone who doesn’t know my site I don’t want them pretending to be passionate about Mycompany -(with a few minor caveats- Geek BF David Tennat would be more than welcome to talk about Mycompany even if he doesn’t know who we are, because if that’s as close to him as I’ll get, than it’s good to go, in my eyes). Because, if you (as a publisher), aren’t engaged with the people you are promoting, you’ve completely missed the point of affiliate marketing – to spread the word organically, through trusted sources.

The second question, I like, because it targets what the person is trying to do with their blog. I write this blog for a couple of reasons. I started it, as a way for me to understand my profession from a publisher’s standpoint. I hope to continue it for several reasons, including the need for a geeky outlet, the need for some consistency, and because I miss writing term papers (Please reference #23 on my Geek Card). Would I approve me for Mycompany’s program? Yes, because we’d have this awesome geek rapport going on about Mycompany. Especially when I tell me about the awesome celebratory breakfast we had when Mycompany expanded, or our Cinco de Mayo mandatory meeting!

Oh- you want to hear about those too? Well, children, that’s a story for another day!

Who am I?

I'm Jules, in my mid twenties (literally) and am excited that you stopped my to check out my little slice of the internet.   There's a lot to know about me, which you'll probably find out by reading this blog, but here's a good start: 

I’m a geek gal and pretty much have been most of my life.  I was that girl who raised her hand in every class, knew more about Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman than TRL, and asked for the internet for her 13^th birthday (did I mention “Where in the World is Carmen Sandiago?”).  Now, as a fully functioning 20-something, I want this blog to be about the awkward amongst us.  Those of us, who have no issues spending $100’s of dollars on the latest tech gadget, but cringe paying more than $50 for shoes.   In this blog you will likely not find commentaries on fashion (though I do enjoy sites like gofugyourself), celebrity gossip (unless its about my favorite geek love David Tennant or my German boyfriend Daniel Bruhl), or what Lady Gaga is up to (because we all know she’s a topic on her own).  Nope, instead, you’ll likely find the things I geek out about with my little brother (who tolerates my geekiness, because he himself has a decent dose thanks to me),  the wonderful things I stumble upon on the internet (since I work for an internet company this is not difficult), and how to completely keep yourself socially-awkward at all times.  In short, you’re getting me!