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Category: April 2009

One of the buzzes around the Web world is social media. Social media are fun ways to connect with people online. Facebook and Twitter are big ones right now.

I really hate reading articles and blog posts about how to use social media, though. I especially hate reading articles about how companies can use social media to get more customers. As a consumer, I would rather they keep their marketing scheming behind closed doors.

I think in the public eye, they could talk about how to use social media as a customer relations tool... to get feedback... to help solve problems customers are having. That tells the customer that they have their interests at heart. That's what I want to believe. What I don't want is to be spammed.

I was spammed by the Director of Public Relations at Frito Lay the other day on Twitter. His profile said he is a fan of social media. He doesn't get it. Here's what happened.

A friend of mine posted a picture of some Giant Cheetos. I responded, saying I'd never heard of them. He said he was kinda scared to open them. I laughed.

Two days later, I got a message from the Director of Public Relations at Frito Lay telling me I can get a big 7.75 oz bag or a single serve sleeve. I hadn't asked that, and it ticked me off that he butted into the conversation.

I thought about it a minute and decided if he was going to spam me, that I would ask for something in return. I asked if I could have a free sample. The response? Crickets. No response at all. He doesn't get it.

On another note: Dear ABC, Please don't cancel The Unusuals.

• I got a tiny tree a couple of weeks ago. It started as a stick with roots, but shortly after I planted it in a pot on my back porch, the leaves started sprouting. It was a real joy to see the progress every day. One evening this week, I watered the little tree and marveled out how much growth it had. The next morning, all the leaves were gone. My best guess is that something ate them. It really took the wind out of my sails that day, and I'm not sure that I've recovered. I don't know why it affected me so much.
• My out of the house adventure today will include Waterloo Ice House for chicken fried steak and eggs, and Target for toilet paper and Lipton onion soup mix.
• I watched the pilot of The Unusuals. Amber Tamblyn and Adam Goldberg attracted me to it. It's quirky and looks like it has a lot of potential.
• I wish networks would stagger the television season. There are months when there's nothing new on. And then months when I can't keep up.
• It wouldn't be April in America without taxes and my song Tax Lady Blues.

CSS Naked Day is the time to strip away all style information and show off your Web site in it's most natural form. As they say on the CSS Naked Day Web site:

The idea behind this event is to promote Web Standards. Plain and simple. This includes proper use of (x)html, semantic markup, a good hierarchy structure, and of course, a good 'ol play on words. It's time to show off your .

For more information, see CSS Naked Day.

• One of my favorite TV shows was "Cupid" with Jeremy Piven and Paula Marshall. It was canceled the first season and was named by E! Online as #4 in the top 10 shows canceled before their time (My So-Called Life was #1). Now they've revived it with different actors. I watched the first half hour and decided I wasn't going to keep watching. Then I kept watching and now I guess I'm sucked in. Bobby Cannavale is no Jeremy Piven, but maybe he'll grow on me.
• No, I'm not on Myspace.
• iTunes changed the name of Party Shuffle to iTunes DJ. I like Party Shuffle better.
• I paid off my student loans!
• Now I want a Wii Fit.
• Or an iPhone.