UPS, my enemy

Now, I don't like to publicly call organizations or people out. But this time, I need to say something.

My Rogers Blackberry Flip phone recently has started to fail me. The external screen does not work. Rogers, with no hassle, offered to send me a new one since mine is still under warranty. On the phone, the Rogers rep asked me "Will you be available between 9 and 5 to sign for this package?" I told him that no, I wouldn't be and he sent the package.

I got a delivery notice a few days later from UPS. I have never had anything shipped with UPS before, as I usually get things from Canada Post or FedEx. They left a sticky-note type thing on my mail box. It says that they attempted to deliver a package from Rogers, it was the first attempt, that a signature is required yadda yadda.

Usually, after a failed attempt with Canada Post, you just go to the closet retailer to pick it up. They store it there until the next business day when they do their rounds. On this paper from UPS, there was no option to do that. I also did not see a phone number I could call to figure out where I could pick it up. The next day before going to work, I left a Post-It note with the notice that had been left saying "Try again after 5."

When I got home from work, I found another failed delivery notice that said the exact same thing. I noticed on the sticky note they left that it said "First attempt, second attempt, final attempt." I figured the next day would be the final attempt and they would leave it at the closest UPS store to me, which is on Dakota.

So on Thursday, I get home from work and I have the same sticky note. My mom noticed writing at the back of the sticky note, which, by the way, is about an 8 point type. There was a number on the back of the note, so I called it. I entered my account number and it said that my package would be available at my closest UPS outlet.

So, after dinner at 6:30 P.M, I went to the UPS store on Dakota to find out that their business hours were from 9-6. Come on, banks are open later than that!

So then today, I went to the UPS store to get my package. They had told me they don't keep them there but at a Warehouse on Dublin avenue (which is a good 30/40 minute drive my house). I asked if there would be a way to transfer my package from that warehouse to this outlet, and they said it would cost $5 since they are not 'actually' a UPS store.

Excuse me? Not actually a UPS store? Well, your sign says UPS. Your shirts say UPS. Hell, when I look it up on www.ups.ca, it says you're a UPS store. The owner gave me another lovely 1-800 number to call, which didn't help.

These are the solutions they gave me:

1. Switch the shipping address to the place I'd be between 9-5. Well, I just started a new job and I don't think I should be getting personal shipments there.

2. Stay at home while the package is expected to be delivered. Are you serious? I should totally inconvenience myself and lose money by not working to get a package? No, buddy. It doesn't work that way.

3. Return it to Rogers. But I really need the phone.

4. Get the package sent to this 'not really a UPS store' store for $5.

So when I get home, I waited a bit for my steam to cool off and I called Rogers. The guy I talked to was a doll and automatically offered to put $5.60 credit on my bill to cover the cost of transferring the package to the other location. So, then I was happy.

So I called the 1-800 number again and I said I wanted to get my package transferred. Well this guy said I wasn't allowed to do that. I have to be the one to physically sign for the package wherever it travels to from the warehouse. So I can't send it to another UPS store, nor can I have it sent to the Rogers store because I have to be the one to sign for it.

Oh yah, I forgot to let you know that this warehouse at the other end of the city, is only open 9-5:30. Do they not understand that people work during these times?

So I asked the guy what I could I do. He said sorry, that there was nothing he can do. So, I don't even know how I'm going to get my phone now because they work the same hours I do, apparently.

It shouldn't be this much of a hassle to get a package. I am the intended recipient - I should be able to sign a waiver and give permission to someone else to sign up for it. I should be able to pick up at the most convenient spot for me. I shouldn't be AT ALL inconvenienced by this process, but I am!

Ugh.

Jamaican me crazy

School is finally done.

I thought this moment would be more dramatic. That the skies would break, the sun would shine through, and angels would sing aahhhhhh. But no, nothing like that. Me, like many other CreComms, are finally being able to sleep a little better. I often wake up at 6am thinking I have somewhere to be, but it's getting better.

Tomorrow, I leave for Ocho Rios, Jamaica. Beacause of CreComm's schedule, I haven't been able to go on vacation during the 'peak' times like Spring Break and Christmas.

When I get back from Jamaica, I will be starting work at Manitoba Lotteries doing Communications work.

Lots of fun things to come, but I don't think I'll have enough time to blog regularly! So I'm sorry ya'll, have a great summer!

It's written on the wall

I am not a photographer by any means. I take pictures of pretty things I see. I don't have an SLR, I use my little green Canon point and shoot. One of my favourite things to take pictures of is when people write things on stuff. A lot of people think this is s a nuisance, but I think it's cool. It makes you think, who was right here where I was before me? What were they thinking, what were they feeling? There's just something about putting your words and pictures out there for people to see. It's a very unconventional art. Here are some pictures I have taken:

This is from the RRC lecture hall on a Thursday. It was on one of those power outlet/network connection things. I thought it was really cute. Someone was probably in that lecture theatre before me and all smitten. They probably

couldn't pay attention to class and doodled about their hunny all class. Very cute.

This one was also from the RRC lecture hall. Was a good 'pick-me-up' when I was having a bad day.

This was on a water tower in Sault Ste.Marie, Ontario. A lot of teenagers walked up to the water holding tank thing and wrote on it. You can see that a lot of stuff has been painted over. This was actually etched in to the metal though!

I hope you are able to read this. It reads 'This is Indian Land" on a railroad bridge. I saw this on the way to Blind River from Sault Ste. Marie. Thought it was very neat. Apparently they paint over this all the time but someone keeps writing it.

These hearts were taken whil

e walking on the River Walk between the Forks and the Legislative building. The first one is more of a bleeding heart.

This one is one of my favourites. I don't know why, I just really like it! Can you spot any thing that's written on the wall? Take a picture of it :)

crazy for coffee

Lately, i've been paying close attention to people coffee habits.

It seems weird to me, as a non-coffee drinker. People complain about not being able to function without their cup of java and will wait in lines longer than Walmart's just to get it.

Caffeine is an actual, legit addiction. Anyone who drinks even one cup a coffee a day regularly is considered addicted, and according to medicinenet.com, approximately 80% of the world's population consumes it on a daily basis.

As a non-coffee drinker, I find the whole obsessive-coffee drinking thing weird. I mean, it alters your mood, and some people can't function without it. It sounds like any other addiction, but it's socially acceptable.

Coffee has it's pros and cons. It does have antioxidants, has been proven to prevent Parkinson's disease, improves mental concentration, to name a few. But, it also has its downside. Some studies show that it may contribute to heart disease, it raises LDL levels (which contributes to higher cholesterol), affects blood vessels flow and function, messes up with your heart beat and of course DEPENDENCE!

Most doctors recommend that pregnant women stay away from coffee. I've heard of people who get headaches when they have tried to get 'off' coffee. Doesn't that send any signals that something isn't right about it?

It's just weird to me. What if someone were to say 'Ugh, sorry, I just haven't had my vodka today yet' - you would think they have a drinking problem. Not being able to function without a specific substance daily is an addiction and is NOT normal, no matter how many people do it!

info taken from:

http://www.medicinenet.com/caffeine/page5.htm

http://www.dumblittleman.com/2007/12/pros-and-cons-of-coffee-drinking.html

Cyclists

It's spring time in Winnipeg again, which means cyclists are out on the streets again.

Now, don't get me wrong. I think biking is great. It is great for the environment and it's good exercise. I just hate it when cyclists can't choose whether they want pedestrian rights or vehicle rights.

I was at the corner of Portage and Main yesterday. A cyclist saw the whole intersection was clear, and decided to go for it. He went half way through the intersection and then a car (who had a green light) just about hit him. Then he got mad at the driver!

I couldn't believe it. The cyclist was disobeying the rules of the road and had no right to be mad. He was in the wrong! But if the incident had caused an accident, we all know for a fact the person driving the vehicle would be blamed. I don't think that's fair at all. There should be consequences for cyclists that break the rules of the road, like: going through red lights, turning from the wrong turning lane or not signaling.

That's my rant for the day.

Stop by for a visit

As I was out rollerblading with my boyfriend today, I began to think about how people don't just 'stop by' anymore. When I was younger, we used to go around on our bikes or rollerblades and show up at people's houses just to say hi or stay for a short visit. These days, people don't do this much. I'm not sure if it's just something we do when we're young, or if the practice has stopped all together.

My best friend, Rachel, lives a few streets down from me. I used to show up at her house all the time completely unannounced. Today, I decided to do it again.

As I was rollerblading down her street, I felt guilty for just showing up without calling first. I don't understand why. She's my best friend, i've known her and her parents since I was 5 or 6 years old. It wouldn't be awkward at all, even if she wasn't at home. I ended up calling her before I got to her house. She wasn't home, but we decided to stop anyway to see her new dog.

It got me thinking of the idea of community. I live in south St.Vital, a pretty nice area and known to be very family friendly. I've lived in the same house for all my 21 years but have only ever known one of my neighbours. People on my street don't talk to each other. The kids don't play with each other. Street hockey games are never played anymore. I don't even know my neighbour's last name anymore. The only time we ever talk is when the sewer on the street is clogged with leaves and my dad and the next door neighbour go out with sticks and try to dislodge it.

I'd like to think I live in a community where my neighbours would call 9-1-1 if they saw something suspicious going on at my house. If my house caught on fire or someone was robbing it, they would have our backs. But I don't think if anyone would. We all just keep to ourselves.

Is everyone nowadays just too scared of the world? Or maybe just caught up in their own affairs, so they overlook the importance of knowing thy neighbour?

Everyday when I walk to school from my parking lot, I pass by a woman who is a crossing guard. She has a perma-frown. I always say hi to her and she smiles. I can tell she enjoys when I pass by. When you're walking in the city and someone smiles or says 'Hello', you might find it weird and maybe even become a little creeped out. Why is this?

Winnipegers fill up the Whiteshell, Falcon Lake, Lake of the Woods, Grand Beach, Winnipeg Beach, Gimli, Victoria Beach etc. during the weekends during the summer. When you go there, everyone waves to each other. Everyone says hi. Everyone seems so..friendly. It's like, when all these people leave this city atmosphere, they let their guard down. Maybe they just feel safer. It's the same people, just in a different atmosphere.

Maybe every community just needs a ring leader, someone to make the effort to connect everyone. Without it, everyone feels silly to step up and be the 'weird one'.

Maybe I'll step up and be that person. Ya, I think so.

Drive by shooting

Lately, I've been noticing a lot of signage that says positive things. On my way home from school, I see this sign from the Love Nest, Subway and Chiropractor and Harvest Bakery board:

"In life make your mark, but leave on stain"

I think about this quote a lot. I wrote a blog in October or so about making your mark. This quote is true in a lot of ways. It means that in your life you should do great things so that when you're gone, your memory lives on. People like Martin Luther King Jr. have left their mark. Hitler leaves a stain. Makes you wonder when you leave, if people think it's a mark or stain. That's why you should act in kindness with everything you do.

Here are some other billboards with positive messages:

IPPP's 2010

Instead of being at school this week, I attended the annual IPPPs (Independent Professional Project Presentations) put on by Rose Dominguez and Melanie Fatouros from Wednesday-Friday at the Park theatre.

An IPP is CreComm's version of a thesis paper. In March of your first year, you choose a project you'd like to do. After presenting to a panel of judges, your idea either gets rejected or passed. If it gets passed you have the go-ahead to start your project. If not, it's back to the drawing board.
The IPP goes on all throughout second year, on top of all your classes and assignments. Near the end of your second year, you present your project to the whole Creative Communications program and invited guests.

March 10,11 and 12 were the presentation dates this year and were held at the Park Theatre on Osborne.

Highlights:
Day 1
- SANDBOX magazine. This was so successful and looked so professional. You could tell Jeffrey Vallis is really passionate about the project and it was a smashing success! His marketing tactics were very planned out.
- Women's Chairty Soccer Tournament. I think i'm biased to this because I love soccer! Katie Hartle put on a soccer tournament for women over 35 and gave the money to osteoporosis research. I loved her idea of the 'just in case' suitcase.
- Pass it Forward. Pass it Forward was a program to give used hockey equipment to youth that could otherwise not afford it. Kalen Qually partnered up with Perth's to clean the equipment then distributed it. Great idea!
- Alice Mother. I don't know what it was about Kerilee Raven's novella, but it sounds really raw and interesting. She did a great presentation.

Day 2
- The World Would Be Better If.. Oh man. I will definitely buy this book. Anna Harrison compiled postcards from around the world from people aged 2 to 95 answering the questions ' The world would be better if..' She got some really interesting submissions, one of them being her Irish boyfriend proposing to her! Such a unique and fresh idea.
- Bear Your Heart. This was a fundraising event put on by Gina Nasuti and Karine Driedger in support of Children's Wish. They held the event at Earl's and it looked great! They got really interesting prizes for the auction. They raised about $10,000! Good job girls!
- The Travel Bug Diaries is a book by Emily Baron Cadloff about her travels across Canada. She went from Halifax to Victoria in 3 weeks and for under $1,000! She has some interesting stories about her adventures which includes a rapping priest and a terrifying experience in Vancouver. I will be buying this one too!
- Calamity Jane. These girls can definitely sing! And they are so funny! I really enjoyed their presentation which included a video with a Tina Fey look-a-like. Good job Chandra Rempel and Janna Paluk.

Day 3
- I Will Always Remember, an audio documentary by Laurie McDougall. I was privileged enough to go to high school with Laurie and remember her recounting her stories from her trip overseas to honour war veterans. Laurie is a great person to tell the story of two WWII vets.
- Taming The Wild, Wild West..In A Dress. David Turnbull raised about $27,000 in support of a centre that supports people living with HIV and AIDS doing dinner theatre shows. Holy!
- RRC's Basketball Broadcast organized by Dustin Stewart was really cool. He got Shaw on board and organized a crew of about 20 people to operate cameras, anchor and do ops. It looked really well done!

There was a lot of other really great ones, but those are my favorite. Next year, it'll be me presenting!

somebody

Everyone knows it's something that'll happen, sometime. Nobody is immune. But when it happens, it hits like a million bricks. Death and dying is something no one can fully prepare for.

Losing someone you love is definitely one of the worst things to have to go through in life. The tears, the 'what ifs' and the countless recollections of memories. Did you say you loved them enough? Did they know how much they meant to you? Could you have done anything differently so they'd still be here right now?

When you are reading the newspaper or watching the news, you hear of people dying all the time - but it doesn't hit home. Somewhere, people are grieving for that person. For some people, that person was their world and now they are gone. That person is always somebody's somebody.

Sometimes when we know someone who dies, we seem to get a new lease on life. We tell everyone we love them before we leave the house in the morning. We do things we never would do. Because who knows when it'll be our turn to go. But eventually, people move on and go back to their ways.

When you know your time is going to come very shortly, you find yourself making lists of things you want to do before you're gone. But why aren't we doing those things when we're not sick or overwhelmed with grief? Why aren't you pursuing the things you've always wanted to do, right now?

It's something no one likes to talk about. Death and dying. And people might call me pessimistic for saying that it'll happen one day to everyone. But instead of worrying about dying and death, you should be enjoying living and life. Don't waste any moments with someone you love. Don't waste your life holding resentment, hate or jealousy. Live the life you want to live, right now. You don't have to wait for anything.

Facebook ads

So, today is my birthday. While on Facebook, trying to respond to everyone that wishes me lovely birthday wishes, I saw an ad on the sidebar. Here it is:

Thought that was cool. And now I want to eat some vegetables. I think the ad worked!

Pedaheh

I am not Ukrainian.

I know this doesn't surprise most of you ( I am Canadienne-Francais). But on Thursday, February 18th, 2010, I set out to do the Ukrainian way and make perogies from scratch.

My boyfriend, Taylor, is Ukrainian and his mom and her sister, Olga, make amazing perogies. I thought that I should learn how to make perogies since I need to carry on the tradition down the road.

So, I bought my ingredients and started to make the filling and dough. Twenty-four potatoes, an onion and 18 cups of flour later, I had my dough and filling.

I let it sit for a day and on Friday started to roll out the dough. Man, was that ever a work out! It is so elastic so it's really hard to get it as thin as you need. Plus, there was a heck of a lot of dough!

For two hours alone, I made about 100 perogies. I cut the dough into squares, stuffed up with my delicious filing and then pinched away. After a while, Taylor and his mom helped me so it went a lot faster. We ended up with almost 200 perogies!

So now, I think I got the perogy thing down. I would much rather just eat them them make them though!

Sorry I don't have any pictures to share, it's hard to touch a camera with doughy fingers!

Ineffective advertising

Okay, so there is this ad that just drives me wild - and not in the good way.

It's for Benylin, the cold medicine.

So most of us take cold medicine to feel better, at least enough, to go about our day. The whole point of taking medicine is to get better so you can get on with your life.

Well in this ad, Benylin is saying 'take a Benylin day'. The girl takes a Benylin and then goes back to bed for the day. But, why would I still feel sick enough to stay in bed all day if you're fly medicine works so well? Shouldn't I be able to go to work if I take it? Competitors like Nyquil, Advil and Tylenol advertise how their medicine will make you feel well enough to go about your day.

To me, the 'Big Idea' of this ad is counterintuitive. It really bugs me. But hey, here I am writing a blog about it, so something is working. At least it's memorable.

Blast from the past

My boyfriend and I were talking the other day of our favorite shows from when we were a kid. Here is a compiled list of shows we had come up with. What's your favourite?

1. Inspector Gadget

2. California Raisins

3. Care Bears

4. Pinky & The Brain

5. Ren and Stimpy

6. Rocko's Modern Life

7. Tiny Toon adventures

8. Doug

9. Rugrats

10. Pepper-Ann

11. Where in the world is Carmen San Diego?

12. Zoom!

13. Sailor moon

14. Muppet babies

15. Tom & Jerry

16. The dinosaurs

17. and my favorite... Mr.Men!

Should people be living in Haiti?

Stories about the Haiti earthquake have been the top news topic since the quake hit on January 12.

Stories of hope; of people being rescued from the rubble of city buildings after a week of being trapped. Stories of despair; of families still searching for their loved ones, hoping at least to have a proper burial for them.

There have been touching stories; the kids from a orphanage in Haiti being transported to Canada to adoptive parents, wrapped up in blankets as they are unaccustomed to the frigid colds.

Countless relief efforts and donation banks have been set up and celebrities have let their fame to raise money for the cause.

News reports speculate that Haiti will take years - maybe even decades - to rebuild. This isn't the first time that Haiti has had to rebuild after a natural disaster. In fact, Haiti has been in a constant state of demolition and rebuilding because they are hard hit by many disasters year round. So, why do people even live there?

In 2008, Haiti was struck by 4 separate hurricanes within 30 days. About 800 people died from this and 60% of harvest was destroyed. People were saying that these cities were not completely inhabitable. But they rebuilt their cities and their towns, because this is their home.

In September of 2004, flooding and landslides from a tropical storm killed 2,500 people.

In 1998, Hurricane George killed over 400 people and destroyed 80% of crops.

In 1994 Hurricane Gordon killed over 1000 Haitians.

It is obvious that this piece of land in the beautiful caribbean is not a good place to establish cities and a country. It is constantly going through great loss and is constantly in a state of rebuilding. How can Haiti ever overcome their poverty, health and security problems when they are constantly going through huge disasters.

But would it be plausible to tell most Haitians to leave their home - the place where they have grown up and their parents were and their families are buried?

Where could all the people in Haiti go? You can't just pick up and move a country, but I think mother nature has given people enough warning that this is not a place where people should live.

What would you do if you knew where you lived was so volatile? Would you move?

Disappointing Last Men

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Toybox

TOYBOX

For our major project this term, we are creating a magazine. We have to write all the articles, produce all the ads and promote it for a Magazine Tradeshow in April.

Greg, Melyssa, Emelia and I are the TOYBOX group. We were one of the fortunate groups that got their idea approved by the panel of CreComm teachers right off the bat.

Here are some preliminary steps to creating your own magazine:

1. Idea

Coming up with an idea for a magazine is the hardest part. A lot of groups had trouble with it. You have to think of what hasn't been done before and what part of the magazine market is left untouched. You don't want the topic to be too narrow - you want to have enough room to think of new material for issues to come. But then again, you don't want to be too vague, or else you won't have a distinct target audience.

2. Material

You need to make sure you'll have enough material to produce more than one issue. Your subject should be something that is evolving and will be around for a while.

We were able to think of so many ideas for material for the TOYBOX magazine. So far, we have plans to write articles on the evolution of the toy car, environmentally-friendly toys, spotlight on a toy collector and an investigation on what the 'age groups' on toys really mean. We will also explore what toys are able to stand the test of time (really, how old is Barbie?). There are so many things we could do!

3. Advertising

Who would want to advertise in your magazine? Do those companies usually advertise in magazines, do they have the money?

We made a 'dream list' of who we would want to advertise in TOYBOX. Make sure it's realistic.

4. Get going!

This is the stage we are at now. It's good to have a plan so you know what you want to do. Right now, we're starting the production stage. Who will you interview for the articles you brainstormed? What will your design look like? Play around with some fonts and colours. Hopefully, it'll all come together.

Producing a magazine is a definite test of CreComm because it combines all the elements of communications. Layout is important to attract readership. Journalism is crucial to encourage repeat customers. PR is essential to promote your finished product and get it distributed. And of course, advertising gives you the money.

MADD campaign

This is one of the new ads in a new campaign by MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving). The ad is aimed to show how foolish people look as they try to beat the system and get away with driving drunk.

MADD has typically taken the more 'guilt-ritten' path, driven by drama and graphic depiction but chose to add some humour to this campaign.

Okay, so the "Lenny" commercial is pretty funny and yah, he looks pretty dumb. It drives the message home that you look stupid if you try to beat the system

Problem is, not all the ads propose completely crazy ways to get away with driving drunk.

Meet Rob.

Backroads? I'm pretty sure that's most peoples' strategy. And if someone hadn't thought of it before, it plants the idea as a pretty legit plan. So..you're trying to get people to stop drunk driving by showing common ways to beat the system? I think that could backfire.

I think there is a good 'big idea' here - it's pretty stupid to drive drunk and there is no strategy. But showing 'solutions' based on popular anecdotes doesn't seem like the best way to do that.