Barely (it’s so warm and tingly, here).
And there’s a much needed vacation, soon.

But no promises.

The last few weeks have been filled with fourteen-hour days working on a new business pitch (we didn’t get it), pre-production for a massive Gatorade shoot I’ll be leaving for in early January, an add-on print shoot that de-evolved into a stop-drop-and-roll process, a full-on agency presentation, an agency holiday party (which I passed on), a fussy baby at home and about a million other things, the algebra of which left X minus infinity for blogging time.

Even today, when the agency closed at 2:00 PM, I’m waiting around for client feedback on a pressing job. There’s never a dull moment in the ad jungle.

Things are looking up, though.

In January, look for me to start posting a blow-by-blow of what it’s like to sweat through a two million dollar film production outside the country.

I promise not to gloat (too much).

In the meantime, I hope you all have a happy, safe and prosperous Holiday and New Year and I hope to catch you all visiting my little corner of the ad jungle after Dick Clark goes to bed.

Tags: Advertising

After you’ve watched the video, think about the bonuses: 1) no cost, 2) super romantic (so you’ll probably get lucky) and, 3) it increases the effects of the anniversary champagne.

Can’t go wrong with that.

Tags: Cool, Anniversary

Presenting “Tony vs. Paul.” (Someone hire these guys.) Enjoy.

Tags: CGC, CGM, Tony vs Paul

Enjoy.

Part One:

Part Two:

Part Three:

Tags: Obey Giant, Shepard Fairey, The Giant Has a Posse

Ready? Good.

Psssst. The Holidays are upon us.

Awww. C’mon. Think that was a letdown? Well, let me make it up to you.

This Holiday Greetings video was emailed to me today and it’s too good to be left languishing under the tree in my in-box, so enjoy. It’s a 2005 effort from TBWA\Vancouver.

Tags: Advertising, Holiday, TBWA, Vancouver, Video, Fantastic, Woof-Woof

Most of the traffic is being generated from my new blogging friends over at Pantherhouse’s “The New Shelton Wet/Dry” blog and it is from their efforts I’m able to tell you what the package says, give you some context and show you more examples.

The New Shelton folks are good.

It appears my detecting a “slight, joyful smirk” on the crush-ee’s face was no hallucination (I have been known to hallucinate, just not about this). The Japanese characters on the far right of the package read, “denki anma,” or “revived by an electric nut-grind!” A phrase, it turns out, that comes from the crazy world of Japanese porn.

The chips themselves are black corn, chili-taco flavored and are part of a line called “Tights-kun Doritos,” or “Buddy-boy in tights Doritos.” Mr. Buddy-boy in Tights is a popular (adult) cartoon character in Japan and having a rotating stable of illustrations appearing on Doritos packages has caused people to begin to collect them. You can see a few of the packages in the image at the end of this entry.

That’s perhaps more than you ever wanted to know about “Revived By Mr. Buddy-boy in Tights’ Porn-derived Electric Nut Grind, Chili-Taco-flavored, Black Corn Doritos (from Japan)™,” but I’m sure you think it was worth it. (And thanks again to the nice folks over at “The New Shelton Wet/Dry Blog.”)

You guys make Fark’s outflow traffic look amateurish.

Tags: Advertising, Japan, Doritos, Frito-Lay

Take this for example: the image you see– and you can click on it for a larger, much less knocked-out view– is a Frito-Lay “Doritos” bag from Japan. How seeing a nut-crusher-of-death illustrated helps sell corn chips is beyond my marketing prowess, even if the nut-crush-ee doesn’t seem too put out by it.

In fact, I detect a slight, joyful smirk on his face. Now that’s advertising.

Found on the not-safe-for-work photography art blog, “Tokyo Undressed.”

How do you top a post called ‘Doritos Japan Nut-crushing Package Design’? With a Nut-crushing Update.

Tags: Advertising, Japan, Doritos, Frito-Lay

Half sorry is more appropriate. There’s no way I would have/could have missed out on the screaming throes that come with new Daddy-hood and, even though I’ve never shot in Miami, this would have been my sixty-something’th film production and “been there, done that” has taken on a whole new meaning.

Still, you pay for it on the back end. Our agency closed for the Holidays at 2:00 P.M. yesterday, which, because of the editing, meant I was home by 7:00. Good times.

And that’s my Thanksgiving Holiday Stuffing.

Happy Thanksgiving, all– at least those of you who are here in the U.S.– and I hope everyone else has a safe weekend that sees you spending quality time with your families.

Tags: Advertising, Thanksgiving, Chiquita

See Wal-Mart hire mega-P.R. firm Edelman to handle the problem.

See Edelman create “Jim & Laura,” two bloggers who were supposedly traveling across the country and parking their R.V. in Wal-Mart parking lots.

See Edelman being outed as having created, almost whole-cloth, “Jim & Laura” as part of Wal-Mart’s P.R. effort, under the guise of “Working Families for Wal-Mart“– a breach of WOMMA ethics.

See Edelman not register the “Working Families for Wal-Mart” domain name.

See Edelman say, “oh crap.”

Tags: Wal-Mart, Edelman, Public Relations, Marketing, Jim and Laura, Working Families for Wal-Mart