All Aboard The St. Hubert Express...

Imagine for a moment, seasoned rotisserie chicken, spiraling around and around in front of you. The smell of freshly sliced chicken being smothered in a decadent dipping sauce. And the taste of crunchy fries drizzled in cheese and gravy. Sounds good right?

Now imagine a long line up leading to the door. A crowded space overwhelmed with foreign prattles. A fast-food styled establishment serving what should be a fine dining meal. And to top it all off, a hefty price tag for what feels like a McDonald's.

Welcome to St. Hubert Express in Kingston. The restaurant opened up just off of the 401 on Division Street in April. My family and I decided to try it out for lunch one afternoon because we have heard great things about it.

We were wrong.

For starters, they are serving fancy restaurant dishes in a fast-food manner. We line up at cash registers, and order our meal from a server, just like at McDonald's. Unlike McDonald's however, we waited forever in the line and then again to receive our food. The dishes are too complicated (or the service simply sucks) to be served as fast food.

When we finally made our order, it came out to over fifty dollars! What?! We waited in a huge line, being bumped in to and forced to experience the crazy and hectic atmosphere for a huge price tag?! (Fifty bucks is a lot okay! I'm cheap!)

When we got out food we took our seat, which by the way there are not enough of. It was way too crowded and the seats were not comfy at all. Imagine eating a beautiful lobster dinner from Red Lobster at your local McDonald's. The two just don't mix!

Now this is worth the money/wait!

In fact it would be a crime to compare the meal I had at St. Hubert Express to Red Lobster. There was nothing special about my meal. In fact it tasted like something from KFC! And it wasn't even big proportions!

Honestly, I won't be going back there to eat again. If I want to spend fifty dollars on my dinner, I want the matching experience to go with it.

In The Age Of Facebook

What is MSN? What is hotmail? What is one-on-one contact anymore?! Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the age of Facebook and other social medias.

Is it crazy to think that not five years ago I would be spending countless hours on MSN talking to all my friends?! And now, I haven't been on MSN in over two years! Why? What has changed? Well, social media has been introduced.

Facebook especially is so well equipped to keep us connected that it seems silly to even bother with other means of communication. I find myself talking to more people over Facebook than I do in real life, which is a terrifying realization I have stumbled upon.

What's more, is that Facebook has been slowly invading and stepping in to all forms of communication. You can see your friends profiles, like MySpace. You can chat instantly, like MSN. You can send private messages to one another just like hotmail and email. Facebook is even now available on our smartphones. We just can't seem to get away from it!

In the age of Facebook, we find ourselves obsessing over new trends. Trends such as, "Facebook him/her." Now if we want to know someone, we don't even have to approach them! We can creep them over the Internet. Literally everyone is on Facebook. If you know their name and what they look like, you can find them pretty easily.

Even in college I find that our professors are keen on us emailing each other. However, I have never once received an email from a classmate. Instead, we all Facebook each other! It's fast, and nearly everyone checks their Facebook several times a day…or hour!

Face it. We're in the age of social media. Hop on board or get left behind. Its up to you. But if you decide Facebook isn't for you, well…don't be shocked when you can seem to get ahold of anyone.

Am I A Digital Dummy?

The last word you would probably use to describe yourself is dummy. Infact you probably wouldn't refer to yourself as an adict either. But stop and think for a moment. Are you? Ask yourself, is your smartphone close by? Do you check it every few minutes? Do you feel lost without it? Do you tend to text even when you're in the company of family, friends or associates?

If you answered yes to most if not all those questions, I think it is safe to say you have a real problem. You are, without a question, and addict and a dummy!

In my professor's class we watched an eye-opening documentary called Digital Dummies. It explored the uncanny reliance we have with our little mobile devices. Blackberries, iPhones and Androids have litterally tken over our lives. We find it difficult to function without them. It is as if we need our smartphones to remain sane. Without them we feel lost, naked, vunerable and very, very lonely.

Infact here is a little fun fact! I'm writting this blog post from my Blackberry! I'm not fully used to online interactions over my smartphone. Some would call me a noob. So if you find many mistakes, well, that is why. I'm honestly not only addicted to my smartphone, but my lovely PC/Mac with the ever handy spell check!

So I challenge you to open your own eyes! You may not think so at first, but it is very likely that you are addicted and a complete dummy. Take the quiz on Crackberry! It will show you just how dependable some of us are. I know I am! I admit, I am a Blackberry addict. I wonder if there's a twelve step pogram for that? Blackberry anonomys? Anybody?

Check Out My Youtube Channel

Hello bloggers! If you like my blogs, you can check out my vlog channel on youtube! You'll see videos about marketing as well as many random videos that have no meaning but I enjoying doing. Just search for InsertDeAdvert!

What's With The Theatrics?

As Wayne and Garth had once said, we will not bow to any sponsors! We will not sell ourselves out! And we will not do things only because we get paid! We are the new generation!

Of course, while all this is being said, Wayne and Garth bowed to sponsors, sold themselves out, and purposefully displayed product placement because they were getting paid. Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the new generation!   

Product placement or embedded advertisments are prominent in today's society. Just ask Michael Bay who has made a pretty penny or more exploiting the concept. Television shows support the idea, just check out any spotlight of American Idol. Movies are famous for it. Ever seen The Island? Try and count how many products are conveniently shoved at viewers, I bet you'll lose count.

But the thing is, we have grown so accustomed to having ads pollute our screens that we're able to ignore them. But what happens when we encounter them, or a strange theatrical variation of it, in an unexpected way?

Meet the comical genius, Richard Linley. A local theatre in Selby is currently running a production called Aladdin, Or The Wonderful Lamp. It's written and directed by the master of comedy himself (and no that is not a biased opinion).

What was interesting for me when I first saw the production, was their use of advertising embedded in the script. Dialogue such as, "He was the sweetest thing this side of Len's Bakery..." and "He was hot! Hot like the furnaces sold at McKeown and Wood..."

If you fail to recognize those companies or brands, that's because they are all local to Selby and are sponsors for the theatre. That's right! Local sponsors were mentioned in the play itself! Best part is, Richard made it funny! The crowd was falling out of their seats laughing at a man dressed as a woman talk about how sweet and hot his...or her...late husband was. Clever writing can make even the most absurd and blatant advertising work.

When advertising first trickled into our entertainment on television, many were sceptical and some were even outraged! I'd hate to see their reactions to a play like Richard's. Then again, maybe his clever writing will actually show people that ads can be stitched in to our entertainment, and be entertaining themselves.

From A Grave To A Page...

A final breath...

a lifelong rest...

forever buried...

in our hearts we carry...

sun will rise...

on our own demise...

we'll be together...

forever and ever.

-Rachel King-

Death is a difficult time for us all. We suffer physically and emotionally from the passing of loved ones. But we try to hold on to them. We desperately reach out to them in any way we can because we don't want to let go.

Today in Tom Brennan's class we watched a documentary called Facebook Follies. It explored the many negative impacts Facebook posts have on the lives of people. However the section that intrigued me the most, was the concept that Facebook could actually replace gravestones as a place to reconnect with lost loved ones.

Dr. Elaine Kasket, a psychologist from the University of London, has studied the way we mourn the dead. According to her, the way we mourn reflects our society. We're in a society that is so connected tthrough social media, it seems natural to try and connect with the dead by also using social media.  

On this, I agree with Dr. Kasket. Profiles of Facebook users who have passed, often remain active. And people really do drift to their profiles and write to them, sensing that somewhere up there, the deceased are still able to access Facebook messages.

However, Dr. Kasket feels that Facebook will replace the physical connection received from the grave site. I strongly disagree. Gravestones and sites are forever. They are constant. Even though Facebook is so widely used now, it may not always be in the future. Imagine if all we have to connect to someone who has passed is a Facebook profile. Now imagine Facebook, like MySpace, becomes obsolete. How do we stay connected?

A grave site is a physical place that one can go to be close to your loved ones. Seriously, you can't get much closer, they're in the ground. It won't change. It's not a fad. You will always be connected to them. You will always be able to go to them, to talk to them. No social network can replace that physical connection.  

Just recently my Grandpa passed away. He didn't have Facebook. And I don't need a Facebook profile of him to remember who he was to me. All I need is that place to go, to be close to him. That in itself, is what keeps him and I connected.

If I Gave It All Away For One Thing...

"Look, if you had just one shot, or one opportunity, to seize everything you ever wanted, in one moment, would you capture it? Or just let it slip..." - Eminem  

This is one of the children CMN Radiothon
will benefit, this young boy and his
loving mother. <3

I was driving in my car earlier, when I decided to scan through radio stations. I found myself settling into The Border just when the announcer broadcasted a Radiothon charity promotion for the Children's Miracle Network.

From an advertising perspective...the promotion was simply amazing.

Johnny Spezzano was the announcer tonight, and he and his team seemed so passionate about the cause that it nearly brought me to tears. I actually spent two hours listening to one station without turning it. I wasn't even listening to the music, I was far more engaged with the stories from those who needed help. And to be honest, Johnny's pure enthusiasm and what seemed to be pure compassion sucked me right in to the cause.

Normally radio announcers are collected, there's a script or at least structure. But what I was listening to was raw. I could hear the cheers when someone had pledged to donate, I could see the shocked and sadden expressions to heartfelt stories being told. Johnny actually interrupted the music so restate the name of the cause and the number to donate. Dedication much?

His voice, as he spoke to all the listeners, was so encouraging. I remember him saying that he wasn't going to stop talking about it, he wasn't going to shut up, till they reached their goal of donations.

The mingling of testimonies and inspiring music was also captivating. In fact, just about everything The Border did for the Radiothon inspired me. I wanted to donate! Mission accomplished Johnny!

So if you had one shot, or one opportunity, to give someone everything they ever wanted, would you do it? Or just let it slip...