Two Crap Radio Ads Walk Into A Bar

+ Every morning I listen to the radio on my way to work. There have been two radio spots that I've heard in the last few days that I just don't get.

One airs on a hiphop/pop rock station. It's a kid singing in an operatic style about wanting to get a phone. I can't figure out who it is supposed to be appealing to. Moms? Kids? Granted it does catch your attention as it's such a switch from the typical musical genre played on the channel. But it seems odd to me if it's targeted at teens, why they would choose opera. *shrug*

The other ad is for Uno Chicago Grill Restaurants. There's a line in the script that says, "Uno's isn't some made up restaurant". Um. Was that a complaint customers had about the restaurant? I'm still not exactly sure what the hell that means. And yes, I'm serious, it's in there. You can even listen to the spot yourself here (Click on Listen to Radio Ad). To the copywriter that had to suck it up when the client demanded that line was used...I feel your pain.

Mike FM TV spot

+ I had been looking for this spot for a while. It's for a local radio station and has been airing for some months now.

Overheard on the Train - Tuesday morn.

+ On my way into work this morning, I had the privilage of sitting next to two fellas who were having a very "intellectual" conversation on the environment and studies done - I was rather impressed until I heard one of them say, "Until we can find our comfortability..." I nearly laughed outloud. Has anyone heard that word used in that way? I found a definition on wiki but that's it.

What's the strangest bastardization of language you've overheard lately?

For you Red Sox Fans

+ VIDEO: Red Sox 2007 Team Preview, Part 1: The Hitters and VIDEO: Red Sox 2007 Team Preview, Part II: The Pitchers.

Dice Kream

+ It's opening day for the Boston Red Sox. And of course what goes better with baseball and summer than ice cream? While stuck in traffic I was listening to the radio (I know...I'm old skool!) and one of the morning shows had the owner of JP Licks, a local ice cream company, on to promote their giving away a free scoop of ice cream or frozen yogurt today in honor of opening day. Freebies are going to be handed out from 11am to 4pm.

During the show they were talking about special flavors for the season and one which honors new Red Sox pitcher Dice Matsuzaka. It's called "rice DICE-Kream" and is short grained rice made into a rice pudding ice cream.

I got to work and while waiting for Outlook to crawl along updating my inbox I checked out some ad news and found that Brighams, another local ice cream place, has also created a new ice cream flavor..."Dice-Kream."

With more than 20 percent of name suggestions all bearing a version of "Dice-Kream," Brigham's judges held a drawing today to determine which fan should be credited for the winning entry. As the talented creator, Eric Tait of Lexington, Massachusetts, will receive a full baseball season's supply of the newly-renamed ice cream, a private tour of Brigham's factory, along with the ultimate baseball fans victory kit, including a Dice-K home jersey and a pair of cushioned seats for the stands. Perhaps even more priceless, the winning entrant will have his name appear on the new packaging, which will be available later this summer.

Though the ice cream will have a new name, the treasured ingredients will remain the same. Like "Reverse the Curse", "Dice-Kream" will feature Brigham's signature vanilla ice cream loaded with chocolate-covered peanuts or "baseballs," chocolate-covered caramel "bases," and swirls of Brigham's famous fudge sauce.

I still have to wonder if anyone is going to cause a fuss over the names being the same. You never know...

ATHF causes problems in Boston

+ An Adult Swim Aqua Teen Hunger Force stunt caused bomb scare and trouble in Boston today. Geez. Boston's Mayor Thomas Menino said: "This is not playing around," said Menino, who added that each individual scare could be punishable by two to three years in prison. Thing is since the LED boards were done by a third party, who gets time in prision? The people at Turner who approved them? The folks who created them?

Granted, it was a gigantic waste of the city's resources both physical and monetary. And it caused a lot of traffic problems as well, although it looked like it had cleared up more or less in time for the evening commuters.

Likemind Bos

+ Looking to enjoy a freshly brewed cup of bean juice with a side of conversation? Stop by the first Boston Likemind gathering, 8am this Friday (Jan 19th)at the Starbucks on 755 Boylston Street. Gareth Kay of Brand New (and Modernista) and Stephanie Rogers of CultureJunkie(and PARTNERS+simons) will be hosting the event. It will continue to be held the 3rd Friday of every month.