World Fantasy 2008 Podcast interview with Evo Terra

For those of you interested in the Fantasy side of life, check out this interview I did with my friend Kurt on the official World Fantasy 2008 podcast. Thanks for having me on, Kurt. You Calgarians sure know how to make a guy feel welcome. I always love a good excuse to go to Canada, so I hope to see you there!

A Toony For My Thoughts

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Originally uploaded by evo_terra

Back from Canada! Didja miss me?

We had a great time. Well, apart from the jackhole who smashed the window of our rental car and nabbed The Lovely Wife's camera bag, that is. Figure $500 for the window, another $4K for the camera and accessories... not so much fun. But shit happens, and I'm surprised something like this or worse hasn't happened to me before for all the travel I do.

Highlights of the trip include:

• Fabulous food and entertainment. Thanks for all the suggestions!
  
• Canadian money is so much cooler than US currency.
  
• Met a guy who goes GANGBUSTER on Flickr and have learned much.
  
• Played three different disc golf courses
  
• Learned to not try and outdrink two Englishmen bent on showing me up. Uncle!

But I'm back now, so we now return to our regular posting schedule. Did you learn any new tricks while I was away?

I'm a WANCer

Check out my appearance on the We Are Not Cool podcast. Though it's recommended to do shows like this while drinking, I did it sober. So tell me if I'm still funny, OK?

And to Jason, Doz and Michael: Thanks! I had a blast and am happy to reappear any time.

Hear me on View from the Quad

Hear me spread the gospel of Podiobooks.com far and wide! I recently guested on View from the Quad, and the interview is now live. I'm really interested to hear how this turned out, as both Cian and I were having horrible connection issues before and during the interview. I think we tried at least five different ways to record before we found one that was passable. And even then, the delay was... astronomical. I'm pretty sure Skype was bouncing off the moon and then traveling by Pony Express.

On Sheeple and advertising - a story of irony

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Originally uploaded by evo_terra

I know that most of advertising is pretty clueless. Hey, I work in the industry, so I have the right to say this... because it's true. And often times, the irony is priceless.

Take the term "sheeple", an amalgamation of "sheep" and "people" -- referring to people's tendencies to behave like sheep, blindly doing what they are expected and told. It's a great term that I don't use often enough.

So imaging my surprise when I learned that Scion was using the term as part of their non-traditional ad campaign:

"Little Deviants," the new campaign from ATTIK, reinforces Scion's business model around personalization and after-market customization, while positioning the car as a Neo-like saviour in a drab, Soviet-bloc world of buildings and streets where factotums wander around with brushes painting everything grey.

In the campaign, xD is a kind of automotive anarchist, running about with a cohort of gremlin-esque deviants, attacking the battleship-grey world of "Sheeple."

Is the irony lost on you? "Please don't be a sheeple and buy our car, just like we're telling you to do with this non-conformist and non-traditional ad campaign." Yeah guys, I get the appeal. And the rest of the campaign sounds like a lot of fun. But you lost me with "sheeple".

Social Media Showdown!

Insert witty banter about pitting bitter rivals against one another. But I'm tired and lazy...

Though it's not really an apples to apples comparison, I thought I'd showcase how I've personally been adopting two hot trends in the world of Web 2.0 -- social networks and social... chatter. So let's put Facebook against Myspace and Twitter against Pownce, comparing simply a single metric -- "friendship".

I've had a Myspace account for over a year, though I pretty much blew it off until about six months ago.

Myspace Friends - 357

Only a month or so ago, I decide to give Facebook a try. Personally, I like it beter.

Facebook Friends - 81

I've been an avid user of Twitter ever since C.C. Chapman got me hooked on it months ago.

Twitter Followers - 418

And I'm going on two days of active Powncing.

Pownce Friends and Fans - 84

I'm not suggesting that one will win over the other, but I do tend to use the pairs of services in similar way. Each has their own nuances, and the difference in time (and activity) on my part speaks volumes to the delta in friendship size. But I wonder how it will grow and change? I wonder how you, the readers of this blog, will decide to influence those numbers?

Lazy Sunday afternoon -- but still planning

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Originally uploaded by evo_terra

Happy Canada Day! In celebration, I played a round a disc golf and didn't hurt myself. Hooray!

Additionally, I added some events to my upcoming Seattle - Vancouver trip starting July 5th. Thanks to those of you who offered up suggestions on venues and happenings -- keep 'em coming! And remember, I'm looking for places to go and experience the city. These things need not be the "touristy" things or even big events. Where -- and when -- should we go see something. Size isn't an option, so get creative.

The Lovely Wife says it's time for ice cream. And with us topping out a 103 F / 39 C today, I'd have to agree.