Chicago River Turned Green for St. Patrick's Day!

How green? This green:

From 090314-St.Patrick's Day

Jeez, how come? They dyed it. Yes, they dyed Chicago River into this Irish green for one day. Every year, the Saturday before the actual St. Patrick's day, Chicago has the St. Patrick's Day parade and at the same time dyed the river. I did not have the chance to see it myself last year, because I was too busy working on my finals. Luckily this year, thanks to my roommate's invitation, I got the chance to step out and step into the crowd downtown Chicago for the greenest day ever in a year. How green again? This green:

From 090314-St.Patrick's Day

So many people on the street put together all the greenish clothes, hats, scarves, gloves, hair bands, socks, glasses on them for this day. I felt sorry for having no green on me anywhere (I just seriously do not have any green clothes or accessories with me). Coming back to the parade: frankly it was so so. Maybe it was also because my friends and I failed to squeeze ourselves into the front rolls to enjoy it, and unfortunately we were too tiny to see anything from the back end. We did try, and we purely enjoyed the atmosphere to be in the crowd with this crazy celebrations. We also ate lunch at a famous Irish restaurant/bar called The Gage after we thought that we have seen enough parade. My Fish & Chips didn't let me down, but serious NOs for their sandwiches. Some Guinness is good, some Irish Ale is good, too, but watch out for those over drinking pals on the street~

Oh well, I still love this sunny green day :)

About St. Patrick's Day celebration in Chicago: http://www.chicagostpatsparade.com/

The Gage
24 S. Michigan Ave,
Chicago, IL 60103
(312)372-4243
Will check photo ID before entry. Have bar and restaurant. Very easy to find across the Bean in Millennium Park

Meow~ Stacey's George, Tiger and my Pipi

I got a sudden phone call from Stacey, my younger sister in the host-family. She invited me to hangout at her place and "Wendy, I got two kitty here and I think you might want to meet them." Oh my goodness! Of course I do! So I quickly got changed and met her soon later. It was very kind of her to think about me and to present this wonderful offer! As you may see in the photos, Tiger and George are cute! I personally liked 6-month-old Tiger more than his 9-month-old brother George. However, I LOVE my very own Pipi the most! That's why I also posted some photos from Mom in this album. I miss my Pipi....

My Belated Birthday Gift

Can't be better!

Isabel, my close friend who I have known for around 17 years, put all these together. She told me to wait for a "package" with her famous hand-made cards earlier, and she even told me today: "it was delivered! Check your mailbox!" Before I rushed downstairs at 11:00 p.m., Isabel stopped me and sent a link (in Mandarin) with this surprise and her own words for me.

I cried. I laughed. She collected those photos from my current and previous online albums. She gathered those people I hearted, since 10 some years ago to recently. She picked a song that made perfect sense and flew so well with the photos, videos and captions. She deeply knew which few words could move me or make me smile. She knew me, even better than I knew myself.

Thank you my love Isabel. Thank you!

In Order to Become An Expert Blogger...

I'm learning how to use WordPress now, and when I get stuck, I went Google for some learning tools and I found this:

Blogger is easier to start and easier to become a master: check. WordPress takes longer time to get used to it but it's more powerful with many more resources/widget: check..... I also highly recommend the "Import" function on WordPress, because it allows me to import EVERYTHING from a Blogger blog to a WordPress Blog. To be precise, I can actually import multiple blogs I have under Blogger to a single WordPress blog! Hmm... hmmm...

What else to learn?
1. How to use Flickr (yes, I've been a loyal Picasa user for so long)
2. digg? del.icio.us? maybe also MySpace?

The very last comment in the learning process: computer science folks I knew did not even know what is WordPress. I reached some of them to ask for technical assistance and got a question mark back. Sweet~

How Good You Want to Be

It's not how good you are, it's how good you want to be.
~Paul Arden

Thanks for Chih-Hui's Visit

From Post-NU Life- CHW

Thanks for your impulse visit, I got to explore my city and my town one more time. Also thanks to your visit, I heard SO MANY interesting stories and comments that exist on (almost) another planet. Thanks to your visit, I totally realized that- yes, Aquarius people are freaks who LOVE freedom and crazy adventures!

Good luck for your studies in UPenn! I know you'll never get bored and you'll always find some entertainment for yourself. Keep me updated about your next journey on your blog!

P.S.: Chih-Hui is one of my internet friend. I have followed his blog about his military service life in Gambia for Taiwan since some years ago. He came to the US for study earlier this year and suddenly decided to come visit Chicago for spring break. From the first question "How's the weather in Chicago?" to "Hello I booked a flight to Chicago and will be there tomorrow" happened within 2 days!

Norton之"學長~幫我修電腦~"宅行銷！

可惜我家爸爸和弟弟電腦功力太強，我都沒有學長幫我修過電腦.... (緬懷個甚麼勁?!)
外星人看廣告裡面出現了這篇，也出現了這個有趣的宅行銷官方網站連結。不誇張，我也去玩了耶～裡面的學妹說話行動真是超欠打的啦.....不過也就因此，完全展現了諾頓這個活動搔到了使用者癢處，漂亮的引起話題的能耐，讓平常冷冰冰、沒有甚麼趣味可言的防毒產品透過這樣非常在地化的創意思維與操作有了讓人會心一笑、印象深刻的轉型機會。

然而我也不免好奇，會不會因為這樣的操作就降低了女性使用者對產品的興趣？還有爸爸級的超齡學長們會對這個廣告／創意／產品有甚麼樣的觀感呢？好想知道喔～～～

Will NEVER Throw Away This Business Card- Lego

Thanks to Andy Sernovitz's kind sharing, I got the chance to see this super creative business card from Lego. Indeed, this idea is "product sample, world-of-mouth and networking" all in one. Can never find anything more ideal to make the best first impression! And according to Andy, Lego will make one that looks just like the employee. I want a job from them now!

可惜不是你

This is a new song I learned to play tonight. I was not alone at the lobby, but I felt like I was. One song after another, I tried to release the pressure inside in a "silent" way. It was actually good that no one I knew was nearby to "force" me to pretend to be THE me, or to "force" me to say "I am okay I am fine." I can feel the tremble in my music you know? Every exhale, every pause, and all the unspoken emotions poured all at once onto my keyboard. Faces of my beloved ones came into my notes to sing with me, dance with me and just... be there for me again. And so I realize.....

可惜不是你
梁靜茹
作曲: 曹軒賓, 編曲: 陳飛午, 填詞: 李焯雄

這一刻　突然覺得好熟悉
像昨天　今天同時在放映
我這句語氣　原來好像你
不就是我們愛過的證據

差一點　騙了自己騙了你
愛與被愛不一定成正比
我知道被疼是一種運氣
但我無法完全交出自己

＊努力為你改變
　卻變不了　預留的伏線
　以為在你身邊　那也算永遠

　彷彿還是昨天
　可是昨天　己非常遙遠
　但閉上我雙眼　我還看得見＊

＃可惜不是你　陪我到最後
　曾一起走　卻走失那路口
　感謝那是你　牽過我的手
　還能感受那溫柔＃

那一段　我們曾心貼著心
我想我更有權利關心你
可能你　已走進別人風景
多希望　也有　星光的投影

REPEAT＊＃＃

感謝那是你　牽過我的手
還能溫暖我胸口

Sincere Apology for AC Sports

I have removed an earlier post about the company AC Sports, because I mistakenly wrote some unconfirmed information that caused unnecessary inconvenience for the company. Hence I post this message here to present my sincere apology to AC Sports.

夜，不知所措

哭過，但因著你，笑了；累過自責過，但因著你，釋懷了；
那些自以為獨一無二的事，想不到就在你身上看到了同樣的例子；
原來也是會有這種identical life/identical mind。

你說希望我用不上那張$600的機票，
我知道自己除了求職失利以外，另外一個不能同意你更多的理由。
「總有一天要回去的。」你說。
不知道你究竟有沒有認知到，那個總有一天，那個回去，其實是個多麼超乎你想像的一個概念。
那片人海之中，我會被埋在哪裡，是誰也說不準想不著的.....
那時的我，也說不定並不像現在的我一般暢所欲言，可以就扮演我自己。
那時的我們，也不再能透過一通電話、一條走廊隨傳隨到。

時間踢踏的走，我的午夜，更加深得令人不知所措......

IKEA Everywhere @ Manhatten

"What business is IKEA in?" After I saw this commercial, I felt hearing Prof John Greening with one of his famous quote. CREATIVITY business it is. Thanks to..... well you probably knew already....外星人看廣告 I got to see this "Good Design Can Make The Everyday A Little Better" commercial. IKEA places its products around 600 corners in New York city to attract people's attention and to promote the "a little better life" idea. I love this showcase a lot, especially when IKEA always have colorful products to make cold life so bright and colorful. How about you?

Barbie Doll's 50th Anniversary~

Toys'R'Us Celebrates Barbie(R) Doll's 50th Anniversary
Barbie fans raise your hand! (Me me me!!) Toy 'R' Us is planning to celebrate Barbie's 50th anniversary from March 8 to the end of the month. You can buy limited version Barbie doll, go attend "Pink Party Time at Toys 'R' Us Time Square," go to any Toys "R" Us store nationwide to join the "Fashionable Fantastic Celebration", join "Virtual Barbie Celebration" on www.Toysrus.com/Barbie, and appreciate the "Special Dolls Highlight Barbie Through The Decades" exhibition in store. Although I am no longer a little girl who would scream for Barbie dolls, Barbie indeed was a significant part of my childhood memory and I would love to get involve in the screaming opportunity this time- this way or that. Anyone as well?

我那嚇人的日文電話面試剛剛KO了~

我準備了好久ㄋㄟ~
我的日本朋友被我騷擾了好多次ㄋㄟ~講電話講到電話都要燒掉了ㄋㄟ~
同一本日文教科書被我買了又退貨買了又退貨好多次了ㄋㄟ~
我的室友快要受不了我在家裡沒事就在看外星文的電影和講奇怪的電話ㄋㄟ~
然後就在剛剛，芝加哥跟東京連線了十五分鐘左右，
電話那端的田澤先生就放我過了ㄋㄟ~

他只叫我自我介紹，問我幾個為什麼我會學日文學了多久怎麼學，
叫我用日文講知不知道他們公司在幹甚麼，然後，他就很誠實的說
美國的母公司叫他幫忙切庫(CHECK)一下我的日文程度，而我的日文很OK的啦~
所以我們不用再繼續耗時間了啦這樣就好了啦~
所以就這樣我們互相說了掰掰嚇屬人的日文電話面試就結束了啦~
媽媽，想不到我小時候無聊跑去學的日文現在可以拿來美國找工作用的啦~
耶耶耶耶很開心的啦~ 可以來去跳舞慶祝的啦 :D

Pedro Played Guitar and Sing for Me, Again

Every time I felt frustrated or down, Pedro always knew the way to comfort me and to cheer me up. No matter how far apart we were: W-Taiwan vs P-Brazil; W-US vs P-China; W-US vs P-Brazil, he ALWAYS could share some words of wisdom to me, or some distant company, or some magic- like a song played and sang by him- to brighten up my day. I still remembered he once quickly learned to sing 寶貝(張懸) within 30 minutes, played his guitar and sang to me while I was so troubled in the office. Another time when I was quite desperate, he also responded to my request by singing that song to me again.

This time, I was frustrated by the never-ending job searching process. Well... honestly, also something else. Pedro listened, commented and suggested solutions. Before he had to leave, he volunteered to play and sing a song for me: "but it'll be in Portuguese." I didn't mind at all~ That sounds perfect and exotic~ When the music flew, the only thing I could feel suddenly is happiness and peace. I felt loved, blessed and calm.

"Wendy honey, please take some pills to ease your headache. And please, don't feel bad about yourself. Don't feel useless. Those are not true. Got confidence in you."

I felt much better afterwards, for I knew at least this somebody cares. And this somebody- gave me a lot of strength to move on already. Magic.

0.02mm超薄的愛-善用IMC的保險套廣告！

love distance from sunstar on Vimeo.
這個日本廣告真的太棒了，非常的唯美卻又成功的帶出了商品的價值和訴求。。IMC人請注意，你們尤其要看！因為這不只是一個廣告影片，整個是一個很漂亮的IMC運用案例：結合了影片、網站、Blog、手機簡訊(SMS)、互動式的觀眾加油(Cheering)與調查(Survey)、customized message/entrance，最難能可貴的是(請恕我這麼說)身為一個日本的廣告，網站上面英、日文內容的完成度都相當的高！（本來以為小妹我需要為各位介紹那些因為只有日文版而造成閱讀殘障的部分，NONO～不用！英文版的Update得很好！）此外，我覺得她成功的一個契機點在於把商品價值中最emotional的那一塊操弄得很漂亮，讓任何人看了（尤其是潛在客戶）都很容易認同商品的價值，進而觸發購買商品的意願。或許我會用「感性行銷」來形容這樣一個漂亮的案例吧～

感謝外星人看廣告的分享！

相模原創的sagami original 0.02的超薄型保險套，推出的電視廣告沒搔首弄姿，沒過度的裸露，沒性慾至上的喊叫，改以唯美純浪漫日系風在日本掀起一陣討論的話題，影片中的男女主角相距超過1000公里，為了揮別單人的夜晚，男生由福岡出發，女生由東京起跑，不分晝夜的跑向約定地，而兩人相遇的那天，是冬日中雪花紛飛的聖誕夜。......

U.S. Cities with Most Green Buildings – EPA Energy Star Green Buildings - thedailygreen.com

U.S. Cities with Most Green Buildings – EPA Energy Star Green Buildings - thedailygreen.com

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iPhone+ Uniliver+ Axe+ (Faux-)Flash = Dirty Night Determinator AND $$

From 動腦雜誌(Brain.com) I first heard about this new mobile marketing campaign. Greystripe uses Faux-Flash technology to display a game "Dirty Night Determinator" on iPhone targeting at male 18-24. According to a survey by ComScore, those who played the game on iPhone became more interested in trying Axe products. (interest rate from 59% to 74%: 15% increase!) For this kind of economy, that IS a great leap!

(Image credit: GoMoNews)

Okay, go to see more on:

• 動腦雜誌Brain.com

  
  Axe試圖透過非傳統的管道來接觸及打動18-24歲的目標閱聽人。他們決定將成功的網路Flash遊戲「火辣夜要素」(Dirty Night Determinator)移植到iPhone上。.....

  
  
• GoMoNEWS
  

  How?
  The medium rectangle ads – see above are delivered to the phone. The Greystripe ads powered by flash allow instant one click connection with the ads and the use.
  Click through rates
  According to Greystripe following the campaign the AXE detailaer shower gel experienced a 15% lift.

  56% of all respondents that interacted with the phone expressed interest in buying the product - 35% didn't react to the advert.

  Men loved the ad most with a 62% interaction rate expressing an interest to buy.

  
  

One Whole Month

Left, maybe. Tick tuck tick tuck.

I used to be afraid of not getting employed before my time expires. Now I'm afraid of something else as well. Both would be unfortunate, while the latter might be even more heartbreaking. The cruel reality is: I cannot control either result. In some sense, I have to take both quietly, regardless. Indeed, the point of no return is approaching. That actually happened in my life for quite some times already- it's no news. It's just..... when I grow older, I start to doubt how many more times can I bear that to tear me apart.

Welcome, March. Welcome, my deepest fear.

Skittles' New Site Is the Social Web

According to the report from Advertising Age, Skittle's move was not an innovative one, but it indeed exemplified the power and the spirit of social media/Web 2.0. I was confused about one thing though: since all the contents on the site were not provided by Skittle, how did they plan to show the value of the brand, to deliver the brand message to their clients, and many other things that were communicated by a traditional Web site? Also, I have heard some feedback that consumers thought the term of service (acknowledges the content beyond this page is not Skittles content) irresponsible. Any thoughts?

But It Looks a Lot Like Modernista's Online Offering (from Advertising Age)

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- The new Skittles website, just out from Agency.com, looks awfully familiar. In fact, it's virtually the same concept as Modernista's website, introduced a year ago.

The site is not really a site at all but an overlay that lives on top of Web 2.0 content, such as Wikipedia, Facebook and Flickr. When you head to skittles.com, you're prompted to enter your age and agree to a terms of service that acknowledges that the content beyond this page is not Skittles content.

Skittles' site on Facebook is the marketer's attempt at co-opting Web 2.0.

The site then loads Skittles' Wikipedia page with a rectangular navigation overlay: Click on "Friends" and it takes you to the company's Facebook page; click on "Chatter" and you're taken to the Twitter feed. The release announcing the site said the landing page will change regularly. While it's Wikipedia today it might be its YouTube channel tomorrow. (The time when I visited, Twitter page welcomed me) ....continue reading...