Before I go any further, I would like to say that in all honesty, I had lined up another post to publish today, but frankly, it’s been a long day and I didn’t really want to upload something which was causing quite a bit of strife at the moment, possibly at the end of the week or next week then.

Now, because I decided not to post the thing which I was going to post, I can’t think of anything else to write about, so I guess I’ll have a ramble about the first thing which comes to mind… or that I see if I close my eyes and turn my head away from my computer.

A glass. Not just any glass though. An IKEA glass, from probably one of the most iconic global brands there is. People hate it, people love it. Whichever side of the fence you are on in regards to the Swedish furniture maker and general place of plywood awesomeness, they won’t go away very easily, and as it turns out, you probably use something of theirs almost every day.

Now you might be thinking that I have gone off my nut here, writing about a company which seems to infuriate many people, but take a minute to think, or try to think about what it really is that annoys you about them. Chances are that it is because whenever you go there, the the warehouse of steam bent meatballs, everyone else in the area has decided to go too, whether it because the weather is awful and people suddenly have an urge to update their homes, or just because it is a Thursday night and you want to get away from the dog who seems to have taken a liking to your sofa when you have been out for the day.

Either way, their general philosophy is one which changed the way in which people bought furniture. Great designs and low prices is something which other companies should try and do. But for some reason, design seems to mean that they can bump up the prices. Now I’m not saying that everything should be at rock bottom prices, there are certain designery things which deserve to be the price they are because you are clearly able to see the amount of work put in by the designer and the company as a whole to make the product the best that they can make it.

Count the number of things bought in IKEA in the room you are in just now (not really doable if you are at work, preferably done at home), and of those things, for which reasons did you buy them? Because they were cheap? or because they looked good?

And whilst you are pondering that, and I am aware that some people will manage to answer that quicker than others, I’ll leave you with an epic song which I came about whilst listening to The Bitterest Pill podcast a few years ago, a song created by Jonathan Coulton, a song all about IKEA.

Link to song on iTunes

Note: tiredness may have played a part in the randomness of this post.

Con muy poco presupuesto y una de las herramientas básicas de Facebook (la de etiquetar) Ikea ha creado una curiosa campaña interactiva a propósito de la apertura de una nueva tienda en Malmo, Suecia, que según la compañía es la más moderna hasta la fecha.

Encore un exemple réussi d’utilisation des réseaux sociaux par une grande marque.

Pour l’ouverture niveau magasin Ikea de Malmö ( en Suède), l’agence creativity Online a crée un profil Facebook au nom de son responsable Gordon Gustavsson. L’agence a ensuite posté 12 visuels mettant en scène des chambres, cuisine etc. La vraie bonne idée était de laisser ces photos se faire “tagger” par les fans de la page, les premiers a se ” tagger” sur les différents objets les gagnaient !

Au final 85 personnes se sont taggées, il y a eu 275 commentaires et 15 000 vues de la vidéo sur Youtube.

Pour le blog Chacsam www.chacsam.be,  “Ces chiffres peuvent paraître peu importants, mais ils sont à comparer avec des opérations très locales, comme ces magasins de meuble qui vous embêtent au téléphone pour vous proposer de venir chercher une machine à café”. Pour Laurent Guérin, de www.citymoviz.com, “Ce type d’opération peut nous inspirer pour créer de véritables rendez vous entre les épisodes de programmes.”

Source : cbwebletter

Een voorraadkast hoeft niet per se een “kast” te zijn. Natuurlijke dromen we allemaal van walk-in kasten met planken tot aan het plafond gevuld met dozen, flessen en blikken – ok misschien droom ik alleen hiervan – voor de meesten van ons  mij blijft dit – voorlopig – bij dromen. Mijn voorraadkast bestaat uit 4 diepe planken met doorzichtige plastic dozen van de IKEA. Toen een vriendinnetje op kamers ging richtte ik in haar kast 2 planken in als voorraadkast. Ik stopte er gedroogd fruit, noten, pastas, sauzen, rijst, thee, cacao, bruine suiker en een paar blikken groente in zodat ik zeker wist dat ze niet elke dag patat zou eten. Ik kocht ook rollen toiletpapier, tissues, maandverband, zeep, shampoo, die 2 planken waren meer dan genoeg ruimte om een voorraadkast aan te leggen voor haar eenpersoons huishouden. Elke ruimte waar je etenswaar en toiletspullen kunt opbergen is in mijn ogen een voorraadkast. Dus ook een paar roldozen onder je bed of 2 planken in je keukenkast.

Waarschijnlijk is de druk om een voorraadkast te beginnen niet erg groot als je niet ziek of huisgebonden bent. Toch zijn er nog een paar goede redenen om een voorraadkast te beginnen. Als klein meisje woonde ik op Saba, St.Maarten en St. Eustatius, vaak werden de winkels in het orkaanseizoen gesloten en werden de huizen van buiten dichtgetimmerd. Mijn moeder had in haar voorraadkast genoeg om ons gezin en eventueel dat van de buren voor meerdere dagen te kunnen voeden tijdens deze periodes. Een voorraadkast geeft mij daardoor altijd een gevoel van veiligheid, geborgenheid en zekerheid. Nog een reden om een voorraadkast te beginnen is om geld te besparen. Het moment dat iets in de aanbieding is kun je er een voorraad van kopen zodat je het tot de volgende aanbieding voorradig hebt. Van geldnood tot noodweer een voorraadkast helpt je door alle nood heen.

Wat je in je voorraadkast stopt hangt geheel af van de smaak van je eigen gezin. Het heeft totaal geen nut om gedroogde kikkererwten in te slaan als je hele gezin walgt van de gedachte dat ooit te moeten eten! Ga aan tafel zitten met een kladblok, pen en je favoriete recepten schrijf alle lang houdbare producten op. Loop naar de badkamer en schrijf daar op wat voor tioletartikelen je gezinsleden gebruiken, doe ditzelfde met de schoonmaakmiddelen. Schrijf alle snacks op die je gezin graag eet en gebruik deze lijst als basis voor je voorraadkast. Het is handig als je minimaal 2 recepten geheel uit de voorraadkast kunt maken voor als er een keer nood(weer) is. Denk aan bruine bonen met rookworst en rijst of falafelballetjes(mix) met pitabroodjes, knoflooksaus en blikje gemengde groenten.

Afhankelijk van je budget, kun je de voorraadkast in 1x helemaal vullen of beetje bij beetje. Begin simpel, koop alle aanbiedingen op je boodschappenlijstje dubbel. Uiteraard moet je rekening houden dat het product lang houdbaar moet zijn. Door dit een paar maanden te doen zul je gauw een goede beginners voorraadkast hebben. Zorg ervoor dat de producten met de kortste uiterste datum vooraan staan. De voorraadkast moet je geld besparen niet kosten. Maak een lijst en zet die in de voorraadkast zodat je kunt bijhouden hoeveel je nog over hebt van bepaalde goederen. Ik gebruik deze lijst de streepjes en kruisjes maak ik met potlood zodat ik de lijst kan blijven gebruiken. Ik hou gewoon van simplicity. Ben jij van de gadgets dan kun je een  pantry list op je i-pod downloaden, bijwerken en als boodschappenlijst in de winkel gebruiken.

Samenvatting en tips:

• Ga op zoek naar ruimte in je huis om je voorraadkast te beginnen, een paar dozen onder je bed voldoen prima.
• Wees realistisch koop geen dingen die je gezin nooit zal eten
• Maak een budget om een voorraad aan te leggen en ga er niet overheen, de voorraadkast hoort je niet in financiële problemen te brengen!
• Koop aanbiedingen (let op uiterste houdbaarheidsdatum!!)
• Koop groot in (Vaak gaan we over de Duitse grens om daar goedkoper in te slaan)
• Zet kortste houdbaarheidsdatum vooraan
• Hou bij wat erin en eruit gaat.

Veel plezier met het vullen van je voorraadkast en geniet van de voordelen!

An international crackdown on the use of woods from the world’s rain forests to make musical instruments bubbled over to Music City on Tuesday with a federal raid on Gibson Guitar ’s manufacturing plant, but no arrests.

Assistant U.S. Attorney John Webb said the search warrant was obtained based on information in a sealed affidavit outlining the investigation.

Agents of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service made a midday appearance and served a search warrant on company officials at Gibson’s Massman Drive manufacturing plant, where it makes acoustic and electric guitars.

Some hardwoods traditionally used in making premium guitars, such as rosewood from the rain forests of Madagascar and Brazil, have been banned from commercial trade because of environmental concerns under a recently revised federal law.

Under the U.S. Lacey Act, trading in such banned woods is a federal offense, punishable by civil and criminal penalties or the seizure of property. Last year, the U.S. Congress amended a turn-of-the-century wildlife protection law (the Lacey Act) to extend its reach to endangered timber species and plants. See the next post Where Were You When Wood Became A Felony?

The following is a excerpt from the Classical Values Blog. It is very interesting and I highly recommend you read the entire article at http://www.classicalvalues.com/archives/2009/10/where_were_you_2.html

The 2008 Farm Bill (also known as the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008, aka Public Law 110-246).

This amendment [to the Lacey Act] deals with illegal plants — the primary thrust being illegal wood. Henceforth, all wood is to be a federally regulated, suspect substance. Either raw wood, lumber, or anything made of wood, from tables and chairs, to flooring, siding, particle board, to handles on knives, baskets, chopsticks, or even toothpicks has to have a label naming the genus and species of the tree that it came from and the country of origin. Incorrect labeling becomes a federal felony, and the law does not just apply to wood newly entering the country, but any wood that is in interstate commerce within the country. Here are some excerpts from a summary:

The Lacey Act now makes it unlawful to import, export, transport, sell, receive, acquire, or purchase in interstate or foreign commerce any plant, with some limited exceptions, taken in violation of the laws of a U.S. State, or any foreign law that protects plants. The Lacey Act also makes it unlawful to make or submit any false record, account or label for, or any false identification of, any plant.

The definition of the term “plant” includes “any wild member of the plant kingdom, including roots, seeds, parts, and products thereof, and including trees from either natural or planted forest stands.”

[...]

Anyone who imports into the United States, or exports out of the United States, illegally harvested plants or products made from illegally harvested plants, including timber, as well as anyone who exports, transports, sells, receives, acquires or purchases such products in the United States, may be prosecuted. In any prosecution under the Lacey Act, the burden of proof of a violation rests on the government.

[...]

Violations of Lacey Act provisions for timber and other plant products, as well as fish and wildlife, may be prosecuted through either civil or criminal enforcement actions. Regardless of any prosecution, the tainted plants may be seized and forfeited.

Everyone means everyone, which includes every reader of this blog.

Obviously, this means that in the future, the Fish and Game guys will be able to accompany SWAT Team raiders to check all wood in homes and businesses for possible violations. Even if they’re wrong in their suspicions about the wood, it can still be confiscated. (Might that be a goal? To beef up employment at Fish and Game?)

Just think about the law enforcement possibilities alone. After kicking through and impounding your illegal wooden door, a federalized army of government termites could literally strip all wood paneling and flooring from every raided house as suspicious contraband, and haul away all the furniture, wood carvings, picture frames, tools, musical instruments! I can’t think of a better harassment tool. The list of potentially regulated items is mind-boggling:

the scope of products that will require a declaration under the Lacey Act is broad and includes certain live plants, plant parts, lumber, wood pulp, paper and paperboard, and products containing certain plant material or products, which may include certain furniture, tools, umbrellas, sporting goods, printed matter, musical instruments, products manufactured from plant-based resins, and textiles.

[...]

After September 30, 2009, based on experience with the implementation of the electronic system for declaration data collection, we will phase in enforcement of the declaration requirements for additional chapters containing plants and plant products covered by the Lacey Act, including (but not limited to) Ch. 12 (oil seeds, misc. grain, seed, fruit, plant, etc.), Ch. 13 (gums, lacs, resins, vegetable saps, extracts, etc.), Ch. 14 (vegetable plaiting materials and products not elsewhere specified or included), Ch. 45 (cork and articles of), Ch. 46 (basket ware and wickerwork), Ch. 66 (umbrellas, walking sticks, riding crops), Ch. 82 (tools), Ch. 93 (guns), Ch. 95 (toys, games and sporting equipment), Ch. 96 (brooms, pencils, and buttons), and Ch. 97 (works of art). We will announce a specific phase-in schedule for those chapters in a subsequent Federal Register notice.

Did they mention shipping pallets and cargo braces? Wood is not only in stuff, it’s in the stuff that the stuff comes in! Nearly everything is regulated.

Oh, and you firearm owners out there, let’s not forget gun handles!

Ch. 93 Headings (arms and ammunition).
9302 — Revolvers and pistols.
93051020 –Parts and accessories for revolvers and pistols.
Ch. 94 Headings (furniture, etc.).
940169 — Seats with wood frames.
Ch. 95 Headings (toys, games, & sporting equipment).
950420 — Articles and accessories for billiards.
Ch. 97 Headings (works of art).
9703 — Sculptures.

Glad I don’t own an art gallery, but my picture frames are not labeled, which means there are probably multiple potential felonies in progress in my home. (Perhaps I should be more careful about what I say.)

And while the NRA might not have noticed the impending crackdown on gun handles, at least IKEA is starting to speak up.

Between Wood Control and the Consumer Product Safety Nazis, I pity anyone in the secondhand business, including all Ebay and Craigslist sellers as well as people holding garage or yard sales.

In short, I pity the American people. This is not their fault, though, for no one has any control over what is going on. Not even the despicable fools we call “legislators” who cannot read the “laws” they pass because they are not meant to be read. As to the enforcers, they are only doing their job. They have to earn a living. And we are supposed to respect them, because they lay their lives on the line, “protecting” the public! From felonious wood!

Obviously, the full implications of this dramatic loss of freedom are beyond the capacity of a single post. After all, I am just one blogger, doing this by myself, without the kind of access to data that media organizations and think tanks might have. So, I cannot possibly hope to analyze everything. As things stand, I became exhausted last night just reading through the Lacey Act Amendment stuff pertaining to wood — and that was one mere fraction of an execrable, unreadable monstrosity. I don’t mean to whine, but slogging through such horrors is not exactly my idea of Saturday night fun. But who the hell else is going to do it? Flooring and furniture industry blogs? Who the hell reads them except people in the business? They’re all greedy tree haters and have no credibility. Besides, all big business is the enemy right now. We need to stand up not only against Big Cereal, but now Big Flooring! Big Siding! Big Furniture! (Is there such an industry as Big Chopstick?)

To read the entire article please go to: http://www.classicalvalues.com/archives/2009/10/where_were_you_2.html

Jag köpte ett sådant här torn åt Andreas då jag var inne på IKEA idag. Stor hit, han har suttit och lekt med det oavbrutet i en halv timme nu.

Jag fick nästan för många ideer medan jag gick omkring på IKEA och Bauhaus. Få se om det blir något av dem. Det brukar vara så, jag hittar på en massa som jag vill göra åt vår inredning men sen orkar jag inte fullfölja något.

Det var förresten inte alls roligt att tvätta bilen utomhus idag. Kallt.

Nun hatte ich endlich mal wieder Zeit, um ein bisschen zu nähen.

Eine neue Wohnung braucht natürlich neue Kissen…

Und da das Baby, von dem ich hier schrieb, nun vielleicht doch ein Junge wird, ist auch eine Babydecke in Blautönen auf den besten Wege fertig zu werden.
Mit persönlich ists ja egal ob ein Junge auf einer roten oder blauen Decke liegt (hauptsache schön und kuschelig) aber es ist halt ein Geschenk…

Sobald sie fertig ist, gibts natürlich auch Bilder von dem guten Stück.

Und obwohl eigentlich noch viele andere Projekte beendet werden müssten, habe ich einen Pullover aus einem wunderbar weichen Leinengarn angefangen (musste einfach sein.)

Noch siehts ja nach nicht allzuviel aus…
Die Anleitung ist Buttercup und bei Ravelry zu haben.

As an industrial designer, I am infatuated with product manufacturing videos. And being that I just bought some new IKEA furniture last week I was pumped to find this National Geographic video of IKEA’s Poland manufacturing facility showing how they put together their honeycomb structured panels for furniture. I’ve always known what they were made of, I just haven’t seen it in production until now. Check it out:

<embed src=”http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/videos/satellite/satelliteEmbedPlayer.swf” bgcolor=”#000000″ flashVars=”videoRef=07455_00&autoStart=false&shareURL=http%3A%2F%2Fchannel%2Enationalgeographic%2Ecom%2Fseries%2Fultimate%2Dfactories%2F4543%2FVideos%2F07455%5F00″  allowFullScreen=”true” name=”flashObj” width=”496″ height=”279″ type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” swLiveConnect=”true” pluginspage=”http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/index.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash”></embed>

(found via Core77!)

-jp

It’s that time again! Week 2 of the DIY blog party {Kim of NewlyWoodwards fame}.

Thank you for your help with Friday’s poll. 70% of you should be pleased with the direction I chose this week, the remaining 30% . . . well, I compromised. Kinda. {30% of readers seemed like an awful lot to disappoint, so I think you’ll notice a nod to my “Thanksgiving Picnic” theme.}

First, lets recap on Week #2’s mission: Dare to… entertain!

Show us your table! If you are not hosting Thanksgiving, take this opportunity to make your table look great. Bring out your dishes and napkins and set your table. I promise you that it will make you smile every time you walk by. Get creative and use new things. Or go true DIY and make something totally new.

Without further adieu, I bring you {drum roll please…….} DUN duh DUN!!!

HEIRLOOM CHINA

This table was inspired by the china {Rosebud by Spode, I believe}.

Pink & yellow aren’t your usual autumnal colors but why not?

It’s been unseasonably warm here in Jersey, so I envisioned this small dinner or dessert outside in the backyard with a fire roaring nearby.

While I’m not usually a pink person, I think it’s cheery & bright. The texture of the fabric – corduroy keeps it seasonal.

The china originally belonged to my Great Uncle John before he handed it down to me. He past away 11 days ago.

I’m thankful I have these dishes to remind me what a gracious person he was.

The dishes are accented with vintage {some antique} sterling silverware. The intentional use of varied patterns was to keep things from getting overly formal.

Bread plates stayed stacked, waiting to be passed out as needed once the food hit the table.

As did the coffee cups. {Uncle John always drank coffee; every meal, no matter what time. I don’t think I ever remember him drinking water.} Cream & sugar waiting patiently as well.

Vintage pumpkin shaped goblets {from my mom’s stash} await your cold beverage of choice. White wine, perhaps?

The centerpiece ~ a bright yellow metal tree from IKEA ~ is a little wacky and a lot of fun. The cheery color pulls from the yellow in china while the branches hold messages of thankfulness.

Guests would take a leaf, write what they’re thankful for on the back, and then hang it on the tree.

Mismatched chairs in the same dark wood tone finished things off.

Don’t forget to head on over to the NewlyWoodwards and check out everyone else’s tables!

Ja, detta är en bra del av IKEAs hemsida tycker jag. Här finns en hel del tips och ideer som man kan göra inför julen.

Här kan man finna mängder av en massa tips och idéer inför den stundande advent och jultiden!

Jag gillar sannerligen julen på IKEA!!!

It’s been a weird couple of days with disappointing news; Oprah Winfrey announced the retirement of her show, Paris Hilton’s mom announced that Paris once upon a time had plans for breast enlargements, and pretty much everyone seemed to agree that The Twilight Saga: New Moon sucked. And if that wasn’t enough, it has come to my attention that pizza isn’t considered a low carb meal.

It’s hard to keep track of what to eat, but it seems bread is out of the question. Johnny the Intern has taken it upon himself to add it to his list of what’s forbidden to eat here at the office; which means bread is right up there with fruit and vegetables, because as you know; he is convinced those two are what makes you overweight.

If you think that’s weird you should be aware that he also is convinced that the new John Cusack movie 2012 is in fact a Documentary sent to us from the future.

He is currently putting together a boat, purchased at IKEA.

Då var ännu en helg till ända. Ännu en helg utan någon som helst uppdatering här. Men är det nåt jag verkligen inte haft en tanke på denna helgen så är det bloggen. Drog raka vägen ut till Sandra efter jobbet i fredags och tillbringade hela helgen där. I fredags var även fröken Jenny med oss. Vi svullade massa tacos, drack vin, öl och spelade diverse spel. När vi vaknade till liv på lördagen hade Jempa redan hunnit hem. Jag och sötisen drog ner till Vällingby C där vi fikade och shoppade lite. Jag lyckades äntligen hitta ny mössa Sen vankades middag och hemmafest. Det blev ännu mer öl och ännu mer spelande. Igår blev det en tur till Ikea. Drog mest dit för att det är trivsamt att springa omkring där med jämna mellanrum, men även för att jag var sugen på en köttbulletallrik och behov av lite nya matlådor. Fick även med mig lite ljusstakar och annat nödvändigt hem. Hela helgen avslutades hemma hos mig. Kikade nyaste Wallander och mös lite innan ljuset släcktes för denna helgen. Underbart härlig helg med det finaste av sällskapet

Nu är det bara en vecka kvar av november. En veckas slit för att få in det sista som ska in av novemberbudgeten. Hoppas det är “stolpe in vecka”! På fredag blir det konsert med Mattihoe och på söndag snackas det om julmarknad i Gamla Stan. Ännu en helgrym helg att se fram emot med andra ord! JAG ÄLSKAR MITT LIV!!!

 Det holder på å skje noe veldig viktitg innen reklamefaget akkurat nå. Nye medier og nye platformer gjør det mulig å lage reklame nesten helt gratis. Reklame som er vel så kreativt imponerende som den dyreste reklamefilm, og som har vel så høy impact.

Spørsmålet er bare om de etablerte kreatørene i bransjen klarer å flytte fokuset sitt bort fra å fylle flater til å omfavne de nye platformene og deres muligheter. De yngre kreatørene lever så tett på den nye digitale hverdagen, at for dem er det allerede helt naturlig å bruke kreativiteten sin på de nye platformene.

Noen vil innvende at denne IKEA jobben fra Forsman & Boderfors bare er en avansert digital åpningsannonse. Men den er mer enn det. Og den viser noen av de utfordringene også mediebyråene står foran i årene som kommer. For hvorfor kjøper metervis med spalteplass og dyre sekunder på TV, når en gratis aktivitet på Facebook kan få like høy impact, og mye høyrere engasjement.

Nå tror ikke jeg at løsningen alene er digitale medier, og at TV filmer kommer til å forsvinne. Men jeg tror at vi kommer til å se en dreining mot at det vil brukes mindre penger på betalt medieplass og mer på utvikling av gode involverende ideer.Noe som burde vært godt nyheter både alle dem som driver med utvikling og rådgivning innenfor kreativ kommunikasjon, og dårligere  nyheter for dem som kun lever av å plassere kommunikasjon på betalt plass.

Both classes of Creative marketing are really busy at the moment.

KM08 is making a marketing campaign for Tourism in Skåne under the watchful eye of their tutor Hans-Erik Duck in the course Lateral marketing. The class has been divided in to groups of four & five and they have their presentation at Thursday. It is the end of 7 weeks of hard work, long nights and careful studies of the market. From week 1-20 next year all the students are having internships and after that all that remains is the examination work that concludes the whole education.

KM09 is in the final weeks of the course commercial operation with Staffan Olofsson. Ten weeks has nearly past and I think they are all happy to start the next one! It is a very demanding course and some of them has been forced to confront their biggest fear; math! They have a presentation and one test to go next week. Next course is new media & technology with Anders Printz.

The format for Creative Marketing is focus on the business world. So far the students have been able to listen to Bodil Jönsson, Torbjörn Jörgensen and Stina Tjebbes. One class has visited TBWA in Copenhagen and listened to Paul Clements. Ivana Hrdlickova, information and communication manager at IKEA Försäljnings AB and Lars Carlson, senior advisor at Inter IKEA Systems have been giving lecturers. On their way in are Tina Kaikkonen, office manager at The Astonishing Tribe, Yacir Persson-Chelbat from the multicultural association, Sandra Nilsson, project assistant action marketing at Skånemejerier, Henrik Jansson, copy at Glenn and Patricio Silva, consulting director Interactive communication at Navigator ends this years guest lectures.

Donna

1. I’m really surprised: why is it that the only bloggers who are really concerned about Manitoba Hydro seem to be The Black Rod and myself?  From the PUB reports, I’m convinced that Hydro’s future viability is at risk.  Why aren’t we hearing more about this?
2. Sport Manitoba’s plans for the Smart Bag Co. building is a big story that hasn’t yet returned to the public eye… Galston mentioned it a while back, and I’ve heard a few other murmurs here and there.  I’ve found no official news from Sport Manitoba, or anything in upcoming city council meetings.  If Phase I is supposed to be complete in Dec 2009, I imagine Phase II must be a “done deal”.  Will Sport Manitoba keep the history intact?
3. Stubble burning is a big issue, and I’ve heard that it’s unnecessary and that it can’t be helped.  Hopefully over the next few days I’ll find out where the truth lies.  I do know that it’s made for a pile of sick Manitobans these past few weeks, including me.
4. Crime is out of control in Winnipeg; whether or not the number of crimes or their severity has increased from the past, I know that something must be done.  I’m hoping to come up with my own point of view on this, which may or may not coincide with the view of our provincial and federal Liberal parties.
5. I’ve made peace with the Seasons of Tuxedo.  In my opinion, there are far bigger issues in Winnipeg, and I accept that residents and leadership of this city and province feel that the vast amount of new retail on Kenaston is worth the expected commercial decline in other areas (I personally wonder if it will scuttle the Creswin plan for The Elms).  It’s not like I expected Ikea to move into a building downtown (sorry Mr. Nobody), and the victims of any retail drought will probably be other suburban malls; they lived by the sword when they slashed the downtown storefronts, so it’s somewhat poetic for them if they die by the sword.  As far as the name of the new shopping mecca: I am not a marketing specialist, so obviously my taste in names lacks judgement.  Accordingly, this blog has been renamed “Seasons of Regan” to coincide with this powerful new trend.

Great ideas can get caught up in overly complex online executions.

So, I thought I would celebrate the beauty of simplicity in this post! Here are two very different examples of good ideas, executed simply!

IKEA

A promotional idea that simply leverages Facebook’s familiar  functionality. No Facebook apps in sight!

HP + GLOBAL CLEAN WATER CRISIS

They are the technology outfitter for Global clean water crisis Mt Kilimanjaro challenge. How do they bring the scale of the challenge the team of climbers (and the ‘technology’ that will support them) will face, to life? Answer; a website the ‘equivalent’ height of Mt Kilimanjaro in pixels.

Incudes a highly engaging basecamp at the bottom. Definitely worth checking out.

Är precis hemkommen från mammas, fick god middag och grejade med datorn hur länge som helst. Den har dålig humor, datorn alltså för den bara driver med oss totalt. Fick nog lite ordning på skiten iaf.

Va och snokade i mammas förråd och hittade 2 låga hyllor som ska hem till Isas rum så småningom. Hittade även de här 2 ramarna som jag blev helt förälskad i!

Tog också 6 stycken träfärgade ramar, målar jag dom vita så ska jag nog inte ha några större problem med att hitta plats för dom. Visade mamma sängen på Ikea som jag blivit helt kär i och vill ha till Isa & hon erbjöd sig att betala den i julklapp till Isa. Vi bestämde att vi ska köra till ikea den 23 och handla julklappar

Visst är den fin!!!

Dessutom har Isa och mami stampat sönder ett ägg pga av min ironi. Man upphör aldrig att förvånas. Herregud! Nu ligger barnet i sin säng & ser film, gissa vilken…. aaa just de. Mamma mia.

Jag ska minsann måla lite!  Hejrå!

We visited Ikea last week and decided to buy a pair of storage cabinets that go together end to end to form one long cabinet. The whole business together is about 8 feet long and maybe 20 inches high. The idea is that this is fastened to the wall (look Ma no legs). This is accomplished by attaching to the wall at six separate points along the eight feet.

After assembling the unit, we placed it and I set to work drilling and anchoring. The screws had to go in specific spots in the unit and the unit had to go in a specific spot in the room. Now you might expect that with 6 opportunities, I would hit at least one stud, right? Har! No way. No problem. I got these plastic super-duper anchors that go through the drywall then open up behind it. Each one was good for 80 pounds. There were 6 of them, so I should be good for 480 pounds right? Right. So I positioned the unit and put in the anchors and screwed the whole business into the wall. It looked great.

Tuffy P put our little orchid collection up on it and I was pretty happy. That was before it crashed to the ground with great vengeance, smashing the orchid containers along the way.

Today I cut out a section of drywall big enough to screw a piece of strapping into the studs, then screwed the unit into the strapping. The house will fall down before the unit does. Obviously I should have done this in the first place. C’est la vie.