Cacti

The prickly pear cactus is my current favorite cacti in New Mexico. I struck gold in Carlsbad when I stumbled upon this wild garden of prickly pears on the drive to the Caverns. It was an incredible sight. Despite its name and its spikey hairs, these cacti seem friendly. The shape reminds me of oven mitts I want to shake hands with or pancakes I could take a bite from (both bad ideas). Look at how social they are too. They congregate together ensuring no one gets through them. It's like they know its own expensive listed store price and proudly shines with the Southwestern sun.

Slumdog Millionaire

Excellent movie. It helped that I was craving something different, fresh, and cultural. I am amazed when people fuse and modify the traditional with the modern styles and do it well. This was seen in the style of the movie and the music accompanying it.

This movie appeals to American audiences. After being inundated with steroid-injected, action-packed movies, Americans were ready for something real and human. Slumdog Millionaire offered entertainment while offering a current, global perspective. I don't know how accurate the depiction of Mumbai is in the movie, but it still puts the audience face-to-face with domestic and economic battles so easily overlooked in daily life in the U.S. Considering the economic downturn the world is facing, I can't help but feel guilty for continuing life as usual with my main concern being how I'll entertain myself tomorrow or this weekend. It seems so selfish. In a far-fetched way, this movie made me feel better. It was entertainment, but it pointed out real problems. It made me think about the big problems again and how widespread they are.

Life is all about the moments, and this movie captures moments so well. Whether good or bad, moments are so dramatic that they become memorable and inescapable. Along the same theme of moments is the movie's focus. The characters had clear goals and motivations strung with complex obstacles. That made me wonder if my extensive list of goals actually prevents me from accomplishing any of them. With that said, I admired Jamal's determination to get what he wanted one step at a time. Jamal, the protagonist, was an easy character to empathize with and truly stole the show.

Skiing

People always talk about the uphill battle. I discovered the downhill battle last month called skiing. Unlike most people in the world, skiing is just okay for me. I'd rather be enjoying other activities. The risk versus fun factors don't work in my favor. The important thing is that I tried it and not only once, but three times now.

For those who have never skied, let me break down what is needed.

Clothing
Warm pants (i.e. sweat pants, thermal underwear)
Thick socks (i.e. wool socks, apparently wool handles moisture better than cotton but not a big deal)
Snow bibs
Warm top (i.e. hoodie)
Ski coat (These things have SO many pockets. It is wonderful.)
Hat or helmet
Ski goggles or sunglasses
Sunscreen (for the face)

Equipment
Skis (Short skis are also available. They allow easier control for beginners. On the opposite end of the spectrum, experts may also use short skis to perform tricks. I rarely have seen short skis)
Ski boots
Ski poles

Tips That Make Life Easier
-Carry your skis over your shoulder.
-When walking downstairs with ski boots, walk backwards. Ski boots are difficult to walk in!
-Use the lockers. It's $0.75 each time it's accessed, but it's worth not walking from the car to the lodge in ski boots. Packing lunch and storing in the locker is also a bonus. The food at the lodge is typical, expensive, cafeteria food.

Ranking System
Bunny Hill: For learners
Greens: Low difficulty
Blues: Medium difficulty
Blacks: High difficulty
Double Blacks: High high (like Phelps at a party) difficulty. This might involve hiking to get to the start of a double black.

The Slopes
I've been to four ski slopes and skied on three in New Mexico. Each place has its own strengths.

Pajarito in Los Alamos
I took full day lessons here. The instructors were excellent and encouraging. The slopes are steep. The bunny hill would easily be ranked as a green in most other places.

Santa Fe
The slopes are more manageable than Pajarito. The bunny slope is incredibly tame. Snowboarders would have difficulty learning on the bunny, since it is fairly flat. I've been told that boarders need some slope to keep their momentum. The indoor lodge has more space than Pajarito, but at about the same quality. Out of state visitors enjoy Santa Fe, probably because of what the town offers outside of skiing.

Angel Fire
This is a great ski resort. The slopes are very manageable, and I was comfortable going down all of its greens. The view here is pleasantly striking. The greatest strength Angel Fire has over the other ski valleys is that they label all their slopes with clear signs, so people like me don't mistakenly go down a blue when the intent was to ski a green slope. Snow tubing is an option for people in the afternoons. The three lane runways are great for racing with friends, and a conveyor belt takes all the tubers right back to the starting line.

Taos
I can't speak much to the actual skiing, since I bailed on this adventure. I have heard that Taos has steep and narrow slopes with deep drop-offs. A more advanced skier would have a greater appreciation for the Taos Mountain. I spent some time at St. Bernards having coffee and tapping onto the hotel/restaurant's wireless internet. It was a warm place with a free-roaming dog, typical of the Taos culture. I highly recommend St. Bernards for the ones that decide to skip on skiing with their buddies and just enjoy the resort. Another option is snowmobiling with Big Al. It is a 2-hour tour of the Taos mountain on snowmobiles. I haven't decided if it was worth $70, but I do know I enjoyed it.


Finally, for the non-believers, here's evidence of me skiing.

Taos

I haven't done justice to New Mexico. The natural backdrop here is beautiful. It is easy to forget to look and appreciate the mystic-looking mountains. That's when I know I'm getting comfortable here. It sometimes takes a rainbow spanning the mountain peaks to remind me. There were three rainbows in one week too.

There is more than mountains. The towns here look and feel local. Taos is a great example. My friends and I rented a house for the weekend in Taos a few weeks ago. Here are some pictures of and around the house.







Besides being a skiing town, Taos has a magnificent view of the Rio Grande Gorge. A fairly simple bridge runs across the gorge. The best part is seeing the initial drop off. The image hit me so suddenly when driving up to it that the moment deservedly got a long "Wwwow."



For the ones that love being green, Earthship demonstrates a model home that is constructed from recycled materials and is self-sufficient. This detour was certainly interesting. It offered solutions for people that have wondered how to build such a home. The challenge is wondering if one could substitute modern conveniences for such a simple life. Earthship homes have been built internationally, and several neighborhoods exist within New Mexico.




I haven't even tapped into the art scene in Taos. Metal sculpture, painting, pottery, jewelry, and even a Taos drum factory outlet store can be found in pockets of the town. Small bed & breakfasts inns give the Best Western and Days Inn tough competition. At first glance, I thought Taos was a sleepy town revolved around skiing. After two trips to Taos, its hidden charms are growing on me.

Whine-fest and Thought Vomit

One day I'll read this and cringe. I'm going to be super negative tonight. I'm just fed up with some stuff, and I'm going head first with no constraint.

I'll start off by why I haven't written in awhile. I've felt that I had other obligations that I had to do first, and this blog is secondary. The obligations weren't necessarily important, but I was trying to prioritize my laundry list. My prioritization system failed me. Sometimes I should just do what I want to do and throw my reasons out the window.

Another point of irritation for me is the lack of respect for privacy. So what if someone wants to stay home and not go out. Leave them be. The person everyone is judging is probably at home building a multi-billion business plan anyway.

Now, I'll get into the idiosyncrasies of Albuquerque. My disclaimer is that I've discovered many wonderful things about New Mexico in the past few weeks that I've restrained myself from writing due to personal issues mentioned above.

I've just been caught at a bad time, so here goes. This city is so dark. Even the best neighborhoods are poorly lit. One light goes out on my front porch, and I can't even find the keyhole to my door. On top of the poorly lit city, the street signs are extremely difficult to read at night. I'm talking about major intersection street signs that are attached to the red, green, and yellow lights. I know the economy is bad, but let's invest in some new reflective street signs, Albuquerque. Please! Now, the cops. The cops have been very special to me this year. The cops seem to always find my parked car and pick a fight. So, Ms. Sena (you know who you are) has given me two tickets already. Go easy on me, will you? I'm pretty much a tourist in your state. You want to make a good impression. It's not just her, the police is crawling all over the place here. I'm not sure if I should feel protected or worried.

I realize this is all self-induced, but I haven't reached the maturity level to react to these situations gracefully. I keep finding myself wanting things differently from the social norm, yet I always fall into this status quo way of life and it's a whirlwind. I'm frustrated that I haven't built a strong enough backbone to resist this and march to my own tune. I thought I had it too. I've lost my beat somewhere along the way.

Talking To Strangers

How do you feel about talking to strangers? It's one step deeper than people watching, but it is quite a leap forward. I enjoy it. I also make sure I cut the conversation off fairly early in the game, and there are exceptions. Keeping the conversation short (1.) doesn't creep out the stranger, invading their privacy and (2.) keeps a sense of mystery that allows me to hypothesize the stranger's life. In the short amount of interaction time, I am also careful to convince the stranger that I have no ulterior motives for talking to them.

With my heavy traveling these past two weeks, I have had the opportunity to observe some interactions at the airport and on the airplane. People's reactions are difficult to generalize. I met a flight attendant traveling as a passenger and a man and his sister on their way to vacation in Santa Fe who were all conversation initiators. That makes it easy for me. I insert a few questions and comments and these conversation initiators keep on going. The airplane is a great place for perfect strangers. The storytellers come from all different cities going to a new city with a mission in mind. So, there is always a topic to talk about and a new perspective to learn from.

I met a twenty-something hippie (who was reading The Story of B and instantly earned cool points) and a late forties woman that I initiated the conversations by sharing the delicious, Christmas cookies my friend generously sent me. Both reactions were very inviting and a bit shocking that I would share my cookies. I certainly didn't stick around to swap life stories, but these small interactions have big impacts. I could tell they both felt more comfortable sitting near me on the plane. The hippie and I silently nodded a farewell as I walked off the plane and the woman made short comments throughout the flight to me.

People love to connect with one another, but it is difficult for some people to break the initial barrier of conversation. For some, to do so is even abnormal and makes them uncomfortable. I hope more people open up the opportunity to meet others in our daily, physical lives to the point that talking to strangers is as unintimidating as friending a new person on an online social network. Meeting people the old fashion way is so much more rewarding than the online avenues.

Bass Pro Shopping

What do you think of when you see a 4-1/2' fish pillow at the Bass Pro Shop?

My mom started making the hand motions of preparing fish fillets. A true sign of a fisherman's wife.

The Vietnamese Crabshack

These photos may be graphic for the crab lovers out there. Here's a before and after shot of 10 crabs my family and I had for dinner. They were steamed and served with a lemon, salt, and pepper dipping sauce. Steamed shrimp was also served.

This type of dinner takes a long time to finish but is fun and a great way to get conversations going. It reminds me of a fondue dinner, where everyone has to work before eating.

Culture Is Back In My Life

New Mexico does have its cultural charms in place. I've been feeling the vibe that the air is certainly different here than my past few years living near the Stepford Housewives. My intuition was confirmed as I was thumbing through the weekly Alibi (in Kansas City terms, it's NM's Pitch).

Just a quick glance of the Community Calendar shows a broad range of dancing options. There's classes for African Dance, East Indian Dance, Tribal Belly Dance, Soul Dance, Adult Tap, and the list goes on. There's Yoga for men, women, and babies!

Art also dominates the cultural scenes with weekly poetry readings, lectures, and gallery shows.

I feel like I'm in my college days where the opportunities to learn new things are so accessible and affordable.

Today's Fortune Cookie

"To be mature is to accept imperfections."

Networking, the latest buzz word

Do, do, do is such doo doo.

Why do people feel like they should be doing stuff all the time. Chill out, everyone.

So, it's all about networking. I used to love the word, "networking." It was a great justification for socializing and going out. Recently, the word has begun to wear on me. The word itself is being overused. Good word, but it should be used a bit more sparingly than it is today.

Getting to know co-workers and customers at a personal level helps with business, but it does not define the relationship. Good business springs from technical confidence as well as personal interactions. It seems the trends are shifting over to personal interactions and away from technical aspects. Pharmaceutical sales comes into mind, but this idea applies to many working fields.

Instead of spending all of one's time networking, how about spending it on building one's knowledge base by reading or diving into a personal hobby? This leads to my plug for personal quiet time. This block of time is so important for people's mental health. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People strongly encourages people to take time to plan the week (setting short term goals) and continuously reflecting on the long term goals. These are individual activities.

I see people get criticized for choosing to stay in after being invited to social events. That is unfortunate. Again, it is a personal choice and a right to privacy (which is tough to have these days).

Perhaps, I am speaking for myself because I feel that my most productive hours were the ones "doing nothing." Others may feel that tangible social activities prove to be more productive for them. I would just put out a warning (and this is a reminder to myself) that doing something is not knowing it. I could drink beer all my life and not know a thing about it. If I did, though, it would just create more depth into what I know. It would be a topic of great conversation and would probably earn me some credibility with others. Again, I'm writing this to remind myself that personal time allows me to dig deep into a lot of topics.

The only networking I want to do for awhile is neural networking.

The Hybrid Model- A Woman's Lifestyle

Open-minded.

Adaptable.

Creative.

Compromising.

Those words might reflect a woman's attitude when she is considering her master life plan. I took a step back to piece together all the conversations I've had with women and the trends I've seen in the media concerning women's careers.

A woman's role used to be understood as the caregiver with respect to taking care of the home and family. That really has not changed to this day, but this was on a full-time basis. Of course, I think people had more children back then also. That is pure speculation. Feeding the masses was another huge responsibility mothers undertook. Drive-thru grub and instant meals were not prevalent as in today's world. Cooking (and the resulting cleaning involved) takes quite a chunk of the day now, it must be even more back then. For example, I watched in awe as my cousin biked through the streets of Vietnam daily to the local, outdoor market. She would gracefully haggle with the vendors to gather the raw ingredients for the day's meals. That took street smarts. If a guy has trouble in the supermarket, I'd like to see him handle this environment. My point is that there were a lot of factors that called for women to dedicate themselves fully to the home and family.

Then the full-time job turned from the home to the office. This could have been the result of the women's rights movement or a result of the changing economics. Either way, businesses would have reacted to this change by investing in day cares at their companies or teenagers advertising their baby-sitter qualifications. Restaurants undoubtedly benefited from this change and continue to adapt their services to family dynamics.

Now, the trend is to find the happy medium that has the flexibility to handle both the home and work. As the world turns as it always has, companies are opening policies to accommodate these demands, which really is a great movement.

With all this in mind, how is a woman supposed to plan for her future career?

It's no longer all or nothing, it's a hybrid of lifestyles. One quick comment about men. They must balance their lives as any woman does, but men's typical expectations are to work full-time advancing their corporate careers, family or no family. It is by nature a woman changes physically and mentally by starting a family. There are mothers who still work in the office full-time, which absolutely amazes me. It must be so demanding. There are mothers who work at home full-time, which poses another challenge. How will she return to the office again?

The 2-, 5-, 10- year career plans may need to be revisited. A decision block may need to be added to the flow chart diverting the corporate route to a family route that includes an option for part-time jobs. For some working fields, flexibility is an advantage. For other fields, additional college education and certifications would be required to take on more flexible jobs. So, should one plan for a flexible job too?

I have double standard feelings about the whole topic. The media statistically show women are not making as much money or are not reaching the corporate power levels as men, but I wonder if that is a discrimination or a balancing act women sacrifice between work and family. The working mother may not think it is worth even-ing out the statistics by sacrificing her role in the family. She may not focus as much on her career since her family role lies heavily with the kids. In this case, it is a woman's choice, not her inadequacy, to fulfill a high corporate position. That's one reason why I think this is a slow trend. I think it's great that a family can have a financial ability for one of the parents to raise their children. At the same time, I like seeing a woman go to the top of the charts.

I have heard several conversations that dance around these topics, and as with any life choice decisions, there is no general answer. It is a personal choice. For the most part, people make the right ones too.

Hiking the Sandia Mountains

It's been about a month since I've gone on the Old La Luz Trail Hike, but I had to share some of the photos I took. It was a gorgeous hike during the fall season. The 7-mile trail led my group and I to the top of the Sandia Mountians, where we took the Tramway back down. It took the group and I about 4-5 hours to complete, including lunch breaks. It was the first time I truly felt the effects of altitude on my breathing.

This shows the Donald Duck rock formation. It was definitely the comical relief during the uphill hike.

This was taken after the lunch break. It was a very memorable portion of the hike. The fallen yellow leaves contrasted so well with the white tree barks, and the occasional green plants accented the scene. Nature's soundtrack was just as fitting with the crunching leaves as the hikers walked and the water brooks in the background. It was a poet's dream.
The fall season can be easily detected in this photo. The scenic mix of mountains and trees definitely portrays the Southwest flavor of beauty.

Now we're getting so close to the Tramway, we can see it. Thank goodness.

Here is a top view of Albuquerque from the peak of the mountains.

Just a Physical Move

People move for several reasons. The most common reason I've noticed is for work, and I fall into this category. Only after a couple of weeks of implanting myself into a new state, I realized I was spending my time the same way I had always done. This made me think about people who move to avoid bad situations.

Relocating doesn't change habits or personality traits. It does, however, give a sense of a fresh start. The change in environment and people may be enough to influence a personal transformation, but it would be a gradual process.

My point is that I do the same things and think the same way regardless of all the changes that happen around me. The surroundings do influence me, but it will take time before any of those repercussions show. I should check in with myself in a few months.

Big Bunny

I found my next vacation spot!

Giant bunny article

Water in the Desert

Mmm... H2O. Drink plenty in ABQ, or you'll get headaches!

Mountain Timer

I have one year to discover Albuquerque. Uprooting from my comfort zone in Kansas City and moving to an area that is literally different (the terrain, the plants, the wildlife, the people) has been exciting and refreshing.

The experience poses a personal and professional challenge that falls right at a perfect time in my life. This one year isolation from my typical Kansas City routine constructs an environment where I can reflect on my personal goals and focus on my professional objective.

I do love Kansas City and my friends there, but the best part is I am coming back. I won't be the same, however, and I hope my friends won't either. This physical relocation makes it easy to measure and realize progress. One year can transform someone. It doesn't need to be a big or obvious transformation, but it should be a positive one.

I have lived the life of a New Mexican for two weeks now and have already dispelled one of my preconceived judgements about the area. Unlike my ignorant impression that Albuquerque was all brown and turquoise, the city does indeed have trees and grass. Kansas City's charm may lie with its large, green trees that change throughout the seasons, but Albuquerque can hold its own with its mountain view and clear skies that can be seen anywhere in the city.

To offer a flavor of my experience so far, below are pictures of the Sandia Mountains and the International Balloon Fiesta. The video is a short clip of a balloon take-off.

Dual Purpose Doublemint

I'd recommend watching Chris Brown's music video of Forever before and after reading this article.

Article from the WSJ

Chew on This: Hit Song Is a Gum Jingle
By ETHAN SMITH and JULIE JARGON
July 28, 2008; Page B1

Sharp-eared pop-music fans may have noticed a brief reference to an old chewing-gum jingle buried in "Forever," Chris Brown's top-10 hit. "Double your pleasure/double your fun," the R&B singer croons in the chorus.

What listeners don't know -- and what Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. planned to reveal Tuesday -- is that the song is a commercial.

"Forever" is an extended version of a new Doublemint jingle written by Mr. Brown and scheduled to begin airing next month in 30-second spots for Wrigley's green-packaged chewing gum.

R&B singer Chris Brown's 'Forever,' which hit No. 4 on the Hot 100, is also a gum jingle.
Mr. Brown is one of a trio of pop stars enlisted by ad agency Translation Advertising, a unit of Interpublic Group of Cos., to update the images of three of Wrigley's best-known brands.

The campaign includes spots featuring R&B singer Ne-Yo doing his own take on Big Red's "kiss a little longer" jingle. And "Dancing With the Stars" regular-turned-country-singer Julianne Hough recorded a twangy version of Juicy Fruit's "The taste is gonna move ya."

But Mr. Brown's "Forever" is the most ambitious part of the campaign. Mr. Brown was commissioned to write and sing both the pop song and a new version of the Doublemint jingle, introduced in 1960.

First, Mr. Brown updated the jingle and recorded it with hip-hop producer Polow Da Don. Then, during the same Los Angeles recording sessions in February, paid for by Wrigley, Mr. Brown added new lyrics and made a 4½-minute rendition of the tune, titled "Forever."

In April, Mr. Brown's record label, Jive, released the song to radio stations and digital download services as a single. After the song became a hit, Jive added it to his 2007 album, "Exclusive," and re-released the album in June. "Forever" reached No. 4 on Billboard magazine's Hot 100 chart last week.

All three new Wrigley jingles are scheduled to be unveiled at a news conference Tuesday in New York, with each of them to be performed by the artist involved. Mr. Brown is slated to sing "Forever" and segue into his jingle. New television commercials and radio spots featuring the jingles and print ads showing new packaging for the gum are set to appear in August.

Some of Wrigley's popular gum brands
The campaign illustrates a deepening of the ties between pop music and advertising. Rappers frequently mention luxury products like liquor or cars in songs, and occasionally serve as paid spokesmen for the brands. And for McDonald's Corp.'s 2003 "I'm Lovin' It" campaign, the burger chain, with the aid of Translation Chief Executive Steve Stoute, enlisted Justin Timberlake to write and record a song using the slogan as its chorus. But the song was never released on one of his albums.

Tom Carrabba, executive vice president and general manager of Sony BMG's Zomba Label Group, which includes Jive, says label executives initially had qualms about releasing and promoting a song recorded at an advertiser's behest "But the song was so potent and strong. That overruled us being maybe a little hesitant," he adds.

Sony BMG is a joint venture between Bertelsmann AG of Germany and Japan's Sony Corp.

Other than the "double your pleasure" line, the lyrics to the song and the TV jingle are different. But the melody and the music behind it are nearly indistinguishable. A 60-second radio ad scheduled to air starting Friday further blurs the line between the song and the commercial. It starts with a section of "Forever," and moves seamlessly into lyrics promoting the gum. "I'ma take you there, so don't be scared," Mr. Brown sings. "Double your pleasure; double your fun. It's the right one, Doublemint gum."

The campaign was conceived and executed by Mr. Stoute, a former senior executive at Interscope Records who counts rapper Jay-Z as a partner in his business. The idea was to connect the hit song and the jingle in listener's minds. That way, Mr. Stoute says, "by the time the new jingle came out, it was already seeded properly within popular culture."

TASTE OF MUSIC

The background on three Wrigley's gum jingles:
• DoubleMint
1960: 'Double your pleasure' jingle first appears; gum introduced 1914
• Big Red
1979: 'Kiss a little longer' jingle first appears; gum introduced 1976
• Juicy Fruit
1983: 'Taste is gonna move ya' jingle first appears; gum introduced 1893
Source: the companyMr. Brown said in an email that he wrote "Forever" and the related jingle in about 30 minutes each. "I actually thought it would take longer to write a jingle they would like," he wrote. "But they said it was a perfect fit after the first try."

Paul Chibe, Wrigley's vice president for North American gum marketing, declines to disclose how much Mr. Brown was paid for his role in the campaign.

Wrigley's push to update its older gum brands started earlier this year, when the company began selling them in new slim, envelope-style packages. Some of the gum was reformulated to improve its flavor and make it last longer. Juicy Fruit -- Wrigley's oldest brand, launched in 1893 -- Doublemint, Big Red, Spearmint, Winterfresh and the newer Extra line, represent around 30% of the company's U.S. gum business.

Wrigley chose Mr. Brown to develop the new Doublemint song, in part because the company's consumer research showed that African-American consumers prefer Doublemint to other gum brands. Mr. Chibe calls the move "the future of the brand."

Mr. Chibe added that the mildly suggestive lyrics have never given the company pause. "Everything he's done with 'Forever' represents the brand and it fits our brand personality for Doublemint," Mr. Chibe added.

While Wrigley has had strong sales in emerging markets, it has lost market share in the U.S., where it faces strong competition from Cadbury PLC, maker of Trident, Stride and Dentyne. Last year, the company's North American sales were flat, at $1.75 billion.

During the company's annual meeting in March, Chairman William Wrigley said he was "far from satisfied" with the company's domestic performance in 2007, though results improved in the first quarter of 2008. In April, Wrigley agreed to be acquired by Mars Inc., the closely held maker of M&Ms and Snickers, for about $23 billion.

My Comments

My initial thought was, "I feel fooled into liking this song! Quick...I need a pack of gum to make me feel better."

Marketing is a serious field and a lot more calculated than most realize. In this case, Wrigley's marketing plan began with the end in mind while it rolled out its plan in phases. First, research its target consumers: "...the company's consumer research showed that African-American consumers prefer Doublemint to other gum brands." Secondly, get a singer that can appeal to this target group. Wrigley did even better than that. They found a pop singer that appeals to an audience beyond African-Americans. Thirdly, win the audience over without the audience even knowing they're being swooned into a commercial.

This new marketing approach has so far worked seamlessly. Even after revealing that the song, Forever, is meant to be a Doublemint commercial, the momentum of the song is powerful enough that radio stations, clubs and bars will continue to play the song. Most DJs probably don't even know it's a commercial. Wrigley is just that good.

I shouldn't be surprised that this is a commercial. Making money is a part of business, especially the entertainment business. Accept it for what it is and understand its story. Commercials have a long history of having catchy tunes that people sing to for years. Wrigley just figured out a way to achieve what other companies have done while getting the consumers to enjoy their advertising. It's a bit subliminal, but that's marketing.

Bodies Revealed

"Fascinating + Real" is a perfect description of the Bodies Revealed exhibit. Disgusted comes to mind too. It's a lot like eating meat. If I don't think about what I'm eating, I'm fine. Once I begin thinking about the history behind the meat, I have a tougher time eating it. I made it a point to continuously remind myself that this is the real deal, making my stomach twist at times.

The excitement of learning anatomy flooded back to me from my high school days of physiology and psychology. That information that had been lying dormant for years in my head was slowly revived as I walked through the exhibit. The best realization was remembering that the topic of anatomy has the best terms out of any field.

Here's a small sample:
Medulla Oblongata
Dura Mater
Longitudinal Fissure
Hippocampus

How fun is that! Those would be my top choices for band names if I were to start one.

Back to the exhibit... For people in the medical field, this exhibit would be a heyday. For athletes, this exhibit would help train them to understand the muscle systems they work so laboriously to develop. I would strongly not recommend taking children to this event. The displays are too intense and at times shocking. For the curious, however, it is worth the $24.

http://www.unionstation.org/bodies/

Foo Fighters Concert

Band: Foo Fighters!!!

Venue: Kemper Arena, Kansas City

Coolest Realization: Having Dave Grohl singing live

Impressed With: The drummer, Taylor Hawkins

Best Concert Songs for the Night: My Hero, Monkey Wrench, Everlong, Big Me, Best of You (a great choice on their part to end the concert with this song)

New Song (for me at least) to Check Out: Skin and Bones