Season Shopping Secret: Buy Online

Hi everyone,

Today, I just have to share with you an amazing holiday secret that will not be a secret much longer.

This season, instead of rushing to the closest mall and pulling my hair out from shopping frustration, I have found a smarter way to do the Christmas shopping.

Here's the secret: Shop online!

Online Christmas shopping is the new fad, trust me. It makes things a whole lot easier. In fact, I'm not sure I'll ever step into a department store during the holidays again (wink, wink). Don't get me wrong, I love all the stores like Macy's and Sears and others. But christmas shopping online is so much easier.

Plus, I have found the most awesomest online store ever! It's one that everyone in the family is sure to love. Vat19.com and its owners are "purveyors of curiously awesome products".

But my favorite thing of all about this site is that the gift cards they offer are sent to recipients over email and you can pick any amount you wish to give (literally). Honestly, it doesn't get any better than this.

Of course I can't leave out Amazon for anything.

The prices are amazing and they offer almost anything you could want. Overall, online Christmas shopping is revolutionizing the way we shop. I couldn't be more enthusiastic about this epiphany, obviously. :)

Please share any awesome sites that would be great for online christmas shopping. Leave you comments.

Rockwell Thanksgiving: American All The Way

Hey Everyone,

So this week is Thanksgiving week and I’m sure we are all getting ready to cook the turkey and hang out with friends and family. Well, before that happens I thought I would share something with you that might make your Turkey day a little more meaningful.

Check this out.

 For many of us this painting is a classic piece of history and is very sentimental to those of us that grew up when the painting’s creator was around. However, some of us, myself included, may not have been around when this piece of art was still fresh in the minds and hearts of Americans everywhere. In this case, here is a brief history of this artistic jewel that is known by many as the Rockwell Thanksgiving.

Norman Rockwell was a 20th-century painter and illustrator with most of his popular work created in the 1940’ s-1960, as he was a key contributor to The Saturday Evening Post magazine during that time. Many of his illustrations for the magazine are considered a reflection of American culture and his work was greatly remembered for representing everyday life during World War 2.

The painting above is one in a series of four paintings appearing in The Saturday Evening Post in the year 1943. Its name is Freedom from Want, and the series in which it appeared was entitled Four Freedoms, a series Rockwell created from Franklin Roosevelt’s speech that spoke of four essential freedoms.

Today we have things like Instagram to share photos and modern day novelties. But back then, magazines and newspapers were the way new fads and tributes were shared. So this Thanksgiving use Twitter and Facebook and Instagram full blast, but if you have time, Norman Rockwell’s work should be kept in mind as well. Not because of his artistic work, but because of what many of his paintings represented.

Freedom.

Without freedom to share our individual and corporate beliefs and practices, there would be nothing to celebrate with each other during Thanksgiving.

So that’s my thought for this week. Leave comments and let me know if you are familiar with Norman Rockwell’s work.  

Happy Thanksgiving! 

Top 5 Holiday Commercials 2012

Well guys, 

Here it is. The top 2012 holiday commercials list. I could only come up with about 5, as it seems only select companies take the holidays seriously as opposed to competitors. I have added them in order of most views but typically I think the bigger the brand the better chance the video has of getting more views. 

While television commercials often get a lot more views than online videos or ads, Youtube was ranked 3rd most viewed site on the web this year. So I think it’s safe to say that if top television commercials are at the top, they will most likely be available on the world’s leading video site: Youtube. 

The best holiday ads made by known brands and their competitors are hard to choose for a top 5 list. Still, this is what I’ve attempted to do, so hopefully you’ll get a kick out of it. Here goes...

1.Connecting Flights-4,846,467 views

Coming in number one is of course, my latest personal favorite with 4,846,467 views. The Sears holiday commercial is what I call the Shannon and Eddie punch... Sears did a great job pulling viewers in before they knew it was an ad.

2.Another Miracle on 34th Street-129,666 views

Other than a photo shopped version of the original Kris Kringal, this video’s storyline isn’t exactly a new way of telling the old edition. It is however a great advertising stunt by Macy’s with a little humor and a ton of admired faces in the acting and music industries. 

3.Mayhem Snow Video-33,805 views

While this video wasn’t released all that recently it still hits wide popularity with fellow Allstate fans. 

4.Big Dog-18,342 views

This year Target didn’t go all that crazy with any big black friday ads but they did perform their typical advertising with an adorable video entitled Big Dog. 

5.Hallmark Tell Me Commercial-Holiday-485 views

While not an amazing amount of views this video gives you that warm feeling always associated with Hallmark gifts and cards, especially during the holidays, I just had to add it in for its adorability. 

Hope you guys enjoyed it. Leave a comment and let me know what you think. 

My Favorite Time of Year- SHANNON AND EDDIE

Hey everyone,

sorry I've been absent for a while. Now that the holidays are coming up I thought I could finally share something with you guys that hopefully you'll get a laugh from...

                                         EDDIE AND SHANNON

So what is my favorite part of the holidays?

Is it the presents?

The food?

The family getting together?

Well, all of these things are awesome and I sure do look forward to them. However, as a blogger and entrepreneur I have to say that I always look forward to one thing:

All the holiday commercials!

I know what your thinking... what? why would you look forward to that? I know I know, it sounds lame right.... but come on, let's be real for a second. At least for us younger people, we all are exposed to an enormous amount of advertisements during the holiday season.

I'm not sure that any of them really make us want to go buy what they are advertising but some of them sure do stick out more than others. How about the target lady commercial for black friday in 2010? None other than comedian Maria Bamford played the over the top black friday shopper who took it a little too far.


With youtube, tv, and facebook, we are all bound to run into some ridiculous advertisements at some point this season. Well, just yesterday I got my first round of advertisement while surfing youtube. It was one of those ads that doesn't have the "skip ad now" buttons. I'm sure you know what I mean.

Wow, Sears really got me with this one. If the ad would have been a movie preview (which at first I thought it was) I would have gone to see it.

Here's how it starts...

first, a female announcers voice says "due to weather all flights are canceled." Then two people say "what do you mean all flights are canceled?"

Next, these two people who have obviously been previously introduced end up sitting next to each other in the airport.... it continues.... "eddie?"..... "shannon?"...... "so what do you do?" .... well, I'm a blogger"..... that's the part that caught my attention..... "no way, I'm a blogger too!"...... and on it goes

it's a full blown airport love story until Eddie runs into (literally) a Sears refrigerator and then Sears hits you with the advertisement "you won't run into the top 10 appliance brands just anywhere"...

I thought, wow.... someone really got creative with advertising this year. :) Although this may sound a little phony, it happens to all of us.

It's a non-avoidable part of the holidays... except I tend to have a lot of fun with it.... I love to see what company got the craziest with their advertising and sometimes I laugh thinking about how much that company had to spend to shoot that 20 second video...

So that's one of my favorite parts of the holidays... crazy I know, but no crazier than the people in the ads... :)

check out this year's favorite:
Connecting Flights

oh... and be looking for another post soon... The top holiday commercials and advertisements for 2012


Happy Thanksgiving

How to find a job

Hey Guys,

sorry I haven't posted in a while. I just got a job! I know what you're thinking. "what? but all the news channels say there are no jobs."

I know, but I don't believe them:)

In fact, I just got an awesome job this week! I'll be writing articles for an online company but the owner is from australia. Sometimes I think to myself wow, things have come a long way...

To think that you can work for someone that lives on the other side of the world is pretty amazing right? I thought so. So I guess there are some jobs left.... just sayin.

While we're on the topic, check out my employers website at articlemarketingco.com

Here are a few ways to find a job (you have to look in the right places):

1 first you should ask yourself a few questions like

Do I like working outside or inside?
Am I good with numbers or critical/analytical reading assignments?
Do I prefer mental or physical work?

These will clear your thoughts and help you figure out what jobs you are most suited for.

2 Start searching. If you want something that is more flexible that can be worked from home or at certain hours, consider starting online. Type in things like at online jobs and see what pops up. Of course, I think Ebay is a great place to start if you have a knack for buying and selling for profit.

If you want something more local start asking friends, family, and previous employers if there is work available. If you want something physical and outdoors, talk to some yard service businesses.

3 Make a good impression. Apply. Return phone calls. Be on time for interviews. You know, all the basics.

4 Don't quit after you get one rejection. Keep looking.

That's all I can tell you. Pretty much.... if you want a job, get one. There are plenty of them out there. If you have bulldog tenacity you just might end up managing the leg or arm of a huge company.

The key is, as Winston Churchill put it:

Never, never, never give up!

Expand Your Education: On a $1 a day

Okay guys, so today I have to share with you the biggest and latest tip I've come across this week:

How would you like to "expand your education" on only a dollar a day?

The latest book I've been reading is How To Talk To Anyone by Leil Lowndes

This book is a must read! I absolutely love it. It gives you '92 little tricks for big success in relationships.' 

Whether you're a businessman or woman, a stay at home mom, or college hunk that wants to be the center of a conversation, this book is the trick. 

One of the tips found in this great read, is to listen to or read something that is happening right now before you walk out the door to meet with someone; whether it be an old friend, a potential client, or a new acquaintance. 

So this morning I went to the closest gas station and got my copy of USA Today. It was the last copy! I had gone to pick one up yesterday but was too late (tip: get there before 9:00am). Apparently, it really is the nation's most popular paper, its the only one that always gets sold out. 

Anyway, it only cost me a $1.07 (including tax). 

Now today whenever I need something to talk about, I'll have a load of topics up my sleeve. It's a good idea to switch it up too. Buy a local paper every now and then too so you can know what's going on in your own community. 

This is what I got from skimming over the paper for about 15 minutes:

(in the News section) "Women allowed into Marine infantry training as experiment."

(in the Money section) it reads "October known for spooky stuff on Wall St." 

(cover story) "what voters want in tonight's debate." 

USA Today has sports, news, money, and life sections which will keep you up to date on pretty much everything. 

So that's how you can expand your education on a dollar a day..... or you can always turn on the tv to the news channel.... if you have time. 

pretty cool, huh? 

Cheers America 

ready for the holidays?

Grab a free copy this weekend on how to fry a delicious turkey for the holidays
http://www.amazon.com/Fried-Turkey-turkey-steps-ebook/dp/B009I3V0JK/ref=la_B0094S5NOM_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1348935028&sr=1-3