Oland over Toler

I've been on a Charlie Chan movie kick for the last two weeks, watching literally a dozen of them in that time. I haven't seen any since I was a kid, and they were being shown every Sunday morning on WGN, in tandem with Abbott and Costello pictures and the Rathbone/Bruce Sherlock Holmes pictures. And I've discovered a strong preference for the original Chan, Warner Oland, over his replacement, Sydney Toler. As detective stories, the films are pretty standard and often predictable. But Oland is far more charming and, shall we say, joyfully devious than Toler. It's the charm that offsets how offensive the racial sterotypes are - and I'm not only speaking about Chan, because the charcter actor known as Stepinfetchit shows up in these films (in CHARLIE CHAN IN EGYPT he's called Snowshoes). Part of this is my obsession with the pop culture of the 1930s and 40s, from my unhealthy addiction to Swing music to the lost WB cartoons. But part of it is also my fondness for Law and Order-type shows, which is really what these were. As there was no tv, these types of shows were the familiar touchstones, the water-cooler conversations sparks. So, as cultural phenomena, as bizarre retro chic, as nostalgia, these films are my current joy.

Google Spring Training

Dennis Yu is CEO of BlitzLocal.com, a leader in local search engine marketing. He can be reached at dennis@blitzlocal.com if you have any questions. We went to the Google Spring Training together in San Fran and he was nice enough to write a guest post on what was covered. Hes done some crazy things with PPC campaigns, so Id take his advice. Paul, Larby, and I attended a spring training session for large advertisers at Google yesterday. Besides the free Google goodies, we learned some interesting facts and ways to grow our campaigns: 54% of all content revenue on the web comes from just 4 sites: MySpace, Yahoo, AOL, and YouTube. But these sites comprise only 22% of all pageviews. Niche site traffic is not only cheaper, but far more engaging to users and more likely to convert. 15 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute. In fact, based on searches, YouTube is the 2nd largest search engine in the US. Have you tried sponsored videos and overlays on YouTube? You cant buy it via AdWords and there are unique ways to target. For example, you could potentially target an artists video and show a ringtone ad for their name in an overlay. YouTube Insights will even tell you how engaged visitors are at each point within your video. 36% of searchers who see a display ad then did a search on line. In other words, if you are building a brand, using display and search in combination will lift sales. Further, using paid search to augment organic brand traffic on average drives 23% more visitors than using organic alone. Thus, there is measurable value to brand bidding. Googles Display Ad Builder will help you create static and flash ads in minutes easy and powerful if you dont have the money to hire professional designers to make ads in multiple formats. Try it! 30% of people who are watching TV are also on line at the same time. Use whats popular on TV to gauge what may be popular on-line, too you can ride that wave to your advantage. 193 million folks in the US are on line. Of these, 64% have broadband. The average American now spends 16 hours on line per week. Though the overall economy is hit like never before, 25% of companies say they are increasing their spend online, while only 13% say they will spend less on line now. The unspoken statistic how much did Google spend on this training event? They had free booze, food, shirts, books plus had on hand product managers from Google Local, YouTube Insights, Google Analytics, Google Classifieds, Search Insights, and other groups. If youre an affiliate, youll want to grow your knowledge beyond Affiliate Summit and Ad-Tech come to events such as these. Build your relationships with folks at the search engines, too as they can help you improve your campaign performance. I met other advertisers there who market health supplements, insurance, and online dating. What are you missing out by not being there?

Money, relationships, compromise - figuring it all out

Last night, on a lark, I decided I want to go out of town for a getaway this weekend. I thought itd be a good way to get some R&R and go on a little adventure. I bought up the idea to CB, who did not share my enthusiasm. Part of the reason is that I currently have more discretionary income than he does, and part of the reason is that I tend to do things more spur-of-the-moment than he does (but I still google for coupons, no matter how spur-of-the-moment! ). To be honest, I was disappointed. There goes the romantic weekend escape. I try to think about how I’d feel if the situation were reversed. Might I feel uncomfortable that my significant other offered to pay for the bulk of the vacation? Might I feel that the trip, on such a short notice, wasn’t well-thought out? I might, and CB probably does. The rule of personal finance is that you cant have everything you want, every time you want it. The rule of relationships is that you cant have everything you want, every time you want it. (Hey! They sound suspiciously alike&). So, Im trying to deal with this situation, well, in a constructive manner: acknowledge my disappointment, empathize with his situation, work out a suitable compromise that will be fun and budget-friendly, and then move on. After talking about it, we decided to go for a day trip instead. The good thing is that this weekend just got MUCH cheaper. Still traipsing around the beach. Still kayaking. Still having fun in the sun. Just minus the two nights of hotel and the additional food expenses. This little exchange just clarified what a messy topic money can be in relationships. And this is only one weekend that were navigating. How do people do it with much bigger decisions - Should one parent stay home? What sort of protection will the primary caregiver receive in exchange for giving up his/her earning ability? What house to buy? Which set of in-laws will get more help? How should inheritance be treated? Should there be a prenup? Whats a fair way to set up a prenup? So many questions. So many minefields! Share your experiences on money and relationships in the comments!

One Flake Remains

SnowflakeAll the snow has melted; only one flake remains. If you know how to scratch a cat chin, play with string, and toss crinkle-balls, and if you don't screech when you see His Fuzziness walk through the room or chase after him with heavy-footed glee, you'll have a friend.I've never had a part-Siamese cat before. His body build is different from the rest of our cats--he has a tall, lean look about him. His face is chiseled differently, too, with a distinctively-shaped muzzle. His claws cannot completely retract, so he cannot play with a soft paw (something very important to know when tantalizing him with a string). On the ends of each of his hairs is a small barb--which means the fur does not easily brush off of your Sunday-best clothing (or anything else...like the bedspread). I once read that the Siamese is half dog and half monkey--meaning he has the personality of worshiping you at your feet and never outgrowing the crazy kitty-like play. Yup. He wanders around the house, following me like a puppy. If I sit down, he often chooses my lap for his nap. My bed is his bed. Worship.And then the monkey side. Did I ever tell you that he fell into a deep depression when I stole his play mice? I found those brightly colored scraps of fur with tails in a puddle of tipped-over water dish while making may way through the dark one too many times. For whatever reason, he cannot remember that he has a mouse in his mouth when he wants a drink of water...and then, SPLASH! Mouse is floating in the water! And OF COURSE he has to go digging for it, tipping the water dish over and creating the perfect scene for mom to find as she walks through the house at night with bare feet. One night I plopped those little mice on the shelf to dry and forgot about them. His tail all but dragged on the floor. He stopped eating. He stopped purring. I took him to the vet, and we had no idea what was wrong with him. A few days later, I found his mice and dangled them in front of his nose. The tail went up. He pounced. He played. He purred. He skidded around on the floor chasing and leaping and LAUGHING as only a white Siamese can laugh. Oh, great cat. Your mice and crinkle balls are collected, replaced, and guarded with near-holy religiosity...And so. How do we put those two words together? Dog + Monkey...already have a do-nkey (well, we have two of them). Mong? Dogkey? or...Flake. Fits him well.

The other side of the news

Greetings. Below is a story I received from a guide dog related email list. Note that though the suspect of said crime appears to be a German Shepherd, the crime could have been committed by any high energy breed from any guide dog school. Enjoy.*** Seeing Eye Dog prime Suspect in Toy Slaying Virginia, April 10, 2009. The body of Mr. Toy Octopus was discovered yesterday in his Charlottesville home under suspicious circumstances. "[Mr. Octopus] was the least judgmental toy I ever knew," said Mr. Stuffed Lamb, a close friend of the deceased. "He welcomed everyone he met with at least two open arms." The cause of death remains unknown, but officials say evidence suggests homicide. The prime suspect is one Yani Gg. Shepherd, also ofCharlottesville. Ms. Shepherd, who works as a Seeing Eye dog for a law student at the university, was unavailable for comment. Glaze Y. Labrador, Shepherd's roommate and a retired guide herself, has another theory: "I firmly believe Mr. Octopus's demise was the unfortunate result of a botched squeakectomy," she stated in a press conference yesterday. "Yani is young, and squeakectomies can be messy in the best of circumstances." Shepherd, whose owner is not yet licensed to practice law, is seeking legal representation. "Normally, she'd have a hard time finding an attorney who would work for kibble," said the labrador-poodle mix of a local defense lawyer, who wished to remain anonymous. "But given the state of the economy, all bets are off." Meanwhile, the toys who knew Octopus continue to grieve. Perhaps they can find some small comfort in the knowledge that their friend's rattle and squeaker were recovered and are suitable for transplantation.

Asian Paradise Flycatcher

Domestic cats are excellent hunters, always stalking and in many cases catching garden birds. They may then present the caught bird to their owners, as if to repay them for the care and food. An earlier post details how a cat caught one of a pair of kingfisher. Mynas normally alert other birds whenever a cat is in my garden and we have also been told that cats are a definite no-no in Australia.There are many cases of cats killing birds but there are just as many cases of the birds being rescued by the owners, to be nursed back to health and then released. This is a case where the bird ultimately found freedom when the owners intervened.Teo Lee Wei has two cats in her house. Kitty the tortoise-shell cat and Meatball, the cat with the tuxedo suit and white socks (top). Well, in November 2006 Kitty (above) ran up very furtively to her bedroom with a strange bird in its mouth to be followed by Meatball.Lee Wei’s husband Kais ran after the cats and managed to prise the bird from Kitty's jaw and took it away. The bird was in deep shock but did not appear to have any injuries (above). It was placed in a bird cage and both of them nursed it for a day (below). They then locked up their two cats before setting the bird free, giving it ample time to make a getaway before releasing the cats again. The strange bird was later identified as the Asian Paradise-flycatcher (Terpsiphone paradisi).Input and images by Teo Lee Wei.

Best man is a bear

On the 28th, British "Daily Mail" reported , when the naturalist Kasi Anderson marry, his best man was a big grizzly bear of about 362 kilograms weight, "Brutus."