Caffeinate and care

Give a pint, get a pound
Blood for coffee til the end of the month. Some donor restrictions apply.
http://www.redcrossblood.org/news/nyp/american-red-cross-and-dunkin%E2%80%99-donuts-launch-%E2%80%9Cgive-pint-get-pound%E2%80%9D-campaign

Let's shop
42% of Americans are looking forward to spending freely again, but they're (59%) going to try not to go overboard this time. (source: Synovate/Quirk's, January 2010)

Misery loves soup
Campbell's uses a "misery index" algorithm to buy winter media. If it's unusually wet, cold, snowy, or just plain depressing in particular city, the radio airwaves will be filled with ads for warm, salty comfort. A 5% score triggers the blitz. Atlanta you've been nearly 20% miserable lately. Rochester, buck up, you've been doing fine. They're also tracking the flu. (source: Ad Age, 1/11/10)

The new food trends are here!
McCormick's 2010 forecast. Bitter, warm, and earthy -- high-impact flavor combos. Canned, pickled, frozen, and dried also hot -- keeping all flavor possibilities at your fingertips no matter the season. Meatless meals. Ethnic grilling. Integrity in ingredients and cooking techniques -- real food, cooked with respect.
Their top-10 flavor pairings:
- Roasted ginger & rhubarb
- Thai basil & watermelon
- Caraway & bitter greens
- Bay leaves & preserved lemon
- Almond & ale
- Turmeric & vine-ripened tomatoes
- Pumpkin pie spice & coconut milk
- Roasted cumin & chickpeas
- Creole mustard & shellfish
- Chives & fish sauces
(source: Gourmet Retailer, 1/7/10; photo: It's turmeric)

Put your left foot in
How do you convince people to buy your socks over your competitors' socks? Create a problem no one knew they had. Keen sells pairs with a left and a right. Not that long ago humans didn't realize they needed different shoes, so who knows, maybe it does matter. Oh, and they're marked L & R, that's how. http://www.keenfootwear.com/sox/

Your brain on 3D
You might want to hold off on that new 3D TV. Scientists at the U of Rochester, among others, are looking into the effects of watching the new technology, including severe headaches. (source: ABC News, 1/11/10)

Who needs the Super Bowl
Subaru will run at least 7 ads during Animal Planet's "Puppy Bowl." The spots feature shelter dogs in human situations like driving a car, and complement Subaru's sponsorship of the ASPCA and nearly 200 shelter adoption events held at dealerships. Don't laugh, the company's sales were up 15% in 2009. This is serious business. (source: Automotive News, 1/12/10)

Everybody on demand
Temping isn't just for file clerks and mall Santas anymore. Last year Kelly Services placed more than 100 high-income professionals, including lawyers and scientists, in interim jobs. One marketer was even temp CMO at both POM Wonderful and Godiva. Temp and contract employees, who now make up about 26% of the US workforce, have been found to have a higher risk of developing mental health problems like depression, no matter their income bracket. (source: Businessweek, 1/18/10)

Feelin' pretty
Hey Atlanta, you've got the smoothest feet in the country. You're number one for getting mani-pedis. (source: MRI)

Marketers' pet networks
Where media buyers, both clients and ad folk, plan to put more money in 2010: ESPN, Discovery Channel, TNT, TBS, Food Network, ESPN2, HGTV, Comedy Central, Bravo. (source: Mediaweek, 1/12/10)

Long-haired hippie types need not apply
Four-year-old Taylor Pugh of Mesquite, TX, has been suspended from pre-kindergarten because he likes to wear his hair long, sometimes in a ponytail. The school board's holding firm, and though he misses his friends, so is the boy. Rock on, Taylor. (source: Dallas Morning News)

I'm goin' mobile
Mobile phones will overtake PCs as the most common web access devices worldwide by 2013. Better get cracking on that network, AT&T. (source: Gartner/Media Post, 1/14/10, via Sarah. Tx, Sarah.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxoO5yrabfc Couldn't pass up a The Who opportunity.