Motor oil and mascara

How about some reflective, winged cuff grips for your favorite 2-wheeler? http://aplusrstore.com/

We go
A spirograph of flight http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ystkKXzt9Wk . Now imagine this as a the giant museum installation it is. Maybe a little William Orbit on the iPod. Ooooooo.

From Craftsman to Rimmel
Sears is adding beauty departments to their stores. (source: Instoremarketer, 12/8/09)

Buying indulgences
According to Iconoculture, we still crave indulgent purchases, but we need an excuse to make buying them ok. Whether it's good for the planet, will benefit the whole family, or provide water to villages in Sudan, there has to be more to it than just "me."

She's back
The Chiquita chica is reemerging after a 20-year sabbatical. But you can't beat the 1944 original.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFDOI24RRAE&feature=player_embedded . Hard to image a time when Americans didn't know what to do with bananas.

Food for promo
85% of women would rather win a $5K room makeover than $5K diamond earrings. Men would take the garage or deck improvement over a fancy watch (source: Iconoculture)

China is rebranding
"Made in China" has come to mean off-shoring of US jobs and "cheap crap" or, more recently, "cheap toxic crap," so the country has hired a Mad Ave PR firm to change that perception. The new concept is "Made with China," the notion being Chinese manufacturing makes it efficient to produce items that were designed or invented elsewhere. Globalization as hero. The campaign is targeted to US consumers, but also Chinese workers who aren't so sure what they make is worthwhile. (source: American Public Media Marketplace, 12/8/09)

Hit me
Terrance Watanabe clearly doesn't know when to fold ‘em. In 2007, he blew $127 million in Las Vegas. His losses accounted for nearly 6% of Harrah's total gambling revenue that year. Now he's suing, claiming workers at his favorite casinos gave him booze and pain pills to keep him playing. They're countersuing, saying he still owes them $16 million in IOUs. In case you're wondering, Wantanabe made all that money from Oriental Trading Co, a party favor and novelties import business in Omaha-plastic spider rings 144 for $4.99. After selling in 2000, he said he was going to devote himself to having fun. (source: Wall Street Journal, 12/5/09)

ROI?
What's the point of spending big bucks on celebrities if nobody can tell who they are? Even after finding out that Kate Beckinsale and Zooey Deschannel are the new Absolut girls, I still can't see them in these photos. (source: MediaPost, 12/8/09)
http://www.mediapost.com/media/?f=otlAbsolutTonicBeckinsale.jpg
http://www.mediapost.com/media/?f=otlAbsolutDeschannel.jpg

Make it stop!
I'm including this little number in an attempt to exorcise it from my brain. It's been pinging around up there for months. So freakin' sticky -- although it hasn't convinced me buy Pop Tarts yet. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_ZXtRGlegE

No Pop Tarts for you
Now available, a bathroom scale that auto-tweets. Weight, % fat, BMI -- it's out there for all to judge. (source: Iconoculture)

LoJack your kids
iCurfew iPhone app combines GPS and Google maps to show you where your little darlings (or at least their phones, if they're clever) are at all times.

Face up
82% of consumers believe that, to be successful, corporations of the future will need to show a more "human" face by caring about people (employees, customers, suppliers) and taking a more active role in community and social causes. 74% believe businesses bear as much responsibility as government for driving positive social change. Are you ready to face scrutiny? (source: Euro RSCG/Ad Age, 12/8/09)

$53 trillion
= The current combined net worth of all Americans (up slightly from last year)
= The total financial liability of the US government

Brown pedals for you
This holiday season, 45 UPS routes in northern CA are being covered by bike. It's not a green initiative, but a financial one. The move is expected to save UPS up to $50K in fuel and the cost of renting about 25 Budget trucks usually needed to handle the gift ordering rush. The bike-trailer set plus helmet and reflective vest runs about $700 each. You get to ride around all day AND get paid $10 per hour for it. This guy says he's become a local celebrity. People run out of their houses to take pictures with him. (source: Mercury News, 12/10)