Facebook for Brides

One of my best friends, recently bit the bullet; after eight (!) years of dating, Liz and her boyfriend Nick, also a friend of mine, are engaged. This comes as no surprise to anyone who knows them... nearly a decade of dating pretty much solidifies the fact she was gonna have a ring on her finger soon. While my biggest concern right now is what color my bridesmaid dress will be, I know Liz, planner that she is, already has the wedding wheels churning. (Who am I kidding -- they've been churning since she was five.) Though I will not be using this site's services for a (long) while, I think WeddingPreParty has what it takes to make her wedding planning a little easier and a lot more fun -- so Liz, this one goes out to you.

WeddingPreParty was recently launched as a branch of OneWed, a wedding planning Web site. WeddingPreParty operates as a social media site -- heavy on interactivity and light on formality. The wedding party and guests can use this as a hub to share information, post photos and help the couple plan their wedding. Each wedding has its own login info, keeping the wedding details private. Facebook users are able to log into the site using their account, and a little help from Facebook Connect. Whatever they do on the wedding site can then be published back on Facebook, which puts the info in front of more of their friends -- hence the viral nature of the site.

A recent Mashable article suggests some great ways wedding parties can use the site: "Those who are invited to the wedding pre-party website can add comments, propose a toast, add wedding tips (useful if you’ve been through it before), and provide stark and truthful info on weddings (on top of that, the bride and groom can ask for inspiration for new ideas)." The bride can assign duties and their deadlines, as well as see a basic checklist every bride could use. Finally, the couple can easily link to their cheesy but necessary “how we met" stories, pictures and gift registry.

WeddingPreParty is the first of its kind, and for those looking for a little organizational help while maintaining a fun feel, this could be a huge hit. I'm looking forward to Nick and Liz using this site... but not nearly as much as I am looking forward to the wedding!

My Experience with LASIK

A little over two weeks ago, I finally received my college graduation present: LASIK (thanks Mom and Dad!). After over 10 years of dealing with glasses, contacts and the problems that come with both, I have 20/20 vision without any help. I never thought the day would come, and though the surgery itself was somewhat daunting, I am now its biggest proponent.

I got glasses at a young age, and with every doctor visit came another bump up in my prescription. When glasses became "uncool" I graduated to contacts, and at first I was pretty responsible with them. However, as the years progressed I became lazy -- to the point where I was only taking my contacts out once a month, and only to put in a new pair. Due to this I was once gifted with a corneal abrasion as a result of calcium deposits on the lenses, as well as wayyy too many bouts with pink eye. One might assume this led me to actually start taking care of my eyes, but that's giving me too much credit. Sure, my eyes would get dry, but other than these isolated incidents, I thought I was ok... until I visited a new optometrist early this year.

Right after shaking my hand, she asked if I have a habit of sleeping in my contacts. She said that just by looking at me, she could tell because of the redness in my sclera (the white part of the eye) -- it's due to a lack of oxygen, and it's also irreversible. I finally got the jolt I needed, and it was a couple months before my LASIK appointment. Go figure.

Flash forward to the procedure itself. After asking an obscene amount of questions (Can I just do one eye today, in case I go blind? What's your real track record?), I was given some form of a sedative and sent into the freezing cold "OR." A nurse came over to hold down my shaking feet, and the magic began. The following is my recollection, which may or may not be complete due to memory-inhibiting fear.

First, Dr. Probst used some type of metal contraption to open my eye as wide as possible. I was then told to focus on a blinking red light. Focus I did -- and I was greeted with the pleasant smell of my burning eye. Immediately after this came the loss of vision for about three seconds. This could have been my undoing; even though the doctor, sensing my terror, told me everything was going perfectly... I honestly thought I was done for. Thankfully, I was wrong. The process was repeated on my other eye before Probst told me to sit up and tell him the time. All of this was done in a span of about eight minutes, and for the first time since I was 12, I was able to see the clock -- I was floored.

It was really that simple. Aside from some slight discomfort (I mean, it's not every day your eye is stretched to its limit and zapped with a laser), there was no pain at all. Afterward I slipped on some protective eye coverings and slept the day away. Over the next couple days my vision continued to improve. Sure, my eyes were sensitive to light and needed some extra TLC that only eye drops could provide, but upkeep was surprisingly minimal.

Today, my vision is 20/20. I went from being legally blind (about a -7 in contacts) to having perfect vision, and it is nothing short of awesome. No more losing contacts in the shower. No more peeling them from my eyeball at the end of the day (ok, the end of the month). And no more paying out the gates for rewetting drops, lenses, saline solution and glasses. Yes LASIK is expensive, but so is the alternative. If you are contemplating this procedure, I say go for it. It's easy, it's painless and it's over before you know it. Oh, and it's pretty much life-changing.

Doctors to Consult Google Before Resuscitating?!

As far as search engines today, Google = God. Yes, Bing is picking up speed, but we all know Google is the mainstay for the majority of people doing a search. Google can do it all: alert you via e-mail, streamline your online purchasing, search the full text of US patents... and now it's even reaching into health records. Google's latest initiative? Google Health, which allows you to organize your medical records online. (I know a line should go between these two paragraphs, but stupid blogger won't let me!)

Given the generally unorganized state of health records today, this is one addition to the Google family I know some healthcare employees will appreciate. Users can upload documents to their Google health profile, then grant access to their caregiver. This means if there was a time you were unable to give permission for something and your family was unreachable, your doctor or nurse can login and quickly get your advance directive (aka end of life wishes).

However, how comfortable would YOU be with giving Google access to such information? Google promises confidentiality, and it goes without saying submitting these documents online is not the only way someone could obtain your records, but is this simply one more way to risk the privacy of such documents? Your two cents would be appreciated... I'm still working on wrapping my head around this one.

Image courtesy of http://www.atelier-us.com

MJ Died -- And Thanks to Burger King, So Did Subtlety

Image courtesy of http://gawker.com/5301856/burger-king-shuns-subtlety-in-ads-for-super-seven-incher-sandwich

The awe-struck woman with an open mouth... the large, oblong sandwich situated directly in front of that open mouth... ohh, and lest we forget the ever so creative use of the word "blow"? Hmm, I wonder what Burger King is hinting at here?

In case you can't read the fine print, there is also use tasteful use of "Fill your desire for something long, juicy and grilled," "yourn for more" and "mind-blowing." Those ad execs must have scoured the pages of Cosmo in order to get this verbage... and no, that's not a compliment.

Yes, this ad will definitely get people talking... but will it make us (read: women) want to order up a "seven-incher"? Hell nawwww.

Burger King, with this ad you have been officially dethroned.

Can't Find a Date? There is Hope...

Ahh, the perils of dating. It seems everyone has a great story to share about that date that just shoulda never happened -- mine involved the guy renting Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle and passing out on the couch about 15 minutes in. And wouldn't wake up. On the first date. Needless to say, it was also the last. Oh, and he wasn't tired, per se; he smoked himself to sleep... if you get my drift. I was not impressed. :)

If you don't have the fortune to have a story such as this in your arsenal, have no fear; I get the feeling you could gain one reallllll quickkkk if you employ the services of any of these sites. I decided it was time to unearth an oldie but a goodie with I came across this gem (I was reading articles on Mashable -- NOT looking for an online dating site, mind you!): The Most Unusual and Unique Online Dating Sites.



Stuff like this cracks me up... and after checking out some of these sites, I expect you to be laughing, too.



Darwin Dating: When you think of Darwin, you think of survival of the fittest right? Well if you feel the godforsaken need to register with this site, you better be fit -- and by fit, I mean hot. With the mantra "Online Dating Minus Ugly People," this site has some strict rules that include:

-no out of proportion noses
-no out of date fashions
-no uncared for fingernails
-no ski jump noses
-no small jaws (men)

And how about that "Are you Beautiful? Click here" button? Yes you might be beautiful, but you sure as heck are vain, too. It's called confidence in moderation, people!



Women Behind Bars: Because locked-up women need some lovin' too, this site was created to match incarcerated women with, well, free men and women. The inmates don't have access to the internet, so interested parties must find the lady of their dreams via a photo and a shirt description, pay a nominal fee and are then mailed a postal address.

As the site says (punctuation errors included), "A great many of these girls are looking to becomes brides, turning from an inmate to a bride is a dream a number of them express in letters they send with their applications." Touting 38 marriages in the past three years (but who knows when the copy was last updated!), this site is not messing around. I just love the photo they selected to be featured on the home page.



AgeMatch: If you're a young girl looking for a sugar daddy, a young man searching for a cougar or any variation of those dating preferences, hit up AgeMatch.com. Apparently age ain't nothing but a number is not applicable here -- it's the most imporant differentiator when finding a mate! The site itself is hugely outdated and pretty sparse... which is only fitting, if you think about it. ;)

ScientificMatch: If all else fails, how about using science to find love? This site will analyze your DNA to match your with likeminded individuals. And if you choose to go this route, check out some of the benefits, according to the site:

-Chances are increased that you’ll love the natural body fragrance of your matches.
-You have a greater chance of a more satisfying sex life.
-Couples tend to have higher rates of fertility.
-All other things being equal, couples have a greater chance of having healthier children with more robust immune systems.

Because that's what it's all about, right?

My Fave Google Logo Designs

Nothing like coming to your homepage to see Google decided to do something fun with its logo. Yes, the Internet powerhouse is currently in the hot seat with some designers who feel they deserve to be compensated for providing creative graphics such as these, but all controversy aside, check out the various way some designers flexed their design muscle -- all for our viewing pleasure. Happy Monday, ya'll.



Celebrating Veteran's Day
Image courtesy of http://www.google.com/holidaylogos.html


Election Day
http://www.google.com/holidaylogos.html


MLK, Jr. Day
http://www.google.com/holidaylogos.html


Dr. Seuss' birthday
http://www.google.com/holidaylogos.html


Paying homage to Sam Morse, inventor of Morse Code
http://www.seroundtable.com/archives/019887.html


Ode to the invention of the first laser
http://www.google-logos.com/page/3


125th Birthday of architect Walter Gropius
http://www.google-logos.com/page/3



Earth Day
http://www.google-logos.com/page/2

Lego Logo on Google's Germang Google page
http://www.google-logos.com/google-lego-logo-on-google-germany-page.html

Get In or Get Lost: New(ish) SoNet Sites

I think it's pretty much a given these days that social networking is an integral part of most marketing strategies. We definitely have our strategy down as far as how to use Facebook, Twitter, viral Web, etc. to reach target audiences, but staying current can be overwhelming -- there are new sites popping up constantly. The following are some I think are worth checking out (aka I did the hard work for you), as they really can add to your company's online presence.

1. Involver. I really think this company is on to something. Many of the apps are free (but I hear that might only be temporary), and they are cool. You can bulk up your company's FB page by adding things such as coupons, a carousel-style photo gallery, Power Point presentations and polls. Obviously their premium services offer more, but jumping on these apps while they are still complimentary can really make your page stand out -- and show others you are up on the latest and greatest. Us Weekly, American Apparel, Time magazine and numerous others have already jumped onboard. I just wish you could add these to personal profiles...

Photo courtesy of www.uxrefresh.com

2. Get Satisfaction. This site is a hub where both companies and customers can interact and get some action going. Customers voice their praises/concerns/complaints, while companies are given the opportunity to address them head-on and give a personalized approach to customer service. See what people really think about the services you provide -- then take the time to show you care.

3. BzzScapes. Another way to scope out what others are saying about your company is through this site. People congregate here simply to share info about their favorite brands. Whether it be through coupons, blog posts or simply comments, users know they can get updated info on the brands they love. Companies can harness the power of this site creating relationships with top influencers -- establishing the brand advocacy we all want.