Wyszdom

Two things within the past 24 hours:

1. I had a vivid dream last night in which Canada invaded the United States, and I was somehow a big action hero.

2. I got really freaked out by something on the Internet. And I’ve been on the Internet a lot.

Replying to email threads from five years ago. I also just replied to a couple from my first week of work.

There must be something wrong with me.

Maybe it’s because I’m tired, maybe it’s because I’m bored, but I just wrote an essay for the first time since I was in college. And it’s not for work. It was for fun.

4’33” – A Reflective Essay [PDF]

Let’s say I’m searching for a local place to get a haircut. I find a bunch of results in my vicinity. Barber A and Barber B are the closest results. Barber A has a big fancy website as part of a chain, and includes a “store locator” feature which provides information about each location. The information provided is an address and phone number. Barber B has no website, but they’ve listed their operating hours on major local search services. All I needed to know was an address and whether or not they were open. I’m going to Barber B. It’s amazing how many stores don’t list their hours.

While I’m out, I also want to get my car serviced. Garage A has a phone number, which I can call to see if I can book an appointment today. Garage B has a website which lets me see when the next appointment is available, and schedule it online. I’m going to Garage B.

Finally, I plan on ending my evening at the movies. Theater A only sells tickets at the box office. It’s a new release so I’d have to arrive early in case it gets sold out. Theater B sells tickets online so I’ll know if it’s already sold out, but they charge a $1 “convenience fee” on top of the ticket price for online purchases. Theater C sells tickets online at the box office price for matinees, and for regular tickets charges $1 less to thank me for ordering in advance. Theater C also has nicer auditoriums because their staff spends more time cleaning than they do dealing with long ticket lines. I’m going to Theater C.

Sometimes it’s a small investment (filling out store hours) and sometimes it’s a little more work (an online scheduling or commerce system), but in both cases, those who gave me the information and/or convenience I wanted got my (hypothetical, but based on true events) business. You may not be a technology company, but remember that people of my age or lifestyle won’t look for you in the newspaper, and we won’t call you either.

A few people have been asking me lately where they can get one of the “Wysz” shirts that I occasionally wear. I only have one of them, and I ordered it from CafePress for a Halloween costume. Since it sounds like some of you were actually serious about buying a shirt, I’m putting it up for sale publicly. And for Dan, I’m also offering a hoodie version.

While we were talking about shirts, Matt came up with an idea for a shirt that could be used to add a disclaimer to everyday statements made by employees of any company. Here it is:

And finally, a shirt suggested by my cousin years ago is finally a reality. Well, it will be if you order one:

I recently wrote about my sister winning an award at Marist’s Silver Needle Fashion Show. I have some more info, and even a video, again provided by my mom.

First, the story behind the black and white dress (picture above by my mom). I jokingly asked upon seeing it, “So is this what everyone will be wearing in 5 years?” The reason for the unusual design is the criteria for the project. It had to be black and white, with a comedy/tragedy theme. There also had to be a non-fabric element. In Sara’s case, the theme is Barnum & Bailey, and the non-fabric element is the use of hula hoops. Oh, and this also explains why it looks like a circus tent.

Here’s a video of the winning collection:

And why did I have a dream that I could moonwalk?