Wow! I can't believe it's 2008 already. Last year sure flew by in a hurry and I'm so glad it's over. I'm not saying that it was a bad year for me, in fact, it was quite an eye opener and it was good to get back on my feet and be me again. But this year is going to be a HUGE year. Load is moving forward and we have some developments happening this quarter that are sure to inspire everyone around the office. Not to mention that YouLoad, our large file delivery service continues to gain momentum and we think YouLoad 3.0 isn't too far away. We're just looking forward to the next few months as we progress on the development side of the house and continue to grow the company.
How 'Bout them Patriots!
16-0! Unbelievable. Tom Brady breaks records. Randy Moss is resurrected and breaking records. Bill Belichick wins Coach of the Year. Man, what else can go right for Title Town? Well, don't get too excited just yet. If the weather is bad in Foxboro, things could get very interesting. I've been saying for 8 weeks now that the one team that I think could beat the Pats is the Jaguars. And now we'll see how accurate I am. I think the Pats are the best team I've ever seen (my girlfriend Amy will vouche for that) but I just think the running game of the Jags will give New England fits. So, of all the games I want to watch, it's Pats vs Jags baby!
Bowl Games, Bowl Games, Bowl Games
So much football and so many mediocre contests. I hardly watched any bowl games this year. Such a travesty! But the reality is, the college football was boring and the match ups this year were brutal. Except for the pounding that West Virgiina put on Oklahoma, nothing really surprised me. Oh, and about that Oklahoma team...are they the worst coached team in football when it comes to bowl games? Bob Stoops may be a nice guy, but he's horrible when it comes to getting his players ready. Four (4) straight BCS losses! Are you kidding me? And we're still calling him a great coach? If a salesman can't close the deal, he's not rewarded. If a guy hits on a woman at a bar and always leaves by himself, he's not a stud! So how can a guy that keeps losing be called one of the great college coaches? Quick quiz: Name the top 10 coaches in the NFL all time. My guess is you won't have Marv Levy on your list.
The Task Parrots
As the legend goes, the task parrot came out of a conversation about employees meeting timelines. We started getting a little ridiculous and sarcastic and said our employees needed something to yell at them constantly to keep them on task. We couldn't create mini versions of my ex-wife, so the next best thing was a parrot. Steve Reed, our resident Art Director drew a parrot on the board and it just stuck. So, as we thought about this year's Holiday Cartoon, we couldn't resist. Hope you enjoy 'The Task Parrots'.
4OVER.com Completely Sucks!
Recently, I placed an order for 10,000 flyers with 4OVER.com, a printing company that specializes in large print jobs. Being in Vegas, I'm certain they're used for all of the night club flyers and possibly the high-class to-your-room entertainment flyers that can be routinely found in the gutter on the strip.
Anyway, I gave 4OVER.com a job and they failed, big time. Now in all fairness, I did NOT give them a long lead time. Things were going to be tight and I knew it. So, to play it safe, I called and paid extra for overnight delivery. But it didn't matter. 4OVER.com emailed me 2 days before my event to inform me that the flyers were NOT going to be done because they had a printing problem. Well, I got on the phone with one of their managers and they emailed me a picture of the snafu. I didn't think the flyers were going to be an issue, so I said I would still pay for them at a discount. They seemed appreciative and assured me I would have the flyers in time.
So, you can imagine my surprise when the flyers didn't arrive as promised. When I called 4OVER.com to find out the status, I was put on hold and then told that the flyers were trashed and my order was cancelled. WHAT!@&$ There I sit, no flyers, and less than 24 hours before the event. Had I been given a warning or at least been told the truth, we might have been able to figure out a solution to this problem. Well, lucky me, at least their support person told me to "have a nice day" after she ripped my heart out. In the end, I got screwed and they didn't credit my card back. I'm still waiting to see the outcome of that billing problem. When I think of how much business I have personally referred to this company, I want to vomit. I DO NOT recommend doing business with this company. I'd say pay the extra $$$ and use someone like Print Runner.