Not For Nothing

A new website that will change my life.

not4nothing — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 21:15:48 +0000

StillTasty.com – find out when your food is bad

I’m sure I’m not alone in always wondering if certain foods are still safe to eat in my pantry and fridge. Obviously some foods, like vegetables and fruits are visibly rotten when they are no longer edible, but what about the ground ginger that has been there for more than a year, is that always fresh? Well according to this amazing new site, StillTasty.com, while dried herbs and spices may not spoil, they will loose potency and flavor after 2-3 years. The site contains alot of basics and general safe storage times, but also has a section where they answer users questions and it is enlightening. Did you know that you should never thaw frozen steak on the counter or in hot water because according to the USDA, this allows the outer layer of the food to sit between the bacteria-breeding temperatures of 40°F and 140°F? The best way to thaw is in the microwave, the fridge, or in cold water. It’s official…my life has already been changed forever.

The New Yankee Stadium — Brought to you by every corporate sponsor they could get.

not4nothing — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 02:41:21 +0000

I went to my first game at the new Yankee Stadium. Let me begin by saying that I am not happy about the new stadium, I thought it was a greedy move by the owners and it takes away the legacy, tradition and awe that surrounded the old stadium. It’s not the same field that the past legendary Yankees played on, so they probably shouldn’t have even bothered keeping the name Yankee Stadium. Which brings me to my point about brand sponsorship. Yankee Stadium is one of a handful of stadiums left that has not changed over to a sponsored name (like Shea Stadium’s recent chang to CitiField). I think this gives Yankee fans a sens of pride thinking their team doesn’t need to sellout to corporate sponsors. But, today sadly I found out it is just an illusion. Not only has the Yankee franchise sold out, they are selling it to everyone and anyone. The Yankees have branded everything in the stadium that was possible. I felt like I was in Vegas. Never mind the Mohegan Sun Sports Bar monstrosity that blocks the view of right field to half the bleacher seats, the Yankees now have an official corporate sponsor for every event in the game – the Geico home run, the Bank of America instant replay, the Best Buy match game. I know they always had sponsors for things in the old stadium, but it just seems so much more in your face now. Take a look at some of the branded baseball game:

The Best Buy match game

24 Fitness Fan Cam

Hess Timely Play Segment

Turkey Hill Ice Cream Birthday Shout outs

Zales Announcement Marquee

Although I must admit I was impressed with the new trash receptacles and the push for recycling the franchise is making.

New Yankee Recycling System

Copywriting for brochures is not the same as copywriting for a print ad.

not4nothing — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 21:27:18 +0000

There is a segment in a magazine called Direct Marketing called the Makeover Maven. The writer’s bio claims he was a creative director at one point, but the man is so copy obsessed it is ridiculous. Basically for each issue he takes an ad that he thought was ineffective and missed its target, adjusts the message and redesigns the ad — I use the term redesign loosely as his ad “makeovers” make me want to cry. Not only does he make the ad worse, but once he is done with it, it can no longer be called an advertisements. One could maybe call them advertorials, but mostly they are poorly laid out articles trying to sell a product. Some of his writing may fit very nicely into a brochure or direct mailing, but not a print ad. Print ads are designed to get readers to stop, think and most importantly remember. They need to break through the clutter with eye-catching visuals and strong composition. I don’t know about you, but if I saw an “ad” with 4 columns of copy, not only would I flip right by it, I may even rip it out and trash it because I was so annoyed. See for yourself some of the transformations below.

Generics vs. Brand-name drugs…it’s all marketing baby

not4nothing — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 03:05:35 +0000

“A new study has come out asserting that there is no scientific evidence that generic drugs are not as effective as brand name drugs. In fact, the study compares empirical findings to editorial findings and concludes…..” – JAMA, 2008

As they say, money talks and advertising pays for the magazines. So when a high rollin’ pharmaceutical advertiser threathens to pull out of a magazine if the article isn’t adjusted to better suit their image, chances are that the writers are told to slightly skew the perspective and language in the article. Just keep all this in mind when thinking about taking new prescriptions.

CNN has become a rodeo show

not4nothing — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 02:43:05 +0000

CNN Political Panel - Logo Overload

So what happened to CNN? It used to be a real news channel, one of the only reliable ones left. That has definitely changed. While some programs are still worthwhile and in general better than the local news at 11, it has become obvious the producers of CNN are ‘dumbing it down’ for more ratings. That or a bunch of “young” people came around thinking they were making some great changes. Let me tell you where you went wrong.

Logo Overload – During the 2008 election, every debate had a panel of CNN hosts (known to CNN as the most important political panel ever created) This panel all sat in a row, each with a laptop, each with a CNN logo affixed on the computer, and each drinking from a CNN branded coffee mug. That’s a lot of logos. Are viewers confused what they are watching? Oh wait maybe they should also look at the logos on the set backdrops and in the lower left hand corner of the picture.
CNN now has a news show hosted by a comic. That’s right, CNN, not comedy central, CNN. This is the most ridiculous ploy to get ratings up. I get it, without ratings, there are no ads, and without ads, no CNN. But you know what? You are a cable TV network and I pay a cable company to send me your channel. Stop doing standup and give me the news. If your programming gets awful, advertisers won’t bother with you anyway.
On the actual election day in November 2008, CNN managed to display that stupid giant touch screen computer every chance they got, even if there was nothing going on. Honestly, did the CNN producers not see the SNL “Magic Map” skit?
Another election day stunner was the debut of CNN’s new holographic technology. Umm ok, number one, this technology was already “debuted” in Star Wars in 1977. Congrats on being second to George Lucas, then again who isn’t? Number two, the cool thing about that technology is that it is 3D, and probably pretty cool in person. Well, newsflash…my television comes in 2D not 3D. Just something to keep in mind.

Bottom line CNN, get your act together. There was a point where your programming could have reached the quality level of BBC. Not so anymore. You are much below them. Some days I would rather turn on regular basic tv news, and they generally suck. So congratulations if you are trying to target the stupid, but how about keeping the standards high and helping to educate our nation, instead of just adding to the ruin?

Choosing the right seafood & sushi

not4nothing — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 00:08:53 +0000

Sustainable Seafood

There’s a great new organization, Blue Ocean, that has classified various fish types according to sustainability, mercury levels and other variables. Let’s take Albacore: canned or line- caught is bad, both for the environment and your health because of high mercury levels. While Albacore that is pole- or troll- caught is good and even gets the seal of approval.

There’s a guide for general seafood and another one for sushi.

They even provide a sushi etiquette guide. Here are some of the important sushi facts:

Sushi is a catchall term for 3 different types of options – sashimi is fish alone, sushi (nigiri sushi) is fish on top of loosely packed rice, maki are the sushi rolls, like spicy tuna roll…yumm.
Eat sushi with your hands and eat sashimi with chopsticks.
If you’re in a nicer sushi place, using excessive soy sauce or wasabi is an insult to the chef. You should be tasting the fish, not lathering it up with soy sauce. Try not to use any.
The ginger is a palate cleanser, use it between different fish.

How To Determine Your Daily Nutrition Facts

not4nothing — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 20:43:26 +0000

If you live in NYC you have noticed the calorie postings in most food establishments. It’s actually quite helpful. I’ve always considered myself relatively health conscious. I was aware that a Frappuccino is a more dessert than coffee, but even I was shocked to see that a yogurt parfait I get every now and then was 570 calories. That’s huge! Especially when you think you’re being ‘healthy’.

One can only hope this will change some people’s eating habits and help to fight the US obesity issue. But, if you would like to improve your nutrition on your own, here’s a website that helps you figure out the nutrition facts for any meal.

It’s relatively simple, and can help you get a complete picture of your meal, since calories aren’t the only thing that matters. You should know fat content, sodium, carbohydrates, and of course actual nutrients.

Using this tool, you can finally know everything about that turkey and swiss sandwich you make yourself for lunch. It even has facts pre-stored for many popular fast food places and chain restaurants.

The easiest way to get started is to use the general search tool at the top, but as you get more advanced, you can start entering in your own specific meals in the Custom Entry option. Here’s to your health!