How Much Do You Really Want to Know?

Someone recently asked me the following question:

If you could know when and how you were going to die, would you want to know?

It's a great question, really. And I'm not sure I could answer it.

Part of me thinks it would be awesome to know. To sit around and think about how I'd spend the rest of my days. To plan for the final push. To prepare for the inevitable.

But then another part of me thinks that that would take the fun out of life. Because as much as I hate all the uncertainty and the unknown, it does manage to keep things interesting.

Bottom line; I hate not knowing. I hate uncertainty. But, at the same time, there are some things I'm not sure I want to know.
Thankfully, I don't have to make a decision on this one. Yet, at least.

Why Zig, When You Can Zig Zag

You've heard of Zig Zag rolling papers.
But what about Zig Zag wine?

It's out there.
No joke.

And the tag: "Growing the Good Stuff."

This takes flashy fun wine labels to new heights (no pun intended).
Seems there's no end to what these companies will do to woo a younger generation of wine drinkers.

Fashion Ads: Smart or Lazy?

Recently, I found myself working on a fashion brand.

The thought of saying something in a category that seems content with saying nothing was a little bit intimidating.

Which got me thinking: are these fashion companies saying more with less, or are they scared of saying something wrong?

It's no secret that fashion is design. And what better way to sell good design than to highlight it? Simply put, good design should speak for itself. Toss in a beautiful model or two, and you're good to go. Done and done. Just mail it in.

Beautiful people + beautiful design = beautiful ad. Right?

But what does this say about the brands? Us as consumers? I have to assume that this approach is working, given the fact that everybody's doing it. But wouldn't it be nice to see one that actually stands for something? Anything.

My partner and I did everything in our power to deliver on this idea. And while we wound up saying something, it was more of a celebration than a statement or point of difference.

Bottom line: I left the project just as confused as I was when I started it. Can anything smart be said about fashion?

The verdict is still out.

Elvis Doesn't Let a Little Thing Like Death Keep Him From Making a Killing

It's official: while Elvis may no longer be with us, he's still a very rich man.

Forbest announced today that Presley claimed the #1 spot on the magazine's annual list of top-earning dead celebrities.

In the past 12 months, the king's estate generated an astounding $49 mill from music royalties, DVDs, licensing deals and tourism at Graceland.

Others worth noting: John Lennon, Charles Schultz, George Harrison, Albert Einsten, Andy Warhol, Dr. Seuss, Tupac Shakur, Marilyn Monroe, Steve McQueen, James Brown, Bob Marley, and James Dean.

A whopping total of $232 million for the year, when combined.

Not bad for a bunch of dead dudes.

Recent Pics Have Some Screaming Sasquatch

It's furry and it walks on all fours. Everything beyond that is up for debate.

Rick Jacobs, a deer hunter in Pennsylvania, says he got these pics from a trigger-equipped camera he fastened to a tree in the Allegheny National Forest, just outside of Pittsburg.

Confused by what he saw, he apparently felt the need to contact the Bigfoot Research Organization (who knew?), which pursues reports of the legendary creature that some people believe lives in parts of the U.S. and Canada.

Paul Majeta, a representative of the bigfoot group, seems certain that the photographs capture a juevenille sasquatch.

But the folks at The Pennsylvania Game Commission have another theory: it's a bear with a sever case of mange. Something the commision claims to see all the time.

Look, I don't know what the hell to make of all this. I'm not even sure that I have a solid understanding of mange and it's affects on animals. But if that's a bear, that's messed up.

Happy camping!

Is Radiohead making it easier to buy music, or harder?

For those who don't know, Radiohead decided to take the record label out of the mix with their latest CD release.
That's right, they opted to sell digitial dowloads online via a website that they created themselves.

And that's not even the interesting part.
Even more bizarre, they asked fans visting the site to pay only what wanted to for it.

Music you can put a price on.
Now there's a new concept.

At first, I thought this was the coolest thing ever.
That is, however, until I visited the website.

The copy was mesmerizing.
The words taunted me to only pay what I wanted to pay.

And I paid nothing.

I didn't know how to respond.
Like most everyone else, I'm used to having these decisions made for me.
I'm in no position to decide what their music is worth.

Pay too little, I'm an underappreciative ass.
Too much, nothing more than a fool.

The problem: without knowing what everyone else was doing, I didn't know what "too little" or "too much" even was. I was paralyzed from even making the purchase.

Damn you, Radiohead!!!
I'm lost without the labels.

No, Seriously, Rock Out with Your Cock Out

This Backstreet-loving bird gives those two Asian dudes a run for their money...