Day: 15 October 2023

Weeknotes #38: race car backwards and machine guns

Week commencing Monday, 9 October 2023

Plane taking off over London Heathrow Terminal 5. There's a sunset in the background.
Dinner with a view of takeoff.

Quantified Self

  • This week: Stand 4/7; Exercise 2/7 and Move 4/7. (48%, I’m embarrassed ). Morning walks: 0/3 (days in the office don’t count). Office days 2/5. Total steps: 46,514

Life

  • Monday to the office. Is it Agency, Advertiser or Brand? Can you have déjà vu for déjà vu?
  • I’ve read a lot of discussion about an apostrophe in a Burger King ad this week. At least there is one, was my thinking. I needed Daring Fireball to explain and tell me Shift-Option-] is what I might need.
  • Tuesday, World Mental Health Day (mental health is a universal human right): a seminar at work reminded us that the little things can make a big difference. The effects of giving off good vibes can’t be underestimated.
  • Also, Tuesday, Keir Starmer announced plans for a publicly owned renewable energy company and new towns. Investing in infrastructure not killing it off seems a better way forward to me.
  • In a call with Mum and Dad, I was asked what does RACE CAR spell backwards? How come I’d never noticed that before?
  • Same call, we learned that, after the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, the Tommy gun gained notoriety with the mob. We also discussed violin cases and if it was used by the Italian mafia.
  • ITV: She has been at the heart of This Morning for the past 14 years, and she is adored by our viewers. Holly Willoughby has said she is quitting This Morning.
  • Kind of related, Diamond Geezer’s been to the location of all three Big Brother houses.
  • Saturday, I rode the pods again. Still a fun thing to do if you need to stay near Terminal 5.
  • Sunday, to Palermo. Early start for the plane. On time flight in spite a truck being parked behind the plane. Train into Palermo easy but the station sparse.

Media

  • As recommended in the mental health seminar, and recommended by me, Brené Brown: The power of vulnerability. Feeling connected is why we are here.
  • Roman Kemp’s Dad doesn’t have many friends, at least according to Roman in this Radio Times podcast

Archive

To save the links getting lost in the future I checked the Internet Archive to see what they had saved for the posts linked here. If the source above no longer works, these should.

Less Clutter On The Air

At last somebody in the commercial radio business has noted that one of biggest reasons to turn off isn’t poor music policy, crap jokes or bad station identity – it’s annoying and repetive radio commercials.

At last somebody in the commercial radio business has noted that one of biggest reasons to turn off isn’t poor music policy, crap jokes or bad station identity – it’s annoying and repetive radio commercials. Somebody in the UK should take on board the Clear Channel approach of trying to make better radio ads and brodcast fewer of them: “Radio is the most difficult medium because there are fewer senses to work with. For the most part, radio ads are a yawn” [source]. With online catching radio in terms of advertising spend (Britain’s Online advertising market will surpass the £500-million mark this year – Independent Online) radio’s revenues may be in for a rocky time. Inn the UK the Online industry may well surpass radio during the next 12 months so it’s important that the industry wakes up and does something to ensure that the recent history of growth and development can be sustained.

Shapes Made By Radio Waves

The Ministry Of Defence is interested in the technology that allows us all to be monitored by our mobile phones.

Well, according to a report in this weekend’s Observer newspaper, the Ministry Of Defence is interested in the technology that allows us all to be monitored by our mobile phones. Apparently, there are many positive uses of this ‘spy’ technology – following people on the move (walking or driving) and monitoring areas (nuclear power stations, roads etc.) when visibility is bad. Nobody seems to ask what happened if you loan you mobile ‘phone to somebody or (gasp) switch it off. Observer: How mobile phones let spies see our every move