I love fun putty. I really do. I loved it as a child and now I love it as an adult. I say this because there's currently a golden egg sitting on my desk and in that golden egg is golden sparkly fun putty. It first surfaced during the pirate themed scavenger hunt for promotional products  that happened a couple of weeks ago. Both Sarah and I had wanted the fun putty, but being members of the IT department, we didn't have time to look for golden eggs. We had content to develop and products to maintain! So we sat in the bungalow hoping that maybe we'd get our hands on some golden fun putty. And like magic, the fun putty was delivered to our desks when the scavenger hunt was over. (We'd made ourselves clear that we'd wanted some)

So now, I sit admiring my golden egg and all the joy it has brought me over the past two weeks. Talk about stress relief. Motivators has a huge variety of promotional stress relievers and I have a good portion of them around me at all times. I even have promotional rubber ducks, which I can squeeze in a pinch if I need to, but they make that squeaky sound and it's not usually the best thing to have going on in the office. But fun putty...

It's squeezable and snappable. And you can break it and then smoosh it back together. If you mold it between your fingers, it gets rid of tons of tension and it feels great. I never realized that fun putty could be such a great stress reliever. It'll stay with the promotional games and toys, because technically that's what it is. But I know the truth. That the promotional fun putty should be right up there with the Buddha stress reliever as one of the best tension relievers of all time.

Once the weather starts cooling down I cannot resist the warm, hearty, heavy comfort foods that come with the weather. It's finally not too hot to boil, bake, fry, and heat my favorite foods. Being that I am still a new cook I enjoy finding new recipes and adding them to my collection. Therefore I was VERY excited to see all of the Cook Books that are offered on the site. I think I will order the
Cookbooks: Joy of Cooking: 75th Anniversary Edition Item# 33214. 

Ok, I'm really not thinking sushi, but I found this promotion over at Ads of the World and had to blog about it, because I love sushi. Promotional decals designed with images of sushi were attached to escalator railing at a mall. The idea? Promote the sushi restaurant at the top of the escalator that specializes is conveyor belt sushi. For those of you that don't know conveyor belt sushi is actually a pretty neat little idea. You sit down in a booth and next to you there's a conveyor belt, and on the belt is, you guessed it, sushi! The sushi is on plates with clear covers, and unfortunately, it's not always labelled so you can't be sure of what you're eating. A variety of sushi goes by and you just take what you want. The plates are colored according to price, so at the end of the meal, your waiter simply counts the plates and adds up the total. Easiest process ever. Back in August, some of the IT ladies headed to Sakae Sushi in NYC to experience this conveyor belt sushi experience and it was extremely cool. In addition to having the sushi fly by on a conveyor belt, the ordering process is made even simpler because you just order off the computer that's at your table. I was actually there a couple of weeks ago and it was another awesome experience, especially considering that we stuffed ourselves full of sushi for only $28! I wondered when we first went to the restaurant what kind of cool promotional products could be used to promote something so unique. I love the idea of using an escalator railing to get the idea across. It's just the right medium to explain the process.

 

Thursday Night: 9/25

Survivor Gabon- Earth's Last Eden, CSI (CBS)

My Name is Earl, The Office, ER (NBC)

Ugly Betty, Grey's Anatomy (ABC)

Personally, I think that it's going to be a tough call between ABC and NBC tonight. Comedy night done right has some competition with the Ugly Betty and Grey's fans. Both Earl and The Office are boasting one hour season premieres, before the final season premiere of ER (thank goodness, the show jumped the shark when they killed off Lucy). But Ugly Betty and Grey's have some fans in this office (most specifically Carolina, who is super psyched for the season premiere of Grey's tonight). And I've been focused on so the general around the house type of promotional products that you could use to help get you through premiere week, I forgot all about logoed merchandise! Well, let me make up for that then.

Grey's fans can sip some hot cocoa tonight out of a Grey's Anatomy promotional mug, or if they fancy a stronger beverage, ABC.com is also selling Grey's Anatomyl beer steins.

Earl fans can enjoy a beverages as well with a My Name is Earl beverage set including promotional shot glasses and promotional bottle openers. 

And then you can get ready for bed in some ER promotional scrubs. Back in the day, I loved ER (more like I loved Noah Wyle) and I owned those. Awfully comfortable.

Speaking of promotional merchandise...New Kids on the Block didn't disappoint me at all last night! They had some interesting things for sale, most of it being promotional apparel. I caved and bought a tour t-shirt (how could I not? It's New Kids!) and I was happy to see that NKOTB was doing their part to help support the fight against breast cancer. They were selling promotional apparel, emblazoned with the pink ribbon because Danny Wood's mother died of the disease. I would have supported the cause if they'd had a promotional t-shirt with that on it, but their item of choice? Fitted tank tops. Personally, I think t-shirts would have been a better call. Regardless, the show rocked and I have to agree with our prep supervisior Kristen's sister, who said that it was the best concert she'd ever been to. Especially since one memorable piece of apparel made it back from the 80s. It wasn't Donnie's ripped jeans or Jonathan's loafers (which he always wore with white socks). Nope, it was something far better and definitely recognizable. In fact, even Sarah got excited when I showed her the picture this morning. Ladies and gentleman, I give to you...the return...of Joey Mac's smiley face jacket!

 

January is Poverty in America Awareness Month, but, given the state of our present economy I believe that now is just as good a time as any to bring up the topic.  The most recent annual report from the U.S. Census indicates that there are more then 37 million Americans who live in poverty and almost 46 million without health insurance.  We have heard much talk about the economy over the last few weeks highlighting the race for the presidency; however, what we are not hearing is the real problem in America concerning poverty.  Too many Americans have long felt the economic crunch that the media is only now beginning to discuss.  Consider, on average, the U.S. Census Bureau states that one out of every three Americans, 34.2 percent of all people in the United States, are officially classified as living in poverty at least 2 months out of the year.  But, it seems that poverty, rising inequality, and economic insecurity make poor copy compared with philandering politicians, corporate board room paranoia, and plain old greed.  Not so coincidently, the American Psychological Association (APA) says that one-third of Americans are living with extreme stress and nearly half, 48 percent, believe that their stress has increased over the last five years.  Money and work for three quarters of Americans is the leading cause of stress.  As one of those people whose stress has increased over the past five years I have come to discover different healthy ways to manage my stress.  I pray, read, listen to music, and spend time with my family and friends.  Since I have started working at Motivators I have also discovered stress relievers as a way to manage stress at work.  

Smiley Face Stress Reliever  

        

    

Wednesday Night 9/24:

The New Adventures of Old Christine, Gary Unmarried, Criminal Minds, CSI NY (CBS)

Knight Rider, America's Got Talent, Lipstick Jungle (NBC)

Bones,  Til Death, Do Not Disturb (Fox)

Dancing with the Stars (ABC)

It's Wednesday. It's hump day. And it's night three of National Stay at home week. Hopefully, those bag clips are keeping the potato chips extra crunchy and the promotional water bottles are making sure that you have everything you need for the ultimate snacking sessions during your favorite TV shows. Last night,  all the NCIS fans (you know the 16,999,999 of you that are not in this office) got a super awesome premiere and I was not disappointed. SVU though, not so much. I won't reveal plot lines, but Luke Perry is not the stellar super stud he once was. Kudos for him for not falling prey to the Hollywood standards of pumping up his face with poison to alievate the wrinkles, but a little Botox? It's like a wrinkly Dylan McKay with thinning hair.

Anywho, tonight you can all enjoy night three of Dancing with the Stars also known as crazy Cloris Leachman dropping the f-bomb and proving she's overly flexible. If you're looking for comedy, I'm sure CBS won't disappoint with their season and series premieres. Fox can be the backup for the comedy route. And over on NBC you can enjoy Knight Rider and think back to the days when David Hasselhoff was the one driving, also known as the good days.

I'm in the mood for a flashback of my own this evening and that's why I will be boycotting National Stay at Home Week Night #3 to go see the New Kids on the Block in concert. The day I've been waiting for since I was 7 is finally here. I'm sure I'll have the dirt on all the promotional products that they'll be selling there although I've already spoiled myself and found out that t-shirts are $45. Here's hoping for the t-shirt vendor in the parking lot!

I was speaking to a very nice customer on the phone this morning, and he asked me which sports bottle I recommended for the sporty, gym-goer. Automatically I thought of Leeds 19 oz. Nook Active Sport Bottle. Not only is it a sleek-looking water bottle, but you can also store your keys and other small items in this cool multi-functional item. It is just perfect! No more carrying keys or lose change in your pockets with the risk of them falling out when you are working out. Just throw everything into the compartment of this bottle and go!

Tuesday Night: 9/23

NCIS, The Mentalist, Without a Trace (CBS)

The Biggest Loser 6, Law and Order-SVU (NBC)

House, Fringe (Fox)

Opportunity Knocks, Dancing with the Stars (ABC)

So I've heard some wonderful things about the Heroes premiere last night and don't worry, I will not be spoiling any of you. And that's solely because I didn't watch it, so I have no idea what happened. I will tell you however that during the last five minutes of Chuck I uttered an explictative that will not be repeated here. It was good stuff. And I still love Barney on How I Met Your Mother. So last night's wonderful television premieres aside, we move on to tonight or as I like to call it the day I've been waiting for for months!

I love me some NCIS. And I've said this before. Back on May 22, I blogged about how distraught I was over the season finale because I thought with the break-up of the team, the producers were pulling another House. Of course, I love the internet and I found confirmation from the exec producer Shane Brennan that the team will be back together. However, it doesn't make it any easier to watch the promos with the song "Breakin' Up is Hard to Do" playing in the background. If anything, I'm on the edge of my seat waiting for 8 o'clock tonight. Seriously, ask Carolina and Sarah. I just squeaked I was so excited.

So, another dramatic night. I'm thinking that instead of promotional stress relievers, I'd choose some fun putty. I've got an egg full of it on my desk and it's actually quite good at relieving the stress. Additionally, I'm going to be watching Luke Perry and Christopher Meloni (thank you to whoever did that) on the season premiere of Law and Order SVU. It's always important to keep yourself well hydrated during these exciting premieres as well, and for the ladies out there when there's a bevy of attractive men on the television, it's easy to get a little parched. (Cough cough, Mark Harmon, Michael Weatherly, Sean Murray, Luke Perry Christopher Meloni). I reccommend promotional water bottles.

My reccomendations aside, happy national stay at home week night #2 to everyone! Enjoy the shows!

Ok, sorry for the lame Heroes reference, but I am ultra excited for the season premier tonight and the return of my favorite, Hiro Nakamura.  When I was at the grocery store yesterday packing my favorite reusable totes, the check out boy said "Oh sweet- save plastic bags, save the world!"  I couldn't help myself and started giggling uncontrollably, thinking of Hiro saying "Save the Cheerleader, Save the World".  And for a nice surprise, the grocery store started giving a three cents per bag discount off your order.  Sure, three cents doesn't seem like much, but add that to the landfill waste that you are saving, and you have two very good reasons to start using reusable grocery totes!   

 

ABC is now taking a page out of the Hallmark marketing guide. While Hallmark has been accused of making up holidays to sell cards, ABC is now making up awareness events. This morning, while driving to work I heard a commercial promoting National Stay at Home Week. Why is it National Stay at Home week? Two words answer that question: season premieres. Any and every television fan suffered mercessily last year at the hands of the writers strike. We were left without answers to questions from our favorite episodes, without follow-up on favorite plot lines and most importantly, without entertainment! So in honor of season premiere week, I've decided to get myself a checklist for all the promotional products one might need during premiere week. We'll start off with tonight. While it's definitely too late to order these items, it's a good list to keep track of. They'll come in just as handy during season finale week!

Monday Night: 9/22

The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, Two and a Half Men, Worst Week, CSI Miami (CBS)

Hereos,  (NBC)

Dancing With the Stars (ABC)

Kick off the week with some promotional stress relievers. These will come in handy all week long, as the season premieres of your favorite shows are usually jaw droppingly, edge of your seat exciting. Grab on to a promotional TV stress reliever and take hold, it's going to be a great ride. This is especially true for you Heroes fans, (several Motivators love the show). I, however, haven't gotten into it but I'm especially excited for How I Met Your Mother and Two and a Half Men. I do love me some Neil Patrick Harris. Also, another promotional product worth mentioning for the beginning of national Stay at Home Week is the chip clip. Promotional bag clips will keep those Tositos crispy for salsa all week long!

And just a little exciting note for all my Nerd Herders out there. While NBC is officially premiering the season opener of their hilarious spy comedy Chuck next week, (they're giving Heroes top billing this evening) in less than 2 hours (12 noon EST) the season premiere of Chuck will be steaming online at NBC's website. Kudos to NBC for not making the Chuck fans wait an entire week to see our favorite geek! Could there be anything greater than technology? I think not!