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I get very excited over things, and I am one to announce to the world that these things play such a vital role in my life that I am not only amazed and astonished by them, but I truly can’t live without them.  Here’s something I love and why I love it.

Day 4: Planet Earth (TV Series)

When I was younger and was asked what I wanted to do when I grew up, the answer, for a long period, was become a zoologist.  I loved animals and thought the idea of playing with them, studying them and working to better understand them was incredibly fascinating.  Unfortunately, once I realized that part of being a zoologist meant dealing with sick and dying animals and not just cute and cuddly baby animals, I lost my interest and never really pursued it again.

The first time I saw Planet Earth all of those feelings came rushing back.  I spent about a full week watching all of the P.E. episodes on DVD my senior year in college after finishing the grueling task of writing my thesis.  I needed an escape and the DVDs, and David Attenborough’s soothing narration, did the trick.  I immediately rediscovered my passion for animals in their environment and the amazing evolution that exists around us.  Check out some of the birds in the first few minutes of “Jungles” and try and tell me that evolution isn’t real… It is absolutely mind blowing.

Recently P.E. has returned to my life weekly on the Discovery Channel, one of my favorite stations on TV.  (Note: If you’re looking for great TV check out their shows: Deadliest Catch, Dirty Jobs, Man Vs. Wild and of course their Shark Week coverage!)  But what makes P.E. more than just a National Geographic issue shown on TV, is the incredible cinematography mixed with extraordinary storytelling.  Some of the images that they capture are absolutely unreal.  For instance, to better understand, and share with the audience, how male penguins survive the freezing arctic winter, while protecting the egg with their child in it, filmmakers watched a group of emperor penguins for one full year.  And in the end, the footage and the story is amazing.

I think the show really helps shed light on the world in a new way.  And most importantly, they do it without being too political or preachy.  Even though there are scenes of stranded polar bears unable to make it across the semi-frozen ocean, you don’t feel like you are watching the WWF, wildlife, not wrestlers, commercials and feeling obligated to donate money.  They are educational but they are also entertaining, and they are beautiful to boot.

Now all of this is not to say that I am going to quit my day job and begin my quest of becoming a zoologist, but it is impressive and comforting to know there are still television stations out there that are informative and entertaining all in one, and that are truly inspirational.  For other great shows check out the Travel Channel, my boyfriend loves Samantha Brown’s whirlwind adventures, the History Channel, who doesn’t love the Modern Marvels series that covers all things from Disney to LSD, and the National Geographic Channel with my favorite show Locked Up Abroad.  I would say these shows, and a healthy dose of Sesame Street growing up, had a ton to do with how I think, what I think about, and what things I am excited to learn about!

I get very excited over things, and I am one to announce to the world that these things play such a vital role in my life that I am not only amazed and astonished by them, but I truly can’t live without them.  Here’s something I love and why I love it.

Day 3: Crystal Light Peach Tea

I am the first to admit when I have a problem.  And today I am openly admitting yet another one.  I am addicted to Crystal Light Peach Tea (CLPT).  I love it.  I have multiple glasses in one sitting and can drink it at all hours of the day.  It tastes good right after brushing teeth in the morning and its a great thing to sip when you wake up with a sore throat in the middle of the night.

Let me start at the beginning.  Growing up, there was always a pitcher of Crystal Light Iced Tea, NOT peach because my mother doesn’t like it, sitting in the refrigerator.  From about March until November, the “warm” months, the Brier family would have iced tea at home and out at every meal.  And still to this day do I enjoy a nice unsweetened iced tea while dining out.  And I also occasionally fill my tea quota with a delicious diet peach Snapple — yum.  But it wasn’t until recently, when I found out my fantastic boyfriend, Michael, had a complimentary obsession, that I fully appreciated the power of CLPT.

It’s just so great.  If made right, it never tastes powdery, it’s fairly healthy, only 5 calories per serving, and when served cold can’t  be beat with just about any meal.  And Crystal Light knows they have a good thing on their hands.  They now sell 6 pack cans, 3 pack original cans, and now Crystal Light to go where you can pour the perfect amount of CLPT into your bottle of water for a change in beverage.

But there’s a problem.  Even though CLPT is delicious and nutritious, like many addictions, this one too comes with a price.  At $5.99 for a 6 pack, which makes 3 pitchers, this habit becomes very expensive when both Michael and I can go through about 2 pitchers a day, on a work day — home only from about 6-11pm, and were going through about 3 or 4 when we were both home sick for a week and something similar when home hanging out on the weekends.  NOTE: You must put 2 pouches of tea into a gallon pitcher, it gives the perfect CLPT to water ratio and makes for a delightful iced tea experience.

You know you have a problem when you are willing to justify your problem, right?  Well that is definitely the case for Michael and me.  Recently we have been venturing off the island to purchase CLPT at Target, Wal-Mart and supermarkets outside of Manhattan where the price is lower.  If you can’t kick the habit, at least don’t let it bite into your savings and change your standard of living!

After being sick all of last week and literally not leaving my apartment, I had zero interest in looking presentable.  So, I was faced with quite a challenge yesterday and this morning with the daunting task of blow drying my hair.  While this is a daily occurence, I am usually not aware of just how long it takes, how detailed I am, and how monotonous it is to stand bent over with a blow dryer in one hand and the world’s largest round brush in the other…

(This isn’t the point of the story, but it is amazing what girls are willing to go through to look like they haven’t rolled out of bed — where guys on the other hand look cooler and hipper the dirtier they look!)

Anyway, while drying, I was suddenly very deep in thought about how I use my phone applications to check my favorite social networks and social media sites more then I check them online.  I tweet from my blackberry, respond to facebook invites, and check Yelp requests on my phone all the time, sometimes even while sitting at my desk — in front of a computer.  I am not the first to do this, and people have been talking about social networks in the celluar world for awhile, but I am not convinced the applications are at their best, and I’m not happy.

I started college at the height of the Facebook boom, and used to be mildly obsessed with it.  Now I am weening myself off, but I still think it has some very important features.  Birthdays and pictures are two elements missing from the application and it frustrates me to no end that I feel like I have to get on a computer every couple of days just to make sure I didn’t miss any birthdays and to check in with pictures — I know I can use the mobile site, but what’s the point if I already have an application?

Then there’s the lack of ease while using Twitterberry.  Other than DMs and @replies, the application doesn’t make adding URLs or pictures easy, and it certainly doesn’t have a hashtags, retweet or even a fully functioning follow/leave component.  And let’s not even get into the fact that there is no Yelp or friendfeed application designed for the blackberry!

While there are monetized options for using such sites on your phone, which may be very well worth the cost, I would think in the changing landscape that social media exists in, it would behoove networks to start rethinking their mobile presence and look to consumers for suggestions on how to better design their applications.  Or maybe it’s just me and I needed to rant!  And if that’s the case, and I do miss writing on your wall for your birthday, now you know why, and I’m sorry!  But if anyone out there is looking for some consultation for better social media applications, I am your girl and I’m here to chat!

I get very excited over things, and I am one to announce to the world that these things play such a vital role in my life that I am not only amazed and astonished by them, but I truly can’t live without them.  Here’s something I love and why I love it.

Day 2: Twitter

It was the summer after being abroad (Summer 2007) that I was first introduced to Twitter.  (Check out when you first got on twitter by checking My First Tweet)  My brother Noah had been in the marketing industry for a few years and prided himself on being on top of all the newest social media masterpieces.  At that point I was working at a PR firm and the idea was appealing, but Noah just twittered too much so I stopped receiving SMS updates and I slowly stopped using it all together.  While this wasn’t so long ago, I have recently gotten back into Twitter and it absolutely deserves to be on a list of things I can’t live without.

Twitter is now an industry buzz word.  Facebook used to be the place for companies to feel they were connecting with a younger generation, now Twitter is the place companies think they can authentically communicate with their consumers.  If you want to hear my take on Twitter as a marketing tool, feel free to email me but what I really love about Twitter is its all what you make of it.  Unlike on Facebook however, where you are constantly bombarded by photos, status updates, relationships and event invites from people you most likely don’t care about / don’t remember / wish you didn’t know, Twitter gives you the power to follow, and be followed, by whomever you’d like — I like controlling my own online destiny!  Don’t get me wrong, I think Facebook is great for what it is, but my obsession with Twitter far overrides my interest in Facebook…but that could just be me!

I think the real reason I love twitter is because I always wanted a scribe.  I wanted someone to follow me and my friends around and be able to document all of the ridiculous things we said and overheard.  Twitter is a great tool for this.  Now all I have to do when I say something absurd or I hear the most ridiculous movie quote is open up my twitter application on my blackberry, TwitterBerry, or my desktop application, TweetDeck, and share my experience with the world.  And if I want to include my friends or boyfriend in on what I am sharing on twitter, @replies are tiny little gems that connect a twitterer to a tweet sent by another twitterer!

A quick twitter lesson:
1. You send a tweet
2. DM (direct messages) are private message between twitter users
3. @replies tether a twitter user to another’s tweet
4. RT (retweet) allows a twitter user to repeat someone else’s previous tweet

It might sound complicated but you don’t have to be an expert to enjoy the twitter experience.  I follow people who interest me and I DM, RT and @reply people who spark something in me worth sharing.  It really is that simple.  And it really is that great!

I get very excited over things, and I am one to announce to the world that these things play such a vital role in my life that I am not only amazed and astonished by them, but I truly can’t live without them.  Here’s something I love and why I love it.

Day 1: My Blackberry

I have always been very connected to phones.  I remember in middle school, when my parents gave me my first cell phone, I would sneakily take it out and play snake as many times a day as possible — all while trying not to get caught by my social studies teacher!

Nowadays, the obsession is full blown.  My phone sits next to me at work, sleeps next to me at night and escorts me all day, everyday.  It really is my baby, and I truly cherish it.

All kidding aside, I think its incredible that I can be completely connected to everything and everyone all the time if I so choose.  I have all my favorite social networks’ applications on my phone, I have multiple email addresses (I currently have 4 seperate email mailboxes) and every single one of my friends who has a blackberry has my pin and I can directly message them.  This is hands down the greatest RIM invention, the most rewarding component of my blackberry and my absolute favorite way to communicate with people.  If you are one of the unlucky few without a blackberry, first I apologize that you are missing out on one of the greatest contributions to mankind, of all time, and second, let me explain what I am talking about.  Blackberry Messenger, or bbm as you will hear it referred to, is basically instant messaging between blackberries.  It’s the two-way pager function and it makes communicating simple, quick and fun.  The best part?  You can see when your message has been delivered to the recipient AND when they have read your message.  I should note here that this can cause some drama.  There is very specific bbm etiquette, such as, you NEVER read a message and don’t respond.  But what makes bbming such a pleasure is using something that allows you to send messages simply by pressing the enter key — simple things make all the difference!  And because all Blackberry aficionados are expert typers, bbm conversations can be very in-depth and done at nearly a phone conversation speed.

I am not one to hate on people who have iPhones, I just think they are slightly crazy, but not all smartphones are created equal.    In fact, when I first started dating my boyfriend he had an iPhone, and while it was cute that instead of texting he would actually call me, now that he has a blackberry we are ALWAYS connected to each other in some shape, fashion or form, and even he says he can’t believe he lived so long without one!  Also, I have to note that while I hate pretty much hate all providers, including my very own AT&T, because they don’t understand what customer service means, RIM is phenomenal at taking care of customers and problems with very little hassle.  In fact most times AT&T isn’t even allowed to take care of problems and has to transfer customers directly to RIM.

The bottom line?  Hello, my name is Leah and I am addicted to my blackerry….And damn proud of it!

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