It's Chicken Day!

A few weeks ago, Justin Bieber was asked what restaurant he would eat at if he could fly anywhere in the world. The teen star replied he wanted to have a quarter chicken dinner at Swiss Chalet in Canada.

Photo from TheStar.com

The timing of Bieber's quote couldn't have been better for Swiss Chalet and Rogers Cable. Starting tomorrow, Rogers customers will be treated to a 24-hour "fireplace channel"-esque Chicken Channel, featuring two spits of rotating Swiss Chalet Chicken. It will run for 13 weeks on channel 208.

This idea is the brainchild of BBDO Toronto and marks the first time a company has approached a cable company about having a channel devoted to their product. The channel will be largely unbranded, but a promotional code will occasionally pop up and direct watchers to Swiss Chalet's Facebook page to get a deal.

According to Swiss Chalet, the idea is to celebrate rotisserie chicken, the chicken Canadians love. According to me, the idea is brilliant PR. The news release and accompanying YouTube video have done all the work for Swiss Chalet. Every major newspaper has filed a story about it already and I'm sure it will be on the news tomorrow night. Swiss Chalet has garnered the attention of social media, too. People are talking, tweeting and blogging about the Chicken Channel. All Swiss Chalet has to do is show up with chicken on a spit on Monday and they're a winner.

I don't think people will watch all day for all 13 weeks of course, but who isn't going to tune in occasionally to see if they can get a deal? Who doesn't want Swiss Chalet? These are the feelings both companies are banking on, but it's only half the point- Swiss Chalet has done something new and different, got people's attention and got them talking. They will forever be remembered as the first company to try this, whatever the result and that is impressive.

I confess...

I'm enjoying Twitter.

I didn't expect this to happen. I never thought I would be in this position, but here I am. It wormed its way into my internet usage and I think I would actually be sad if I had to give it up.

Now, lest anyone think I have gone overboard on the Twitter Kool-Aid, let me clarify that I still think at least 90 per cent of Twitter is crap, but I realize that just puts it in line with the rest of the Internet.

Over the last two months, I truly have enjoyed the instant and generally random communication with my friends (especially the Tuxedo Mask conversation) and reading the random headlines they come up with (incidentally, I think that Twitter needs a "like" function, but I digress). Also, I've discovered I like posting my own thoughts in 140 characters or less. It's much more me than a blog post.

Photo from cnn.com

What really solidified my new opinion about Twitter, however, was this photo. This photo taught me there is meaning in social media.

I feel that following #Egypt and reporters like Ben Wedeman and Anderson Cooper while they were on the ground during the revolution in Egypt on Twitter connected me to the story in a way I had never experienced before. I knew what was really happening in real time, with no commercial breaks. No talking heads got in the way; it was just the news as people who were there saw it happening literally right before their eyes, all day, every day. 

In online PR class on Thursday, we were shown this CBC news report about how social media helps in times of crisis. Keith Boag sums up how it was used to help Haiti pretty nicely. The truth is, social media has connected us all on a whole new level, and, as the report shows, the possibilities are endless.

So, what's my point? I suppose it's simply that I am happy I get to be a part of it. It's a remarkable medium that has changed global communication permanently. It can simultaneously be frivolous, fun, powerful and revolutionary. That's quite the accomplishment for 140 characters.

My Life in Computers: Part Three, The Powerbook 180

Now this is old school.

My dad brought the Powerbook home from work in 1993. It had a black and white screen, a ball for a mouse and weighed about 7 lbs.

And, as a tribute to how well Apple builds electronics, I want everyone to know that it still works.

When I was a kid and we were up at the cottage in the summer, I would spend hours playing games on the Powerbook. My dad would say I was "dissipating my youth" and try to get me outside, but I was more interested in old Mac games like Solitaire, Oregon Trail and Stunt Copter. 

When I think about it, computers were so much fun right away, it's no wonder that almost 20 years later we want to be able to carry them around in our pockets 24/7.

What's truly remarkable is that even with the enormous leaps forward in technology, we're still playing the same games! Solitaire is ubiquitous, Oregon Trail was just released on Facebook and Stunt Copter is available for download through iTunes. I'm not sure if this means as a culture we need to grow up or if it means that entertainment was perfected in the early 90's, but either way, these little 1-bit games have shaped the way an entire generation sees entertainment.

I think the nostalgia factor of these games if fantastic. It makes my day knowing that that they're available in modern platforms. However, even though they're so much fun and so easy to play, and "Just one more level!" seems like a wonderful excuse, I will do my best to remember that my dad was right- it's still important to play outside.

My Life in Computers: Part Two, The Centris 610

It's funny what people remember.

The Centris 610 was my first real computer. I'll never forget the "Mac" sound it would make when it booted up and dissipating my youth playing classic games like Sim Farm, Sim City, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego, Civilization and Myst.

The Centris came home when I was nine and wasn't replaced until I was 16. In fact, it was still working up until 2008. It was the first computer I used to get online using a dial up modem that would inexplicably kick me off the internet every two hours.

When I told my sister I was going to blog about the Centris, her eyes lit up. She has very specific memories about this machine. She vividly remembers going to the Mac Store with our dad to buy it. They picked it up and brought it home. Our dad even let her pick out a game, "Annabel Dream Cat" as she remembers calling it. It was a huge deal. Now, many kids (in this country anyway) are born into homes with computers and, thanks to their proud parents, are on Facebook before they even open their eyes. Then, they grow up with hand-held games that have more processing power than was ever imaginable when the Centris was built. "Bringing the first computer home" just isn't a part of their life experience. Having a computer isn't a big deal. This isn't a complaint, I just like thinking about how far we've come.

I'm a fan of evolution and change and I don't think anything in my life has changed more than the technology I use on a daily basis. That said, if I could, I'd still be using the Centris to play Sim Farm.

Geographic Fandom

In honour of Green Bay's epic victory on Sunday, I decided to write a blog post about my love of sports. I don't actually play any since I am not a very co-ordinated person and I have a messed up knee. The truth is, about the closest I have ever gotten to playing competitively is wearing my "No, I don't play basketball" t-shirt. That said, I do enjoy watching pro and amateur sports.

Watching sporting events has always been a part of family life for us. Every year since before I was born, my aunt and uncle host a Grey Cup party and my family hosts a Super Bowl party. Everyone gets together and there is enough food to feed the entire NFL. These are really fond memories for me, especially from back when my cousins and I were little and would play running pad in the basement together all night.

What really got me interested in sports, however, was when I realized I could use watching the games to my advantage. I have always been a night owl and staying up past my bedtime was a nightly goal for me when I was a kid. One night, I sat with my dad and watched hockey with him. When he started to shuffle me off to bed, I asked a question about the game. That bought me at least half an hour.

It was brilliant. It didn't matter what sport he was watching, there was always something to ask about. "Why did they do that?" "What are the lines on the ice for?" "How come there are four (or three) downs?" The list was endless.

One night, I decided that it was time to pick sides. Toronto wasn't playing, so I asked my dad which team was geographically closest to Toronto to decide who would have my allegiance for the evening. This sparked many an interesting conversation, actually, since my dad had to try to figure out which team was closer to Toronto without the benefit of Google Maps. This carried on for several nights until once night, after my dad answered my question, I gleefully exclaimed, "Go Buffalo!

"No," was my dad's stern reply. "We do not cheer for Buffalo." Apparently there was more to being a fan than geography.

Over the years, I've created my own list of favourite teams in every major professional sport there is (and no, Buffalo teams don't make the cut). Even though I know geography isn't everything, Toronto teams will always have a special place in my heart. Even when they're terrible and it looks like there is no hope.

I'm still asking questions, too, like "Is the ref blind?!" or "Why did he swing at that?!" even though I don't get the answers I want anymore. The point is, though, for me watching games will always be about having fun with my family and friends, staying up too late and eating way too much.

What more could anyone ask for?

My Life in Computers: Part One, The Spelling Starter and an early PR lesson

My life has been changed by web 2.0. What started with signing up for Facebook has expanded to Twitter, TweetDeck and now to a blog.

All these changes started me wondering about how computers became such an integral part of my life. As I thought back, my first memory of working with a computer was my Fisher Price Spelling Starter. I was five and it was my absolute favourite toy. There were nine different activities that taught me to spell and I spent thousands of hours learning.

After at least two years of near-constant use, it finally broke. My mom, being the type of person she is, wrote Fisher Price a letter, thanking them for making such a great toy. A few weeks later, a new Spelling Starter was sitting on my doorstep. No charge. Our warranty long expired. No questions asked.

These days, getting a replacement product from some companies is like pulling teeth. If something is one day past the warranty expiration date, good luck to you. Now that I am a PR student, I have a greater appreciation of how impressive what Fisher Price did for me is. Sure, it was extremely small-scale, but my mom told everyone she knew back then about it. Had it happened in the age of mommy-bloggers today, I am sure the results would have been very positive for the company. My point is, thanks to school and this experience, I've learned that there's always an opportunity to build goodwill with your public that can have long-lasting results.

Plus, it really was a cool toy.

Next time: My Centris 610.