Blog Marco

Michael Jordan - Failure Nike Advertisement - "I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."

Strange annoying advertising by Head On. What advertising agency commissioned this really annoying advertisement? But it is effective...

Original Head On Advertisement:

If you’re a fan of TV, especially Sci-Fi, you must watch Twilight Zone – the original series which ran from 1960 to 1964. The series, created by Rod Serling is a TV masterpiece with its unique storylines and plots. You would have been exposed to the magic of the Twilight Zone even if you’ve never watched the series as it has influenced and been referenced countless times in many sci-fi and mainstream shows and movies. The name itself is synonymous with the idea of weird and odd things happening to you.

The Twilight Zone formula works like this: unlike a sitcom with a running theme which continues every week, the show tells a strange tale every week. If you haven’t been watching, go look it up in YouTube or CBS which host full episodes for you to watch Twilight Zone online. Or you can go to your local library and borrow the DVDs. The show also had a movie released back in the 1980’s, had two revivals and a copy cat show called The Outer Limits. The guest stars in the show include a very young William Shatner, Robert Redford, Leonard Nimoy, Robert Duvall, Dennis Hopper, Burt Reynolds and many others you may recognize if you’ve watched TV shows like Bewitched, I dream of Jeanie or Batman.

Yes, most of us are guilty of doing this: SMS texting whilst driving. (Or updating FB status, tweeting) In the PSA (public Service Announcement) video above created by went Police Department in Wales, they wanted to create a viral video which was graphic and violent in nature to grab people's attention as to what could happen if things do go wrong.

Twilight Zone rocks! I was watching episode #91 "Little Girl Lost" (1962) and the story seemed very familiar. Why? The Simpsons parodied (or rather stole the plot line... much like how Family Guy rips off Simpsons). Little Girl Lost was parodied in Season 7 episode 6 (706), a segment of the annual Treehouse of Horror VI: Homer3. Homer does throw a reference to the Twilight Zone as he sticks his hand into the wall: "That's weird. It's like something out of that twilighty show about that zone." However, instead of recovering a lost girl in the 4th dimension, Homer (the 2D character) and later Bart fall into the 3rd dimension.

The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror VI: Homer3

Are we all addicts to the Internet? (link) Can Generation X, Y and Z survive without the internet? Generation X saw the dawn of the new computer age when they were kids and in their teens. Now most of their jobs are somehow connected to the internet. Generation Y saw the dawn on the internet age when dialup's came mainstream in the 1990's (remember Compuserve and those pesky AOL disc s and CDs?). They grew up on slow 14400 baud modems in their teens. Now with Generation Z, they know nothing else but computers and the internet. I watch my young cousins (aged below 3) jump on a browser, do a google search for their favourite games and start interacting. I was doing a survey the other day about my internet usage and I noticed that I seemed to tick all the boxes. I wondered if this was the case for most people? Are we all reliant on this massive electronic giant? What do you use the internet for?

• To spend time with friends or family
• To give me something to talk about
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Submitted by Marco on Fri, 21/08/2009 - 6:49pm.

I'm a big Sci-Fi fan. A follower of Stargate SG-1 and Atlantis as well as the whole reimagined Battlestar Galactica series. Ever since the latter finished, I've been looking for something sci-fi to watch - so I started watching the original Twilight Zone made back in the 1960s. I've been watching these for a month now and I'm up to episode 73 I think... Shot in classic black and white, most of the episodes have very original story lines. Every episode is a self-contained story about some strange occurrences which happen when someone steps into the Twilight Zone. There are a few episodes which have plots which are familiar - either they've been parodied on The Simpsons (or siilar show) or reworked into a film...

The episode below is really good. The Twilight Zone - Two: Season 3, Episode 1. Episode 066 (66) Original Air Date: 15 September 1961. It stars Charles Bronson as the Man and Elizabeth Montgomery as the Woman. Yes the woman who played the witch (Samantha Stephens) in Bewitched. And yes that guy from The Magnificent Seven.

Can't wait until this series actually gets started. I'm desperate for new Sci-Fi TV to watch! So much so I've restored to watching the original series of Twilight zone. Stargate Universe is scheduled to start in Fall 2009. October 2 on the Syfy (SciFi) Channel. 6 guys to 3 women ratio in the main cast ensemble, has there ever been a stargate series with a 1:1 ratio for men to women? Stargate Atlantis had 4:2 and Stargate SG-1 had 4 to 1 or 3 to 1 depending on how you count it. Hmmm...

I wonder if a drive by pickup is possible nowadays at Sydney Airport? Ever since the airport has been privatised and owned by Australian stock exchange listed Maquarie Airports (MAP), the airport has made changes to ensure its commercial viability. I remember the old days when you can walk from the customs departure area without having to be forced to walk through the duty free shop. Another major change is the Sydney airport parking. Even if you are picking up someone and staying under half an hour you are still slapped with a $7 fee. The old days with the free pickup zone is over - with the airport changing regulations back in 2006. You simply can't pickup someone at the Sydney airport T1 terminal without having to pay for parking... or can you?

Another alternative is to arrange a drive by pickup at the Sydney International airport departure level. The strategy of the game is this: you wait for your friend at a local airport, or at the nearby Krisy Kreme or McDonald's branch near the Domestic terminal. You wait for a call from your friend telling you that they are there waiting for the drive by pickup. Although nowadays you need to watch out for the "officers" who lay waiting to hand you a parking infringement notice if you attempt to do this: since there are signs posted everywhere that pickups are not allowed. The amusing thing is that there is an "NRMA member pickup" sign towards the start of the ramp. Similar tactic can be employed at the Melbourne Airport: park at the nearby Westfield Shopping Centre and wait for the pickup call.

Haha... just as I blog about the parking situation in Sydney, Fraser Short, a 33 year old millionaire, owner of Gazebo at Kings Cross and Cargo Bar and Bungalow8 at King Street Wharf (via Keystone Hospitality) has been charged with "unlawfully obtained goods". What does this got to do with free parking in Sydney? Well the alleged stolen goods is a stolen visitor's parking permit. There is a black market in Sydney for these permits which are available for Sydney City residents to provide to their friends and family. But some residents abuse the system by selling the free parking permits and then having them replaced by reporting them stolen. The alleged parking permit in possession by Short had been reported stolen five times since 2004.

Another way people have found to scam the parking system in Sydney is to "borrow" someone's disability pass. With this pass displayed prominently on their dashboard, they are eligible for free unlimited parking in the Sydney CBD.

Is Ghost World a chick flick? No. It's a film about chicks though. One in particular most men would know about: Scarlett Johansson. I'm not a real big fan of these sort of films. It's like Juno, where the film is told in the point of view of one of the characters, and just follows them like a documentary of their life. But its also one of those movies you don't really take at face value to fully appreciate the story and motives behind the writing. Anyway, I'm not going to review the film at all or spoil anything here besides saying that Ghost World worth watching.

There were news reports last week for an eBay listing selling the burial spot located above Marilyn Monroe. It took a while for me to find the actual eBay listing. Bidding started at $US500,000 and is now at US $2,500,000 with 7 bids. But here it is: (If you can't see the link go here)

Here is a once in a lifetime and into eternity opportunity to spend your eternal days directly above Marilyn Monroe. This crypt in the famous Westwood Cemetary in West Los Angeles currently occupied above Marilyn Monroe is being vacated so as to make room for a new resident. "Spending Eternity next to Marilyn Monroe is too sweet to pass up", recently quoted by Hugh Heffner, who has reserved his place in eternity next to her. The lucky bidder will be deeded a piece of real estate that he or she will make their last address. And below you will be Marilyn Monroe. In fact the person occupying the address right now is looking face down on her.

Looking at some SEO jobs in Sydney on Seek.com.au. These people earn quite a high income for what they do. I find the whole SEO industry quite interesting. The industry was started because finding things on a search engine is so important. Businesses take advantage if this so they can influence the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) and rank their business higher. But all SEO isn't good - there has been some high profile companies like BMW that was punished by Google because of bad practices. Also small businesses can find their business wiped out if their SERPs rankings fall. All this and more was written about in last weekend's Google Monster article.

The best value fast food in Sydney is the humble Vietnamese pork roll. Most Vietnamese bakeries sell these pork rolls all day which has a variety of ingredients. I first discovered this food while I was standing in a bus line in Cabramatta - the bus was delayed so I went across the road for a snack... from that afternoon on I would savour this cheap as food as one of my favourite snacks.

But watch out! Bad food handling with Vietnamese pork rolls can lead to food poisoning. You'll often see these people handling money and also making your roll without wearing gloves or washing their hands. Some also don't keep their ingredients cool enough so bacteria tends to grow like crazy in their ingredients. Don't expect hygiene standards to be high when you buy your roll.

Vietnamese Pork Roll Recipe

Here's the typical recipe for a tasty Vietnamese pork roll:

• Fresh Chille
• Crusty Bread Roll aka baguette
Sydney Cuisine | add new comment | read more »
Submitted by Marco on Mon, 17/08/2009 - 1:02pm.

Being frugal doesn't simple mean that you're a cheapskate. The frugal living lifestyle means using less of everything (for your own financial benefit, for the environment's benefit, for society's benefit). Less is more. Being frugal means planning your budget ahead of time. Anticipating what you need in future, saving up for that goal and not letting unexpected expenses wreck your budget. Simply loading up your credit card and not being able to pay off your expenses is a waste of money as the interest charges just leak your money away.

A frugal lifestyle means hunting for bargains. It's about planning your financial goals and your spending. It isn't all hard work - once you're changed your habits, it becomes second nature and none of this would seem like a chore - more like an enjoyable hunt to cut expenses to allocate the money to more worthwhile and enjoyable uses. Learning the difference between a need and a want - something you have to have to survive versus something you would like to have.