I've been around, just not blogging for the past couple of weeks. I was doing so well there for a while. But I have just been too worn out at the end of the day to blog; or too busy doing other projects on weekends. I'm really fighting sleep as I write this, but it isn't even 9pm yet-too early to go to bed. I have been making a list of blog ideas, hopefully when it comes time to write them I'll remember what I wanted to say.
Tonight I'm going to just write about something kind of lighthearted. TV commercials. I know a lot of people change the channel as soon as the commercial comes on. That is not me. If my program is on at 8pm on ABC, I will stay on ABC for the entire duration of the program. The only exceptions are if there are two programs on at the same time that I desperately want to watch, or if we are under a severe weather watch. I watch the commercials. Or use that time to run into the kitchen and load the dishwasher, or fold the laundry in the dryer.
Some commercials are really annoying. The local Ford dealer has a commercial in which the announcer says 'specials' but pronounces it 'spesials'. There is another local one for a chat line, and part of the phone number is '444'. The woman speaking says 'Fo-Fo-Fo'. I scream at the tv every time I hear it (not sure who I think is listening to me...).
Some commercials are sad. I cannot watch the Pedigree commercials about shelter dogs, or the commercials with Sarah McLaughlin talking about animal abuse. Those break my heart, and I have to mute it and look away. Hallmark commercials around Christmas time always leave me weepy.
Sometimes commercials serve as a Public Relations tool. This spring, Toyota and BP both had commercials to mend their respective PR disasters. Both companies chose to spend a great deal of money to run a minute long commercial at the same time each night. Toyota's ran a couple of times a night-once during the five o'clock hour, and once during the six o'clock hour. The BP commercial ran at 6:54 each night. The commercials used the same format. Perhaps they even had the same PR firm. There was not a lot of flash or pretty scenery. Just a person, speaking, telling you how you could depend on the company. This person told you that Toyota took our safety seriously, and were working around the clock to fix the problems. Or the person told you that BP cared about the people of the Gulf and were working around the clock to cap the leaking oil well. I don't know if the commercials achieved the desired result. But they sure spent a lot of money trying to make us love them again.
There are a few commercials which I just love. The first is a Jeep commercial. It is similar to the Toyota PR commercial, in which they are trying to get us to love this car company again. A US car company that for years put out products inferior to those we could import from Asia; a company that the US taxpayers had to bail out. The Jeep commercial has a steady beat running through it, like a single drum beat. Or maybe it is to symbolize a heart beat. Steady and sure. One car company used to advertise they were the 'heartbeat of America'. Chevrolet? Maybe Jeep is trying to emulate those glory days. The commercial shows the Jeep doing Jeep things like off-roading through a forest and climbing steep inclines. It also shows the factory, and the workers putting the Jeeps together. It talks about what a great nation America is, how we were built by people doing things, and that we have always been a better nation when we took pride in things and built the best. While I don't want to run to the closest Jeep dealer, it stirs these very patriotic feelings in me. It draws on our national pride, and our heritage. I think it is a really well done commercial.
Another car commercial that I love is for the Kia Soul. At first when the commercials with the giant hamsters started airing, I thought they were odd. But they are very catchy! The one that airs a lot now has these hamsters who are rappers or something. They have the big saggy pants, hoodies (which, by the way, I hate, but that is perhaps another post), and the chains around their neck. Maybe they are thugs or gangstas. I don't know the proper terminology. Homeys? Anyway, these hamsters do a little rap type thing. ''You can go with this, or you can go with that. This or that". They sing this through the whole commercial. 'This' always refers to a Kia Soul. 'That' refers to less desirable modes of transportation- such as a toaster or a cardboard box. I love the little hamsters, and laugh every time I see the commercial.
The last commercial that I really love strikes a special memory for me. It is an Alka Seltzer commercial. The father is sitting at the table reading the paper, and his teenage daughter runs in shrieking in excitement. She tells her mother 'I got into one of the best schools in the country!'. On the screen it says "What he heard" and the scene replays, but this time, the girl screams "I got into one of the most expensive schools in the country!". When it was time for me to apply to colleges, I chose to apply to only three. I had been looking at colleges since Junior High, and had done tons of research on colleges. I chose to apply to SUNY Brockport- a state school I knew I would get in to, Hanover College- which became my Alma Mater, and Notre Dame- a long shot. Yes, THAT Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish, in South Bend, IN. Dad and I have always been huge Notre Dame fans. I decided to apply, not because I wanted to go there, but because I just wanted to see if I could get in. I had no desire to go to Notre Dame- it was too big for me. I knew I wanted a small school. When I told my parents what schools I was applying to, my father said 'Notre Dame?' He got very pale. I saw this look in his eyes, and all I can think of is when you watch cartoons and the character's eyes temporarily pop out of their head. I saw dollar signs rolling through Dad's eyes, like a slot machine. I told him I didn't intend to go there, I just wanted to see if I could do it. Dad kept stuttering, 'Well, honey, if you really want to go there, we'll find a way'. It took several minutes to convince him I did not want to go to Notre Dame.
Turns out, he didn't have to worry about it. I was headed to Indiana, but to the southeast corner, not the northwest. By the time I received the rejection letter from Notre Dame, I had already sent the necessary paperwork to Hanover to secure my spot in the class of 1998. The rejection letter was pretty comical. The letter said they were sorry, and hoped I would be able to overcome this setback in my life and go on to have a full, productive life. That may not be verbatim, but it was the message of the letter. I kept the letter, because it was so amusing. I'm sure I still have it somewhere. I have gotten past the rejection. And I think my life is full and productive, even if I do analyze commercials for fun.
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