It's Spring in New England

It was such a great weekend, temperature-wise, in New England that I actually saw my first recreational cyclist yesterday. Now, I've seen folks riding to work and guys that look like they are seriously training or something, all winter. I've even seen a few kids riding to school. But, you usually don't see plain ole recreational cyclists in the middle of winter here (I'd know this because I am one).

Yesterday, I saw the first! I was so excited, it made me think that maybe I should get out my bike and see what needs to be done to it before Spring really gets here. I'm so glad that guy was out there as I drove by - gives me hope that Spring is right around the corner.

Today, I saw at least 10 motorcycles go by my house, too. All kinds and colors. Another sign of spring.

Ok, I know, just like anyone else who lives in or has lived in New England, that we can still get a blizzard. Oh yes, not just snow, but an honest to goodness blizzard. But, for now, I'm enjoying my little slice of spring in New England. And...better yet, I'm thinking about my bicycle....

Just a little spring tidbit from New England. Thanks for stopping by.

Why I Blog - The Kick I Needed

So, the last month has been hectic, to say the least. Two trade shows in two different countries, an entire website needed to be written in a week - yes, a week - and the flu made an appearance during the middle of it all. Craziness, I tell you. No energy to blog after all that, especially during the flu gremlin. But, there is always someone who will kick you in the pants and make you get moving again, right? That would be New York Times Jackson (aka The Masi Guy). Truth be told, it usually is and I appreciate him for that.

I see that he's tagged me with the newest meme, "5 Reasons Why I Blog". I feel so 'in', which is too funny. But, before I start, I suggest that you read Tim's reasons. He's always a pleasurable read.

So...why do I blog (when I can find the time, that is...).....

1. Learning. I started to blog so that I could learn all about this phenomenon called 'blogging'. I wanted to learn the ins and outs and try to be a 'cool kid'. Ok, so I'm not so much of a cool kid even over a year later, but I am still learning. Even when I'm not writing, I'm reading and learning. This has been a great educational experience for me both professionally and personally.

2. Collaboration. I've met some super intelligent folks through this blog and had the good fortune of collaborating with some of them. Lee took a huge leap of faith last year and, shortly after 'meeting' me, asked me to edit a piece of his work. Going back to reason one...I learned so much from reading his work and collaborating with him - it was a complete pleasure. I've also collaborated with Tim Grahl and a host of others that I met through blogging. It's very rewarding and highly flattering. Selfishly, I hope this trend continues.

3. Conversations. I love to get to know people, hear their ideas and discuss them - even if they differ with mine - heck, especially if they differ from mine. This blog gives me another way to converse with people. The conversations that have been started here with some topics have been great fun and stimulating. Some have moved to other blogs and continued along their merry way there with additional input. I love that.

4. 'Meeting' You! So many people have come by in the last year plus and left a comment - people I have similar interests with, yet never would have met without this blog. That would be you - yes, you! I get a big 'ole grin on my face when someone new leaves a comment on a post about NASCAR (hey, how about Juan Pablo Montoya this weekend?!) or about the Tour DAY France. Someone I don't know - someone who was reading all along - someone who has similar interests and then just pops off a little comment. I really enjoy that. Keep 'em coming.

5. Having a voice. Anyone who has met me in person knows I, absolutely, have a voice! But, I mean here, in the blogosphere and in this ever changing marketing world we live in. I have a place to voice my opinions about a variety of topics and, hopefully, spark a conversation that I can learn from. I hope that I don't use this space to pontificate - I'd hate that and I try to stay away from that, but I do enjoy having a space for my voice. Thank you for indulging me.

So, there you have it. 5 reasons why I blog - maybe not as often as I'd like, but I do when I can.

And now I tag..... Tim Grahl - because, if you don't know Tim through blogging, you will in the not-so-distant-future. He's got so much going on over in his 'neighborhood'.
Rich Kelly - I know he's getting ready to go to the Bike Summit, but I like to encourage his blogging because he has good things to say....
Mike Wagner - one of those intelligent folks I've had the pleasure to 'meet' through blogging and he always, always, always teaches me something.
Jake McKee - Big in Japan honcho and one smart cookie!

Just some tidbits for tonight. Thanks for continuing to stop by after so long!

No Floyd Landis in Le Tour This Year

Breaking Cycling News.....

Reuters is reporting that "Landis will not take part in the Tour de France". There is quite an article with full quotes from Floyd. Check it out.

Speedy tidbit for this morning. Thanks for stopping by.

Racing Tidbit

No, not cycling this time....

The countdown has begun....

Only 10 days until the Daytona 500 and the start of the NASCAR season!

NASCAR has even debuted a new website with an even more robust news section. Check it out.

Just a speedy tidbit this morning. Thanks for stopping by.

New Music Video

So, what do you do, in the dead of winter, if you are a famous custom motorcycle builder? Do you stay in and create more beautiful machines? Sure, but you also take time out to shoot music videos. Well, you do if you are Dave Perewitz.

Last month Dave went down to be part of the new Hank Williams, Jr. video. It's all edited now and playing on CMT. If you aren't a CMT watcher, you can catch it on everyone's favorite video site, YouTube, of course. It's "A Country Boy Can Survive" and it's a good one. Check it out.

Just a little music tidbit for you. Thanks for stopping by.

Hamilton on Landis

Yes, Tyler believes Floyd, too.

"I never rode with Floyd on the same team, but

I know him a little bit from our time together

in Spain," he said. "I don't believe he would do something

like that and I believe him when he says he's innocent."

It's great to see shots like this - it's been a long time coming. Thanks to cyclingnews.com for the great photos of Tyler's return for those of us who wish we could be there in person. This is the next best thing. More racing tomorrow!

Just another cycling tidbit. Thanks for stopping by.

On to Etoile de Besseges

It's so good to see photos like this again. Tyler Hamilton, in full racing gear, getting ready to race in Europe again.

Velonews reports that Tyler finished in the pack during his first race in two years yesterday. I'm sure he's glad that is over and done with and now he can get back to a stage race. Coincidentally, Etoile de Besseges is a five day race that starts today.

Allez, Allez, Tyler! It's good to have you back in the thick of things. Wish I could be there.

Just a little tidbit for this morning. Thanks for stopping by.

Welcome Back, Tyler!

Today marks the return to the peloton of Tyler Hamilton! He'll be racing in the Grand Prix d'Ouverture-La Marseillaise today, which is seen as the opening of the racing season. The Daily Peloton has a good preview and a list of the Tinkoff Team, which is listed as:

Tinkoff Credit System (RUS) : 111. Daniele Contrini (ITA), 112. Tyler Hamilton (USA), 113. Evgeny Petrov (RUS), 114. Mikhail Ignatiev (RUS), 115. Nikolai Trussov (RUS), 116. Ricardo Serrano (ESP), 117. Vasil Kyryenka (BLR), 118. Alexander Serov (RUS)

For me, it's great to see Tyler's name back on a racing entry list. It's exactly where he belongs.

Welcome back, my friend, and good luck today! Allez, Allez, Allez!

Just a tiny racing tidbit for today. Thanks for stopping by.

Which Ad Was Your Favorite?

If you are in the US, you probably watch the Superbowl, or at least parts of it last night. For someone who wasn't that interested in the game (me), I watched for the ads...as I do most every year. It's always fun to see where major advertisers think trends are going. I even do my own rankings and then look at USA Today's ad meter the next day to see if the rest of the country thinks like me.

This year we think similarly, but not exactly. This year there was one ad that stood out, by far, over and above the others for me. It was Blockbuster's rabbit that uses a real mouse to try to order his movies online. It was priceless! We were mimicking it throughout the evening even, which is part of what the advertisers want. Of course they, ultimately, want you to use their product but it's always good when people remember the commercial the next day, too.

We also had Budweiser's 'crab' ad in our top three. Turns out the rest of America liked it, too, as the ad meter has that at number 1. It was cute and I think people liked cute fun this year as opposed to slapstick. It was also the year of Time Magazine's person of the year - 'You' in the commercials. There were some regular 'ole folks that created ads this year in contests and whatnot. The Doritos ad in the first quarter was a contest winner that cost $12 to make (the cost of the bags of Doritos). Although it was somewhat risky, it turns out the brand made a very good choice - it ranked 4th overall.

You can view all the ads here, if you'd like to see them for yourself. I also liked the Taco Bell lions, the Budweiser stray dog, the auction wedding and the Coca-Cola black history month ad.

See what you think and let us know.

Just a quick tidbit on this chilly New England morning. Thanks for stopping by.

Any publicity is good publicity? I'm not sure about that in Boston today.

No matter who we are, we've all made a mistake in our lives. Some are bigger than others. If you are in PR/Marketing/Communications I'm sure you've said or done something during a launch or campaign or interview that you wished you hadn't done. You know you have. Seemed like a good idea at the time, but when it came down to it, it just didn't fly right.

Most times you can let the dud ideas just float away, never to be heard from again. It's a little harder now with the blogosphere, but even still, sometimes not great ideas just fizzle and go away.

I will bet that the people at Turner Broadcasting are wishing that their latest outdoor marketing campaign would just fizzle to the ground. But, when you, inadvertantly, succeed in closing the major highway and a river running through a city (Boston) because the local and state police have reports of bombs on bridges, well, it isn't going to fizzle away any time soon. (Note: bloggers had the story first, and photos....)

It's too bad that we need to live in a time where a silly Mooninite thinggie is seen as a threat, but when you are a marketing company putting 'angry looking' things on and under bridges these days, with electronic boards and LED lights no less, you run a big risk.

After the bomb squad went around today in a city that was in a little panic, Turner Network came out with this statement (copied from Boston.com):

The ''packages'' in question are magnetic lights that pose no danger.

They are part of an outdoor marketing campaign in 10 cities

in support of Adult Swim’s animated television show Aqua Teen

Hunger Force. They have been in place for two to three weeks

in Boston, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Seattle,

Portland, Austin, San Francisco, and Philadelphia. Parent

company Turner Broadcasting is in contact with local and

federal law enforcement on the exact locations of the billboards.

We regret that they were mistakenly thought to pose any danger.

Shirley Powell SVP, Corporate Communications

Our new governor and the mayor of the city are not amused. Somehow I don't think that the police or the Coast Guard are amused either. And the folks who were stuck in traffic for 4 hours due to the highway being closed and those during the evening commute who couldn't get to points of the city do to road closures - well, they aren't amused either. I have to think that the officials in the 9 other cities aren't too amused right about now either.

Will this make people go search for this show and see what it is about on the internet? And will the added exposure be exactly what the marketing folks wanted? I just don't know...the 'jury' might be out on that one until they see if they are going to have any bills or fines to pay.

This will certainly go down as one of those marketing ideas that just didn't go the way the marketing team wanted, I'm sure. Woops!

Just a little tidbit for today. Thanks for stopping by.

And....She's Back

There's been a lot going on in the last couple of weeks.

What have I been doing with some of my time besides being glued to the Barrett-Jackson auction on Speed for a weekend? Getting ready for trade shows, trade shows, trade shows. Yes, three in a row - all in February. This weekend is the Boston Motorcycle Show - consumer show at the Bay Side Expo. If you are into motorcycles and live in the area, c'mon by and visit the Perewitz booth. They'll have a full display of their wonderful motorcycles.

Next up....Dealer Expo in Indianapolis over the long weekend. This is a dealer/distributor show. Three days of connecting with our distributor reps and dealers. It's always a lot of fun; great crowd. We have a good gathering on that Sunday, too, as we have a flat screen in the booth and people can come watch the Great American Race with us and Dave Perewitz. You know the race I'm talkin' about....

Then it's off to England for a week for a bicycle dealer show put on by our great distributor in the UK. February will be a whirlwind for sure.

Now for some other tidbits....

The Spokesmen put up another podcast last week. Although we missed our buddy Tim (because he was in Asia on a business trip), the show sparked a good conversation about how to help make bike commuting more of a reality. Listen to the show and then share your ideas with us. We'd love to hear them all.

Although many of you are way, way ahead of me, I've recently discovered LinkedIn. So far, it seems to be a great networking tool and it's free. Yes, free. I've already re-connected with some folks that I hadn't heard from in awhile so it seems to work fairly well. Most of the 'smart cookies' listed to the right are on it so you know it is good. Check it out.

My friend Lee Hopkins, he of the fabulous communications blog, has written such a great recommendation for me on LinkedIn (that's part of it, too) that I was blushing. Thanks, Lee. You really shouldn't have....but I feel lucky that you did. It means a lot.

Tyler Hamilton is baaaaack and set to race next week, I believe. He's racing for the newly formed Tinkoff team. It will be great to see Tyler back in the peloton. Got to get my Tinkoff gear....

Speaking of cycling....during last year's Tour Day France, we had fun daily reports from Cubbie Reporter. Well, Cubbie had a big birthday this past weekend where she 'reset at zero'. Happy Birthday, my friend!

Lastly, but certainly not least....I got some great news today. A friend of mine has landed a new gig and it is a perfect fit for him and for the company. Don't you just love when that happens? I met Chris Fallon through my current job - he not only the most truly passionate bike person, but also one of the most knowledge about bikes and the sport AND, best yet, he can teach that knowledge to others and loves to do it. I learned more in 10 minutes from Chris than anyone else when I first started in the industry - ok, that 10 minutes turned into an hour and a half (right, Chris?!), but it was well worth every second!. He is a purist and just loves the sport and enjoys being out on his bike and getting others out on their bike.

Anyway, I got an email today that a lucky company has snatched him up to be a "Sales Shepherd". What a great title! He's working for Earth, Wind and Rider. What's that? I asked the same question so I went to their site. Turns out they make wool cycling jerseys and apparel. If you haven't heard of them yet, you will now! This appears to be a perfect fit (no pun intended, but if it works..hey..so be it...). Congratulations EWNR and Chris!

And, no, I wouldn't conclude without saying that the Great American Race is only 18 days away (counter here). We're talking Daytona here, people! NASCAR, back live again...I can't wait! Betcha all know who I'm picking to win, again, this year. Here's a hint...this is the car he drove to victory in Daytona during one of his three February wins....

Just random thoughts and tidbits for my return. Thanks for being patient and for stopping by.

Thank you!

Birthdays are no longer that fun, but this one wasn't as painful as it could have been thanks to my family, a lot of good friends (old and new) and all of you. Thanks to all of your for your good wishes - even those commanded to do so by New York Times Jackson.

Thank you all. May you all have as wonderful wishes on your birthdays as I did on mine.

Thanks for stopping by.

Happy New Year!

To each of you who stop by and read my opinions and views and to those of you who I call friends, even though we've never met....my wish for each of you is that 2007 is kinder to you than the last year and that it is filled with good health and fun adventures along the way. Happy New Year!

Happy Long Weekend!

"Happy Long Weekend" seems to be the most politically correct way to wish you all a nice, relaxing time this weekend. No matter what religion you practice, I hope this weekend is filled with the family you love, good friends, stimulating conversation and yummy food. After all, that is what the whole season should be about - starting with Hannukah and going right through the New Year!

To those of you celebrating on the 25th -- Happy Christmas!

Just a tiny pre-holiday tidbit. Thanks for stopping by.

Ikea, Masi and Spokesmen

Here are a few tidbits for a chilly New England morning: Ikea appears to be one heck of a green company this year. BikeBiz is reporting that Ikea UK gave away 9,000 folding bikes to its employees this week. In addition to that, they were given 15% off their travel tickets to increase use of public transportation. That's pretty dang cool. It's a great gift for both the person and their health as well as the health of the environment. Not to mention, if the person can commute to work on their bike it will help alleviate some traffic, which is good for everyone's mental health!

Last week I had the pleasure of joining The Spokesmen podcast, which is up for everyone to listen to. As I mentioned, it is a great group of folks talking about all things cycling related. I'm flattered that the guys have voted in this gal and look forward to many more chats with the group.

This episode the Spokesmen (or maybe now the 'Spokespeople'?) discussed topics that we felt were hot in 2006 - cycling related, of course. I chose to discuss how many more companies are now embracing new media including dealers, manufacturers and even the traditional media themselves. As we all know, one of the best examples of this is Masi Bicycles. Long before he was "New York Times Jackson", their brand manager was, simply, "The MasiGuy".

Now, Masiguy is running a video contest. Talk about using the 'new media'! This is great! What started as a spoof of his 'Daily Drive' photo feature by Tim Grahl and then Fritz got into the act with his video. Not to be out done, Phil took the spoof down under to Austrailia and added his video to the mix. Check them out, they are pretty funny.

Well, Tim liked the videos so much that he's running this great contest. Make a video of your daily drive, post it on YouTube and let him know where to find it by the end of January. If he and the other viewers (yes, you get to vote, too!) like your video best you'll win a sweet Masi frame. How cool is that? Check out his announcement for all the details.

Get in on the contest - the prize is fantastic. Our own Cubbie has made a video already so it's 'Game On'! Good luck.

Just some random cycling tidbits for today. Thanks for stopping by.

This one's for you Tara!

The thing I like most about the holidays is, inevitably, you hear from someone that you didn't expect to each year. Be it in a card, or a phone call, email and now via blogs. It's always fun to see who it will be each year.

With schedules being what they are, mine being hectic and not being able to keep up with my favorite bloggers as much as I'd like and her starting a company at such a fast pace I don't know how she does it, I haven't kept up with Tara Hunt as much as I'd like. Well, this week she let me know that somewhere along the line I've popped into her brain, she wanted to let me know and wants to know a little bit more about me. She's tagged me so I've got to come up with 5 things you all don't know about me.

And away we go....

1. I love popcorn.
2. My favorite NASCAR driver is Jeff Gordon.
3. I'm not a big fan of cartoons.
4. My favorite author is Dennis Lehane.
5. Rotties are my favorite dog.

Tara, thanks for the unexpected surprise! Happy Holidays to you and your family.

Just a little meme tidbit for today. Thanks for stopping by.

Time Magazine's Person of the Year. Me! And You!

Time Magazine's person of the year has been named and it is all of us! In an article written by Lev Grossman, Time talks about YouTube, Second Life, Wikipedia, MySpace and everything else that creates the online community.

"...for seizing the reins of the global media, for founding and framing

the new digital democracy, for working for nothing and beating

the pros at their own game, TIME's Person of the Year for 2006 is you."

This week on the Bulldog Reporter Audio panel that I participated in we discussed how to get across to management at companies, be it your own or a client, that blogging and new media in general is as significant as it is. Well, I think this appointment by Time will go a long way to showing some of the folks that may still not be aware of the power of new media just what it is all about.

"It's a story about community and collaboration on a scale

never seen before. It's about the cosmic compendium of

knowledge Wikipedia and the million-channel people's network

YouTube and the online metropolis MySpace. It's about the

many wresting power from the few and helping one

another for nothing and how that will not only change

the world, but also change the way the world changes. "

What a great choice, Time. Bravo!

And bravo to everyone who has made this happen, including YOU!

Just a little tidbit for us all today. Thanks for stopping by.

What does a Bulldog Conference and a Cycling Podcast Have In Common??

At the end of this week two things are going to happen that have me very flattered - and give you the opportunity to hear a few things, "straight from the horses mouth", as they say. Whether that is good or bad is up to you to decide.

The first happens Thursday when I'm on a Bulldog Reporter Audio Conference panel. The conference is: "Responding to Crisis Online: Communicators at Top Brands Share Proven Tactics for Responding to Negative Bloggers." I'll be joined on the panel by Bob Pearson, Vice President at Dell and Billy Sanez, Media Spokesperson at American Airlines. These folks have had their share of crisis in the blogosphere, too. I'm just as interested in what they have to say, and learning from them, as our listeners will be, I'm sure.

The moderator is none other than Brian Pittman who is the person behind the popular 'Daily Dog'. We've chatted and emailed a few times in the last week or so. He's fun and energetic to talk to so I think he'll make sure we move along and give listeners some good tips from our experiences. I'm looking forward to it. If you'd like to join us there is still time to sign up on their website.

The second happens on Friday. For a month or so now a group of folks have been asking me to join their podcast but my schedule didn't allow. However, this week they changed their schedule to accommodate me (no pressure there!) so I am very proud to announce that I'll be joining The Spokesmen Podcast this week for their final broadcast of the year. This group consists of David Bernstein of the famed The Fredcast, Carlton Reid editor of BikeBiz, Tim Grahl of Crooked Cog Network, Jeremy from Triathlon Radio and, of course, my good friend, "New York Times"Jackson from Masiguy.

We are going to talk about the stories that were big news in cycling in 2006. We've each chosen a topic, will introduce it and see where the group takes it. As we've discussed many times here, I'm not a bike 'geek' so my topic won't be completely bike related. Check it out to see what we've all chosen. I think David usually goes live with the podcast a day or so after we record. I'm looking forward to joining the guys and they have been super kind about inviting me to join them every time they record, but I wonder how they'll truly feel when a gal invades them? Join us and see!

So, there you have it. I may have been 'quiet' on the blog for a couple of weeks, but there's no stopping me now, right?

Just a couple of tidbits for today. Thanks for stopping by.

Time to say "thank you"

No matter what holiday you choose to celebrate, or not, this month in business this is a traditional time to say, 'thank you' to customers, partners and associates. It's the end of a long year and it's a nice time to thank your customers for their patronage - without them your business wouldn't survive. It's nice to thank your vendors and associates, too. Without them, you can't service your customers well. It doesn't have to be much - a card, an email even, a sale or coupon, or maybe just a simple, "thank you, we truly appreciate your business" when you see them. It depends on the type of business you have, what your budgets are and who your clients and vendors are - and, of course, with big corporations, what the laws are.

However, to stay ahead of the competition you need to find ways to stand out to customers. Sometimes it is good to not be traditional and stand apart from the crowd. Your gesture will be remembered far longer and stand out rather than be jumbled in with the crowd. In the last year I've been very fortunate to recieve two huge "thank yous" that completely blew me away. Neither have come in the last month, but both will be remembered and treasured forever.

Last winter I received a letter from the Falmouth Road Race directors. It mentioned that the race was building a 'park' at the finish line with some benches and a brick path. It was something to remind folks at other times of the year that something special happens at that spot each and every August. It is also a place where people can sit and enjoy the ocean view. People could buy bricks and put their names on them or a little message for everyone to see. However, the race directors decided to add some of their own bricks in there for key, long time race workers. The letter was informing me that I would have a brick, too, come May. Wow.

This summer I took a trip with my mother to go see my brick. Here is what we found.

This is a view of the whole 'park'. Great view, huh? This photo was taken at the finish line of the race. It's a great place to be.

This is 'my brick'. Yes, I share it with some other key volunteers, but it is completely fitting that I share it with the Smiths as they are long-time, close friends. Sue is my mentor, she taught me all of the foundations that I needed to work in the business I'm in and be successful at it. She's also the person who brought me into the Falmouth family the first year - 15 years ago.

The second huge "thank you" came in September when I got a call from Dave Perewitz asking me what I was doing that coming Saturday. He asked if I'd come to their shop because he wanted to show me something. In the last year Dave and his family have truly made me feel like part of their family so it would take something very important for me to turn down such a simple request from Dave.

I had no idea what to expect - maybe he had a 'special guest' coming by that he wanted me to meet (you never know who you will run into a Dave's) or maybe he was building a super special motorcycle that he wanted to give me a sneak peek at before it went out the door. No matter what I thought it couldn't prepare me for what was waiting for me. When I arrived at the shop I was completely surprised to be presented with my very own custom painted, flamed (!) trashcan. Yes, I have my very own Perewitz paint job! Holy Moly!

This can is a one-of-a-kind and can not be bought anywhere. No, not just because it has my name on it....Dave doesn't sell these, he only makes them as gifts and as items for charity auctions. Here was my very own. I couldn't believe my eyes. Why did Dave give it to me? Because they wanted to thank me for all the help I'd given them with their charity events, which I gladly did because the beneficiary of all was the National MS Society - an organization that is near and dear to both our hearts. And, let's face it, getting the NASCAR driver signatures for the helmet for the auction wasn't exactly a 'chore'! But, Dave wanted to say 'thanks', in his own special way. Again, WOW! And, by the way, you know I don't use this for trash, right?

Both of these gifts are grand in scale and I am humbled by them. But, the point I was making is that sometimes you don't have to be traditional to make an impact with your 'thank you'. And, your 'thank you' doesn't have to be huge in scale, although, to me, both of these are. They are memorable gifts because of what they are but also the timing - they were given at no particular time of year. The Falmouth directors didn't thank me at the end of the year - if I'm not mistaken, the letter came in February. Random time, but wonderful - a touch of summer in February in New England (brr!). That in and of itself is priceless! Dave didn't thank me at the end of the year, either, rather at a random time, when I least expected it.

Take a note from these folks - sure, feel free to say 'thank you' now, but also think about how you may thank your customers and associates at a different time of year, when they are truly going to remember it, away from the hustle and bustle of the holidays. Maybe a take on the 'Christmas in July' theme or something equally as non-traditional. Think outside the box, or can, as the case may be.

Just a random tidbit for today and THANK YOU for stopping by.

Where have you been?

Yikes! I've heard that more than once in the last couple of weeks. I didn't mean to abandon the blog, but sometimes it just happens. It stared with a 24-hour flu, which turned into a week and a half cold - neither of which inspired me to blog. I did, however, get addicted to CSI: Miami since there was a marathon on one of the weekends I was out of it with the cold. I started thinking it was hokey (I love the original CSI and have a friend who works on the show, but David Caruso kind of annoyed me), but it was either that or football, football, football. I'm sorry to my football loving friends (you know who you are), but I needed something else. Well, Mr. Caruso and his team grew on me. I'm now addicted. If any of you are interested, they are playing an episode a night on A&E now. It's perfect for us addicts. Hey...there are worse things in life to be attached to, right?

Anywho....I've come across a few things in the last couple of days that made me smile and I wanted to share them with you. First, is the online holiday card from Specialized. I'm normally a traditionalist when it comes to the holiday cards - mail them, please. But this is just fascinating. It's "The Nutcracker Suite" performed on bicycle parts. I'm not kidding. Check it out.

The other thing that I've come across gave me a smile so big I thought my cheeks were going to crack. It started with a Google Alert for "Tyler Hamilton" with the Cyclingnews.com article, "Tyler Hamilton Meets His New Tinkoff Teammates". I clicked on it and found this photo. Rock on, Tyler!

Just a little tidbit for today. Thanks for stopping by.