It is a new year.
Category: Observations Page 5 of 89
I saw this tweet recently and it reminded me of a curiosity I’ve had for ages. Why do companies pay money to put their names on stadiums? Is it to remind us they exist? Do they hope for some goodwill between going to see basketball and buying office supplies (and now Crypto?)
The current home of the Washington Capitals and Washington Bullets/Wizards has changed names a number of times since I’ve lived here. Throughout it’s life, this building has been called:
- MCI Center
- Verizon Center
- Capital One Arena
Have I ever associated the venue with any of these companies? No. Have I ever thought about the company names when I was there? Absolutely not. When I hear other venues and their names, even when it’s a well known and obvious one (Fed Ex Field?) I never associate it with the company behind the name.
Other than changing names on signage, I wonder how many years it takes for people to start calling the venue by its new name. Jiffy Lube Live used to be called Nissan Pavilion. I called it Nissan for years after the name change and still catch myself referring to the MCI Center. Did I ever think about cars when I went to concerts? No, other than the one I used to drive there.
In my head, the name of a place is completely divorced from the company paying to name it. Other than hilariously stupid or weird names (Jiffy Lube Live!)
And I’m sorry, “Anything Dot Com” Arena/Center is a terrible name.
I recently posted my review of the iPhone 13 Pro, which I thought was a fun review, but didn’t rack up the same number of views as I had hoped it would. When I mentioned this on Twitter, someone mentioned that they expected people were burned out on reviews of the phone already, so they weren’t looking for another one. They were totally right, too! I personally watched a bunch of reviews of the new iPhones when the embargo dropped, but I’ve skipped the rest in my feed that happened after the embargoed ones dropped.
Why Reviews are Hard for Smaller Reviewers
I saw this post by Matt Birchler earlier today and it struck a chord with me and I replied to his post on Micro.blog but also wanted to share it here because it’s something I’d like to see more of in the review world.
Everyone and their 7th cousin is out there writing unboxing and Hot Takes™ on the new things.
Who is out there writing the “I’ve had this a week or a month and here’s how it feels” posts?
What about Here’s the X things I felt right when I got it. And here’s how I feel now after using it for a 2 weeks?
The world is flooded with people giving their First Looks. But there’s much less real world experiences. How does it actually feel to use day-to-day. Maybe it’s because the views aren’t there for it? Or maybe it’s not sexy because the First Lookers have already abandoned their device for the New Thing™.
I don’t have an answer but the first one out of the gate can tell me what I can see with my own eyes. I want something more.
- Tell me what annoys you that you did not think would matter?
- Tell me about a feature you were excited for but haven’t used since Day 1?
- Tell me about something you didn’t know about and how can’t live without?
- Tell me something that made you smile.
- Tell me something that made you mad.
- What’s something you didn’t know about until a friend’s friend told you? Or you saw in a Tiktok comment on an unrelated video that changed everything for you?
There’s such a gold rush to be first and earliest and loudest out of the gate. But you’re also saying the same thing as everyone else. Give me your impressions as a consumer.
At the end of the day, I trust and enjoy the reviews of people people with devices instead of the Tech Reviewers who have already moved on to the next device, computer, phone, gadget.
Brookside Gardens will always be a special place. The gardens are always beautiful and every time I visit, there’s always something different in bloom.
This weekend’s visit was special because the indoor garden building was open. It has been closed last year and every time we went this year it was a little too late to go inside.
We were able to see the cacti, orchids, palms, and other beautiful indoor dwellers. It was like revisiting old friends. Such a peaceful place to sit and breathe deeply and take in everything around you.
I struggle not to take a thousand pictures every time we visit. I limited myself to just a few. Including the obligatory proof that I leave the house at times.
In the course of making small talk tonight I mentioned my zombie approach to Covid.
I love a good zombie movie and I look at other people I don’t know as zombies. They’re walking through the world and they may be infected.
Zombies
They’re infected. They know they’re infected and they’re doing their best to infect others. Maskless. Unvaccinated. Going about their lives like nothing has changed.
The Unturned
They might be bitten and waiting to turn while trying to convince themselves they’re ok. Meanwhile surrounding themselves with other who may get hurt when they do.
Survivors
They’re perfectly ok and trying to navigate the infected works and trying not to get bitten. Or put themselves in situations to get bitten.
It’s exhausting. Trying to remain uninfected in a world filled with Zombies, the Unturned and Survivors.