SEO Headlines and the typos that render them useless

Have you ever eaten at a Behihana restaurant? I haven’t either. Maybe it’s because they don’t exist.

But according to the headline on the South Florida Business Journal’s Web site, their second quarter sales are slightly up.  You can probably guess that they meant to type Benihana, the popular cook-the-asian-food-in-front-of-you-with-flaming-vegetables restaurant based in Miami. Minor typo really, but the location of the typo in the headline is pivotal.

The thing that gets me is that no one has noticed the error and made the change.  Isn’t that the beauty of online publication? Typos and errors aren’t glued to the page forever. Fixes are easy!

It’s not just the sillyness of spelling a word incorrectly or getting someone’s age wrong.  Incorrect headlines eliminate the ease of searching for stories with keywords.  SEO out the window.  The publication doesn’t just look bad, but your readers are paying the price.

**UPDATE: It just dawned on me that I sent them a resume about a month or so ago for an online content editor position of some sort.  I’m still available if they want me!

Music and Memories

Some people say that your sense of smell is the sense closest connected to your memory.  Some scientists would agree.  To me, one of the strongest memory triggers is the flash of a few notes of a great song.  Music, for me, does more than just heal my sometimes broken soul when it needs soothing the most.  It’s a time machine that transports me back to places that I had long forgotten I ever visited. It’s unexpected reminders of good times and not-so-good times.  Good music is some pretty powerful stuff.

In the spirit of reminiscing about life through my iTunes, may I present a loose musical timeline of my life:

4th Grade = Bought my first CD, “Bleach” by Nirvana. Also first concert, Alanis Morissette. I remember ice-skating parties with lots of Green Day’s “Dookie” blasting.

5th Grade = Weird Al, The Presidents of the United States of America, TLC.

6th Grade = Whichever rap was cool at that moment.  Middle school was rough.

7th Grade = Barenaked Ladies “Stunt” album.  Only the die-hards could sing all the words to “One Week.”

8th Grade = First exposure to Outkast (who I’ve grown to adore), Beck, Fatboy Slim.  Eminem’s “My Name Is” was brand new hotness.  I remember yelling out the bleeped dirty words at the 8th-grade dance.

9th Grade = Punk rock madness. Fenix TX, NOFX, A New Found Glory, etc.  It went along with my “skater” persona. I used to skateboard?? Damn right.

10th Grade = Incubus (saw them live that year), old Nelly Furtado (Not the stuff you hear in the clubs. She used to make some really beautiful music) and first dose of Radiohead. And lots of Bjork too.  My artsy friends hooked it up with the unknown tunes.

11th Grade = One word. Coldplay.

12th Grade = Classic Rock 100%. Getting my Led out all day, every day.

Freshman year of college = My love for non-Top-40 hits takes off.  Listening to The Postal Service will forever bring me back to the days of sitting at my desk in my dorm on the third floor of Rawlings Hall, windows open, listening to the RTS city buses pull in and out of the service drive.  First time I heard Jack Johnson, Gavin DeGraw, Death Cab for Cutie, The Shins. I was all about the Garden State Soundtrack.

Sophomore year of college = Dave Matthews Band.  I guess that fits into the “cliche” category. Saw him live at the O’Dome. Crappy seats, awesome tunes.

Junior year of college = Roommates played a big role that year in what I listened to.  Got my first taste of country that I actually liked in Rascal Flatts. Mary reminded me how awesome Third Eye Blind was during a road trip. Saw Jimmy Buffett and Steve Miller Band live, among others.

Senior year of college = Anything and everything that is awesome.  Fall in Gainesville of senior year was Radiohead’s “In Rainbows” on repeat when I walked to and from the bus stop. Kanye West’s “Graduation” when I worked out. Lots of indie stuff on nights with bottles of wine. Band Marino, The Avett Brothers, Band of Horses, The Format, etc.

I don’t know what my brain would contain in the absense of exposure to all the songs and artists that are now engrained in who I am.  I wonder if that’s what musicians hope to achieve within their fans.  To have their melodies and lyrics weaved permanently into the intricacies of life.  If so, mission accomplished.

Undecided votes just don’t make sense

While visiting my friendly neighborhood optometrist today for my yearly eye exam, we struck up the water cooler conversation that I’m sure was taking place in every other office this morning; an analysis of last night’s presidential debate.

Immediately Dr. Heiden brought up a point that I hadn’t thought much about but that made complete sense to me.  Why the heck are there still so many undecided voters? These two candidates are so starkly different in policy plans, demeanor, personality and management style that you either like one and not the other.  There isn’t a thin line to walk here. You’re either for abortion rights or you’re against them.  You’re either for nationalized healthcare or you’re for a free-market privatized system.  You want the war to end or you think it would be, as Governor Palin says, a “white flag of surrender.”  There is a not a thin line to be drawn between the candidates differences in this year’s election.  Historically, during times of a more steady economy, no wars being fought and a general sense of overall stability, candidates from either party could more easily be mirrors of each other, aside from certain social issues that have become standard labels of each party.  It was harder to find policy differences because there had been no reason to make major policy changes.

Well if you haven’t figured it out by now, this is clearly not one of those years. It’s obvious that the country is standing at one of those pesky forks in the road that make voting so much more important (this is all stuff you’ve heard before).  The thing is, there are signs on both paths that clearly indicate where our potential leaders would like to take us.  So suck it up, educate yourself on the issues that are keeping you from choosing a candidate, and make a decision that you can live with two, three, ten years from now.

And please, PLEASE, don’t hitchhike away from the fork with a wandering lonely traveler by choosing a third-party candidate that, sadly so, will not be leading the country in January.

Presidential Debate playlist

It’s always a nice challenge to tie music into all aspects of life.  With 40 minutes left until McCain and Obama take the stage in the first presidential debate, I give you my debate-watching playlist:

1. “I Won’t Back Down” – Tom Petty

2. “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” – Tears for Fears

3. “Dangerous Age” – Raul Midon

4. “Bring the Boys Back Home” – Pink Floyd

5. “In Our Darkest Hour” – Phantom Planet

6. “America” – Simon & Garfunkle

7. “American Patriot” – Band Marino

8. “Black President” – Nas

9. “High Hopes” – Pink Floyd

10. “American Terrorist” – Lupe Fiasco ft. Matthew Santos

Enjoy!

Obama ’08!

Sunset on an internship and more of the waiting game

Lots of kind folks have been inquiring about the status of my grown-up life that I’m still working on getting established.  It’s always warming to know that there are people who are genuinely concerned and curious and rooting for me to do well.

I’ve been recently reminded that life is about making some pretty big decisions, where the outcome is usually unknown.

I was honored to be granted an internship with the multimedia team at the Las Vegas Sun, an opportunity that freaked me out with excitement and nervousness.  I’d have to pack a bunch of stuff and be moved from South Florida to Vegas ASAP, with my car, so that means a very long road trip.   At the same time, a little birdie (my sister-in-law) passed word along about an opening with her boss, Democratic State Senator Nan Rich, as a Legislative Aide.  With her offices based close to home in South Florida and the prospect of actually having a career salary and benefits with the chance at some sweet political experience, I was in a pickle.

After an unsuccessful search for short-term housing in Vegas and adding up the costs, moving there for three months was just not feasible for my current situation.  Now, I understand that some people will want to slap me up-side my head and shake me for that but c’est la vie. I have to thank the Sun for being so understanding about the whole situation and doing their best to help me get setup, even if it didn’t work out.

So now I wait. Resume has been sent, suit has been purchased, and I’m eager to talk politics with the Senator, but she is a busy, busy lady.

And while I wait, I start part-time at Banana Republic tonight which means at the very least, I’ll accumlate a pretty sleek wardrobe and some spending money in the meantime.

Apologies for the lack of real postings that have nothing to do with my personal life.  Those will be back soon.